Transportation and Disposal of Low-and Medium Level Waste using Fiber Reinforced Concrete Overpacks

Radioactive waste immobilization is an integral part of operations in nuclear facilities. The goal of immobilization is to contain radioactive materials in a waste form which can maintain its integrity over very long periods of time, thus effectively isolating the materials from the environment and hence from the public. This is true regardless of the activity of the waste, including low-, and medium-level waste (LLW, MLW). A multiple-year research effort by Cogema culminated in the development of a new process to immobilize nuclear waste in concrete overpacks reinforced with metal fibers. The fiber concrete overpacks satisfy all French safety requirements relating to waste immobilization and disposal, and have been certified by Andra, the national radioactive waste management agency. The fiber concrete overpacks have been fabricated on a production scale since July 1990 by Sogefibre, a jointly-owned subsidiary of SGN and Compagnie Generate des Eaux. This presentation will cover the use of the fiber-reinforced concrete overpack for disposal and transportation, and will discuss their fabrication.