A HEAVY RAILWAY WAGON FOR HEAVY SPENT FUEL CASKS

Generally, for the transport of radioactive materials the engineering activity concentrates its efforts on the optimization of the package design. In fact, it is very important to consider the whole transport system and in particular the necessary equipment for the transport of the packaging. The present paper illustrates the global approach in the domain of railway transport. Transnucléaire is developing new casks designed for the transport of spent fuel (for reprocessing or interim storage) and radioactive waste (for interim storage). These heavier and bulkier packagings of B(U) type with an increased capacity for loading are designed in conformity with regulations of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Therefore, Transnucléaire has identified the need to develop a high performance rail wagon able to transport commercially such heavy packaging with reinforced capacity compared to the wagons of the current fleet for which the packaging weight is limited. Based on a long experience of radioactive materials railway transport, with an existing fleet of 32 wagons (type Q70), COGEMA as the owner and Transnucléaire have launched the development of a new design of wagon, the Q76 type (fig. 1), which has been certified since June 2000. Presently, one Q76 wagon is operating and the manufacturing of complementary wagons is scheduled in the near future. The principal characteristics of the wagon are developed in chapter I. Chapter II describes all static, dynamic tests and ride trials which were done to validate the performances of the wagon. In France, the engineering departments of the French railway company SNCF are in charge of the technical evaluation and of the application to the French Ministry of Transport who delivers the transport license. Chapter III presents the range of application of the wagon and some examples of its sales application.