Year
1972
Abstract
The General Electric Company is one of several industrial concerns which has a significant investment in the development and growth of the nuclear industry. This commitment is centered around the boiling water reactor and auxiliary components of the nuclear steam supply system, including various aspects of the nuclear fuel cycle. A substantial investment has been made in providing low enriched uranium fuels for light water reactors, and a similar commitment in the breeder reactor is anticipated. An accompanying step is the participation in the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuels. General Electric has designed and built the Midwest Fuel Recovery Plant (MFRP) which is located near Morris, Illinois. At the present time, cold tests are underway; and these tests will be followed by hot commercial operation toward the end of this year. The plant is equipped to reprocess low enriched fuel (less than 5% U-235) for the recovery of usable products which are in the form of uranium hexafluoride, plutonium nitrate and neptunium nitrate. A key requirement in the operation of this facility is the need to accurately account for special nuclear materials. This requirement is based on two complementary needs: First, the high value of special nuclear materials demands high accuracy since small measurement errors can multiply into large dollar differences; and second, safeguards requirements demand equally high accuracy to assure timely detection of the diversion or attempted diversion to unauthorized uses. In order to provide the necessary assurance that special nuclear materials at the MFRP are adequately and efficiently accounted for, many special design considerations were utilized. Subsequently, the plant was analyzed in detail to delineate its operation, measurement capability, and material disposition. This detailed evaluation was then utilized to form a comprehensive material management system which resulted in a computerized plant model. This model has been used to characterize expected plant performance. Additionally, the model is used in practice to monitor actual plant performance.