Safeguards concepts for spent fuel conditioning facilities

Spent fuel conditioning is a likely option prior to disposal in geological repositories. During conditioning, spent fuel assemblies will be repacked with possible dismantling or even chopping in a final disposal container. Loss of identity of fuel assemblies will have a major impact on safeguards. The inventory of final disposal containers has to be re-established. This would require the development of an advanced accountancy verification and containment and surveillance technique in order to maintain effective safeguards. This paper identifies the system requirements for conditioning plants which would provide adequate assurance of non-diversion of nuclear material