Transport of irradiated fuel pins

The transport of irradiated fuel pins is important to be able to investigate the behavior of the fuel after irradiation; in the Western Europe, these transports are using the BG 18 since 2001. The R 72 packaging has been taken in operation in 2009. The presentation will focus on different aspects : ? Experience gained with the BG 18 packaging. This aspect will give more information about the lessons learned during the last 3 years of transports, mainly related to the organization of international transports and the associated difficulties, but also the loading and unloading on-site activities. ? The use of the new R 72, approved in 2009, from cold testing to transport operations. More information will be given on the broad possibilities offered by this new packaging for loading and unloading. ? The difficulty of leaking fuel pins. When utilities encounter situations of leaking fuel, it is important to investigate the causes leading to the leak, and therefore transport the leaking fuel pins to hotlabs. The difficulty to obtain an approval for leaking fuel pins will be explained, leading today to a situation where these transports are not possible with the R 72 packaging. ? The specific case of the first use of the R 72 packaging will be outlined; due to the old infrastructures, the loading of the R 72 in Avogadro (Italy) was in a first step considered as impossible. After all, the loading has been done in a very unusual way, by means of a upside-down shielding, taking the fuel pins with a pneumatic gripping device trough an opening on the shielding. This shielding as been docked to the R 72 packaging in vertical position, allowing the fuel pins to be lowered in the R 72 with minimal gaps. The story of one year preparation for one week on-site work.