Report on the Incident at Japan's Tokai Reprocessing Bituminization Facility

The bituminization demonstration facility (hereinafter called the \"BDF\") was constructed for processing low-level radioactive waste liquid discharged from separation/purification plants or other facilities. The facility consists of a ferroconcrete building with four stories above the ground level and two basements and a floor area of 850 square meters. On its first floor, an extruder room (in which an extruder is installed), a bitumen filling room (where drums or other types of containers are filled with the bitumen-added waste), and a number of other rooms are laid out. The low-level radioactive liquid delivered to the BDF is adjusted using additional required liquid and fed to the extruder (which dehydrates the liquid and kneads it with fresh bitumen). The resulting mixture of waste liquid and bitumen is poured into empty drums placed on the turntable.