Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation (ISFSI)

Dry Cask StorageNUCP 2311

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History• 1982 Congress Passed

Nuclear Waste Policy Act

• Spent Fuel Pools near Capacity

• 1st Dry Storage System licensed in 1986 at Surry Power Station

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History• 27 Dry Storage Sites (as of March 2003)

• Licensed at Reactor Sites• 1 Licensed for TMI-2 Fuel Debris

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Licensing

• 10CFR72– Dry Storage Casks• Designs Approve by NRC• Currently 15 in use (as of December 2004)

– Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation (ISFSI)• Site-Specific• General

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Licensing – Dry Storage Casks

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Licensing – Dry Storage Casks• Licenses (one or both)– Storage– Transport

• Specifications– 17 feet height– 180,000 lbs. (230,000 lbs. fully-loaded)– Holds 30 – 60 fuel assemblies

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Licensing – Dry Storage Casks

• Maximum Burnup 60 MWD/MTU (most around 45 MWD/MTU)

• Minimum Decay time in SFP:5 – 10 years

• 20 – 30 kW thermal (depends on size)• Maximum Enrichment 5%

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Licensing – Dry Storage Casks• Typical Materials– Structural• Carbon Steel• Stainless Steels• Concrete

– Shielding• Borated Resin• Borated Aluminum• Lead

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Licensing – Dry Storage Casks

• Mother Nature– Wind / Tornados– Missiles (trees, telephone poles)– Snow and Ice– Earthquakes

• Accidents– Cask Tip-over– Cask Drop– Fire– Loss of Cooling (vents blocked)

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Licensing – ISFSI Pad• Example Pad

(At Indian Point Energy Center)

– 3 feet thick– 100 x 200 feet– 21 miles of rebar– 2000 cubic yards of

concrete

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Licensing – ISFSI Vaults• Pre-made concrete

structures• Assembled on-site

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Dry Storage Casks - Types

CASTOR – General Nuclear Systems, Inc.

NAC – NAC International, Inc.

NUHOMS – Transnuclear, Inc.

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Dry Storage Cask - SFP

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Dry Storage Casks - Loading

• Loading Cask in SFP

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Dry Cask Storage - Loading• Remove water and fill with Inert gas• Bolt and Weld Lid

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Dry Cask Storage - Transportation• Load onto Cask

Transporter

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Dry Cask Storage - Transportation

• Place on Cask Pad or in Vault

Above Ground Storage of SNF

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Dry Cask Storage - Transportation

• Transport off-site– Train, Barge, and Truck

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ISFSI Summary

• ISFSI is a good temporary disposal method• New casks designs can be safely transported

to Yucca Mountain• New cask designs can handle high-burnup fuel