FIRST ATTEMPT OK THK ZONK APPROACH FOR SAFKGUAKIHNG THK LOW F.NR1CHMF.NT URANIUM KUKL CYCLE THK CASE OK THE REPUBLIC OK KOREA

The application of the so-called \"zone approach\" to the LEU fuel cycle had been discussed for many years, but, contrary to the case of the natural uranium fuel cycle, it was never implemented. The first implementation was carried out in the Republic of Korea in 1989; the facilities involved in the exercise were: one low-enriched uranium fuel fabrication plant with an annual throughput of 200 tons of low enriched uranium and eight light water power reactors in three different locations. The LEU fuel fabrication plant and the fresh fuel storage of the power plants were considered as the \"zone\". The paper describes the implementation of the zone approach and the results of this implementation. Some consideration of its advantages over the traditional approach is also given.