Analysis of the Non-Cylindrical GA-4 and GA-9 Spent Fuel Casks

The Nuclear Waste Policy Act (NWPA) of 1982 mandates that the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) establish an integrated waste management system for permanent disposal of spent nuclear fuel, commercial and defense high-level wastes, and any other waste form declared by the U.S . Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to require permanent isolation. The mission goals of DOE's Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM) require that the system be designed for maximum capacity at minimum cost within existing regulations. To support this objective, OCRWM has awarded General Atomics (GA) a contract to develop the GA-4 and GA-9 legal weight truck (LWT) transportation systems to transport pressurized-water-reactor (PWR) and boiling-water-reactor (BWR) spent fuels.