Alpha nuclides in nuclear power plants

In a joint research project of VGB and AREVA NP GmbH the behavior of alpha nuclides in nuclear power plants has been investigated since 2005. The main source of alpha nuclides is core contamination with fissile material (so called tramp uranium or tramp fuel) which deposits on fuel rod surfaces and leads to the build-up of transuranium nuclides. Such alpha-nuclides are of special interest for health physics due to their high biological effectiveness. Having very high dose factors they lead to high dose weighting in case of incorporation. At NPC 2008 first results of the joint research project were presented concerning tramp fuel and its impact to alpha nuclides. The present publication will cover the ongoing results of this research project. A special focus is taken to deduce recommendations which allow plant operation personal to recognize situations in advance which can lead to enhanced appearance of alpha nuclides. Depending on the fuel conditions in the core and the activity level of fission products of the reactor coolant a better prediction of the alpha situation at the following outage and maintenance can be deduced. (author)