Development of remote laser cutting and decontamination system

Recently, various remote cutting and decontamination technologies for decommissioning works in nuclear facilities have been developed. One of the technologies is a laser technology which has good capabilities for such kinds of works. Remote controllability is one of the advantages of a laser system. Because in general the laser head is light and compact compared to the other tools, the head can be easily handled by remote operation equipment such as manipulators. As the other example of the advantages, a laser system does not generate secondary waste like contaminated water generated from waterjet methods. This paper provides the outline of the remote laser cutting and decontamination system recently developed by IHI. (author)