Back-end costs of alternative nuclear fuel cycles

As part of its charter, the Alternate Fuel Cycle Evaluation Program (AFCEP) was directed to evaluate the back-end of the nuclear fuel cycle in support of the Nonproliferation Alternative Systems Assessment Program (NASAP). The principal conclusion from this study is that the costs for recycling a broad range of reactor fuels will not have a large impact on total fuel cycle costs. For the once-through fuel cycle, the costs of fresh fuel fabrication, irradiated fuel storage, and associated transportation is about 1.2 to 1.3 mills/kWh. For the recycle of uranium and plutonium into thermal reactors, the back-cycle costs (i.e., the costs of irradiated fuel storage, transportation, reprocessing, refabrication, and waste disposal) will be from 3 to 3.5 mills/kWh. The costs for the recycle of uranium and plutonium into fast breeder reactors will be from 4.5 to 5 mills/kWh. Using a radioactive spikant or a denatured 233U-Th cycle will increase power costs for both recycle cases by about 1 mill/kWh. None of these costs substantially influence the total cost of nuclear power, which is in the range of 4 cents/kWh. The fuel cycle costs used in this study do not include costs incurred prior to fuel fabrication; that is, the cost of the uranium or thorium, the costs for enrichment, or credit for fissile materials in the discharged fuel, which is not recycled with the system