The Management of Defense High-Level Radioactive Waste at the Idaho Chemical Processing Plant

Irradiated nuclear fuel has been reprocessed at the Idaho Chemical Processing Plant (ICPP) since 1953 to recover uranium-235 and krypton-85. The resulting high-level waste (HLW) has been solidified to a calcine since 1963. Three alternative waste management strategies, which are considered for the final disposal of ICPP HLW include: (A) disposal of all HLW in a geologic repository, (B) disposal of all HLW in a near-surface facility on site, or (C) disposal of newly generated HLW in a repository and stored calcined waste on site. The volume of ICPP HLW projected for future annual generation is expected to increase by four-fold compared to historical processing rates. Using existing technology, a glass waste form containing 33 wt% calcine would fill approximately 1700 canisters/yr (0.63 m³/canister) based on projected average annual waste generation rates. Thus, research is focusing on technologies that can reduce the volume of immobilized HLW in a practical and cost-effective manner. This paper will describe the glass-ceramic waste form and other process options for immobilizing the HLW at a reduced volume for repository disposal. Other materials, such as spent fuel in storage at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, which may require repository disposal, will be described.