The conditioning and storage of intermediate level wastes in the UK

The nuclear power industry, like all complex industrial activities, results in the production of wastes. The classification of waste types in the UK has been defined as follows: (a) High level (heat generating) wastes (HLW) (b) Low level wastes (LLW) contain radioactive materials other than those acceptable for dustbin disposal (very low level), but not exceeding 4 GBq/te alpha or 12 GBq/te beta/gamma. (c) Intermediate level wastes (ILW) are those containing radioactivity above the levels set for low level waste, but which do not require heating to be taken into account in the design of storage or disposal facilities. ILW are generated at many nuclear establishments throughout the UK including commercial nuclear reactors, UKAEA research facilities, prototype reactors and fuel fabrication, enrichment and reprocessing plants. The most diverse and greatest volume arisings of ILW in the UK arises at the British Nuclear Fuels plc (BNFL) site at Sellafield and this paper is concerned primarily with the conditioning and treatment of those ILW