NRF TRIGA Packaging

Training Reactor Isotopes, General Atomics (TRIGA)1 Reactors are in use at 4 U.S. Deparonent of Energy (DOE) complex facilities and at least 23 university, commercial, or Government facilities. All TRIGA reactor facilities are much smaller than commercial nuclear reactors, and the fuel elements, which are designed by General Atomics, are close to one-third the size of a commercial fuel element. The TRIGA fuel elements are inherently safe, based upon their design for use in training reactors. Currently, the only method of transport for the TRIGA fuel elements is by use of a large, approximately 30,000-lb (13,636-kg), transportation packaging. This packaging is not operationally feasible for use at the majority of the small TRIGA reactor facilities. The development of the Neutron Radiography Facility (NRF) TRIG A packaging system began in October 1993. The Hanford Site NRF is being shut down and requires an operationally user-friendly transportation and storage packaging system for removal of the TRIGA fuel elements. The NRF TRIGA packaging system is designed to remotely remove the fuel from the reactor and transport the fuel to interim storage (up to 50 years) on the Hanford Site. The packaging system consists of a cask and an overpack. The overpack is used only for transport and is not necessary for storage. It was determined that it is economically feasible to design a packaging system that would meet the intent of U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission regulation 10 CFR 71 and long-term spent-fuel storage requirements as well as a small, lightweight, user-friendly cask for the small NRF. Design of the packaging system began in October 1993. Use of the NRF TRIGA cask began in September 1995, and complete defueling of the Hanford Site NRF is expected by December 1995. Therefore, less than 2 years were required to design, analyze, prepare Safety Analysis Report for Packaging (SARP [onsite]) documentation, and fabricate required casks and overpacks for the 99 fuel elements.