Waste management and radiological safety implications of using plutonium as a fuel in UK thermal reactors

This report presents the results of a study of the waste management and radiological safety implications of a potential strategy of plutonium recycle in the form of mixed oxide fuel (MOX) in Advanced Gas cooled Reactors (AGRs) or Pressurised Water Reactors (PWRs) in the UK. A review has been made of the experience in the prediction of reactor physics parameters for MOX fuel, the fabrication of MOX fuel and of reactor operator experience. Additionally, the aspects of plutonium oxide and MOX fuel handling, transport and processing have been examined. The main conclusions of the study were that the volumes of solid wastes and the public and operator doses arising from plutonium handling and MOX fuel fabrication are not a large proportion of those associated with the fuel cycle; volumes of solid wastes and the public and operator doses from the use of plutonium fuel in thermal reactors are not markedly different from those when slightly enriched uranium fuel is used; reprocessing of a small amount of MOX fuel in THORP beyond 2002 appears feasible and overall waste volumes and doses are similar for the UO2 and UO2/MOX cases; direct disposal of MOX fuel, as an alternative to reprocessing, should pose few additional problems compared with the direct disposal of UO2 fuel; use of MOX fuel in AGRs is unfavourable on cost grounds. (author)