European experience with asphalt packaging of radioactive wastes

In Europe, the use of asphalt is synonymous with volume reduction of low and medium level radioactive waste. It started at Marcoule, France in the early 1960's and soon was adopted by Karlsruhe in West Germany, Eurochemic in Belgium, and in other countries. The use of an asphalt (or bitumen) binder, or immobilizing agent, in the VRS (Volume Reduction and Solidification) process proved to be beneficial in many ways. At Karlsruhe, for example, the VRS asphalt system replaced a cement system (non-volume reducing) and resulted in two drums of solidified waste versus ten with cement. This process reduced the transportation problem considerably. Asphalt is an inert, waterproof material and provides significantly improved package integrity under all conditions of on-site storage, transportation, and burial. The asphalt VRS system provides considerable cost savings, particularly for the recurring items such as binder, containers, transportation, and burial. These annual savings may approach $500,000 annually for a 1000 MWe nuclear plant. End product advantages include higher resistance to leaching and other environmental impacts, as well as less internal corrosion of the drums