CA1096644A - System for the storage of radioactive material in rock - Google Patents
System for the storage of radioactive material in rockInfo
- Publication number
- CA1096644A CA1096644A CA292,492A CA292492A CA1096644A CA 1096644 A CA1096644 A CA 1096644A CA 292492 A CA292492 A CA 292492A CA 1096644 A CA1096644 A CA 1096644A
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- cavity
- rock
- repository
- space
- concrete
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired
Links
- 239000011435 rock Substances 0.000 title claims abstract description 76
- 239000012857 radioactive material Substances 0.000 title claims abstract description 33
- 238000003860 storage Methods 0.000 title claims abstract description 24
- 239000004927 clay Substances 0.000 claims abstract description 46
- 239000011343 solid material Substances 0.000 claims abstract description 4
- 239000004567 concrete Substances 0.000 claims description 46
- 239000000463 material Substances 0.000 claims description 39
- 230000008093 supporting effect Effects 0.000 claims description 14
- 238000009412 basement excavation Methods 0.000 claims description 7
- 230000015572 biosynthetic process Effects 0.000 claims description 7
- 239000002826 coolant Substances 0.000 claims description 7
- 238000001816 cooling Methods 0.000 claims description 7
- 239000003779 heat-resistant material Substances 0.000 claims 1
- 239000002901 radioactive waste Substances 0.000 abstract description 12
- 239000002915 spent fuel radioactive waste Substances 0.000 abstract description 11
- 238000012958 reprocessing Methods 0.000 abstract description 10
- 230000004888 barrier function Effects 0.000 abstract description 3
- 239000002699 waste material Substances 0.000 description 17
- 230000002285 radioactive effect Effects 0.000 description 10
- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 description 9
- 239000000446 fuel Substances 0.000 description 8
- 230000005855 radiation Effects 0.000 description 8
- XLYOFNOQVPJJNP-UHFFFAOYSA-N water Substances O XLYOFNOQVPJJNP-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 8
- 238000010276 construction Methods 0.000 description 7
- 239000003673 groundwater Substances 0.000 description 7
- 229910052778 Plutonium Inorganic materials 0.000 description 4
- 229910052770 Uranium Inorganic materials 0.000 description 4
- 230000009471 action Effects 0.000 description 4
- OYEHPCDNVJXUIW-UHFFFAOYSA-N plutonium atom Chemical compound [Pu] OYEHPCDNVJXUIW-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 4
- 239000011150 reinforced concrete Substances 0.000 description 4
- JFALSRSLKYAFGM-UHFFFAOYSA-N uranium(0) Chemical compound [U] JFALSRSLKYAFGM-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 4
- 239000007787 solid Substances 0.000 description 3
- 230000000712 assembly Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000000429 assembly Methods 0.000 description 2
- 238000005266 casting Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000001419 dependent effect Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000009826 distribution Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000004992 fission Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000005755 formation reaction Methods 0.000 description 2
- 239000002927 high level radioactive waste Substances 0.000 description 2
- 238000002347 injection Methods 0.000 description 2
- 239000007924 injection Substances 0.000 description 2
- 239000003758 nuclear fuel Substances 0.000 description 2
- 238000005192 partition Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000000149 penetrating effect Effects 0.000 description 2
- 239000004033 plastic Substances 0.000 description 2
- 229920003023 plastic Polymers 0.000 description 2
- 238000003608 radiolysis reaction Methods 0.000 description 2
- 239000000243 solution Substances 0.000 description 2
- 239000003381 stabilizer Substances 0.000 description 2
- 239000000126 substance Substances 0.000 description 2
- 229920001875 Ebonite Polymers 0.000 description 1
- XUIMIQQOPSSXEZ-UHFFFAOYSA-N Silicon Chemical compound [Si] XUIMIQQOPSSXEZ-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 239000004115 Sodium Silicate Substances 0.000 description 1
- 229910000831 Steel Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 230000004308 accommodation Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000007864 aqueous solution Substances 0.000 description 1
- QVGXLLKOCUKJST-UHFFFAOYSA-N atomic oxygen Chemical compound [O] QVGXLLKOCUKJST-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 238000005422 blasting Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000004891 communication Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000005336 cracking Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000003247 decreasing effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000006073 displacement reaction Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000000694 effects Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000011521 glass Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000005816 glass manufacturing process Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000007689 inspection Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000011810 insulating material Substances 0.000 description 1
- 150000002500 ions Chemical class 0.000 description 1
- 238000005259 measurement Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000004048 modification Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000012986 modification Methods 0.000 description 1
- 229910052760 oxygen Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 239000001301 oxygen Substances 0.000 description 1
- OYEHPCDNVJXUIW-YPZZEJLDSA-N plutonium-242 Chemical compound [242Pu] OYEHPCDNVJXUIW-YPZZEJLDSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 238000001556 precipitation Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000008569 process Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000012545 processing Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000011084 recovery Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000000630 rising effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000012216 screening Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000007789 sealing Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000003566 sealing material Substances 0.000 description 1
- NTHWMYGWWRZVTN-UHFFFAOYSA-N sodium silicate Chemical compound [Na+].[Na+].[O-][Si]([O-])=O NTHWMYGWWRZVTN-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 229910052911 sodium silicate Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 239000010959 steel Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000009466 transformation Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000009423 ventilation Methods 0.000 description 1
Classifications
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G21—NUCLEAR PHYSICS; NUCLEAR ENGINEERING
- G21F—PROTECTION AGAINST X-RADIATION, GAMMA RADIATION, CORPUSCULAR RADIATION OR PARTICLE BOMBARDMENT; TREATING RADIOACTIVELY CONTAMINATED MATERIAL; DECONTAMINATION ARRANGEMENTS THEREFOR
- G21F7/00—Shielded cells or rooms
-
- E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
- E21—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; MINING
- E21D—SHAFTS; TUNNELS; GALLERIES; LARGE UNDERGROUND CHAMBERS
- E21D13/00—Large underground chambers; Methods or apparatus for making them
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G21—NUCLEAR PHYSICS; NUCLEAR ENGINEERING
- G21F—PROTECTION AGAINST X-RADIATION, GAMMA RADIATION, CORPUSCULAR RADIATION OR PARTICLE BOMBARDMENT; TREATING RADIOACTIVELY CONTAMINATED MATERIAL; DECONTAMINATION ARRANGEMENTS THEREFOR
- G21F9/00—Treating radioactively contaminated material; Decontamination arrangements therefor
- G21F9/28—Treating solids
- G21F9/34—Disposal of solid waste
Landscapes
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
- Mining & Mineral Resources (AREA)
- High Energy & Nuclear Physics (AREA)
- General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- General Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
- Environmental & Geological Engineering (AREA)
- Geology (AREA)
- Geochemistry & Mineralogy (AREA)
- Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
- Processing Of Solid Wastes (AREA)
- Underground Structures, Protecting, Testing And Restoring Foundations (AREA)
- Filling Or Discharging Of Gas Storage Vessels (AREA)
- Silicates, Zeolites, And Molecular Sieves (AREA)
Abstract
ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
An underground repository for the storage of radioactive material, particularly spent fuel from nuclear reactors and radioactive wastes produced by reprocessing spent nuclear fuel. The repository comprises a hollow body of solid material for accommodating the radioactive material. The hollow body is surrounded by a shell or barrier of clay. The hollow body and the clay barrier are located in a cavity in rock, the clay filling the space between the hollow body and the inside of the rock cavity.
An underground repository for the storage of radioactive material, particularly spent fuel from nuclear reactors and radioactive wastes produced by reprocessing spent nuclear fuel. The repository comprises a hollow body of solid material for accommodating the radioactive material. The hollow body is surrounded by a shell or barrier of clay. The hollow body and the clay barrier are located in a cavity in rock, the clay filling the space between the hollow body and the inside of the rock cavity.
Description
i6~
The invention relates to a system for the storage of radioactive material in rock and more particularly to a repository for -the lon~-term storage of spent fuel from nuclear reactors and radioactive waste that is produced by reprocessing used nuclear fuel.
The fuel elements of a nuclear reactor must be removed after some time and replaced by new fuel. The spent fuel contains uranium, plutonium and fission products. The uranium and plutonium can ~e recovered by a reprocessing operation and used 1~ again as fuel. However, the present methods of reprocessing do not allow the recovery of all uranium and plutonium, and in the reprocessing operation a waste is produced which in addition to a large number of fission products also contains small amounts of uranium and plutonium and other transuranic elements. Mos-t of the wastes are highly radioactive and disintegrate under gradual transformation into stable elements. ~uring the disintegration radiation of different kind is emitted. The disintegration rate of different wastes is highly different and may vary from fractions of seconds to millions of years~ Plutonium-242 e.g.
has a half-life of 380 000 years.
Since intense radioactive radiation is dangerous to living organisms it is necessary to store th'is high-levèl waste during a long period (thousands of years) in such a way that it is kept isolated from all life.
In the reprocessing operation the high-level waste is sepa-; rated in the form of an aqueous solution which is concentrated as~
:;
The invention relates to a system for the storage of radioactive material in rock and more particularly to a repository for -the lon~-term storage of spent fuel from nuclear reactors and radioactive waste that is produced by reprocessing used nuclear fuel.
The fuel elements of a nuclear reactor must be removed after some time and replaced by new fuel. The spent fuel contains uranium, plutonium and fission products. The uranium and plutonium can ~e recovered by a reprocessing operation and used 1~ again as fuel. However, the present methods of reprocessing do not allow the recovery of all uranium and plutonium, and in the reprocessing operation a waste is produced which in addition to a large number of fission products also contains small amounts of uranium and plutonium and other transuranic elements. Mos-t of the wastes are highly radioactive and disintegrate under gradual transformation into stable elements. ~uring the disintegration radiation of different kind is emitted. The disintegration rate of different wastes is highly different and may vary from fractions of seconds to millions of years~ Plutonium-242 e.g.
has a half-life of 380 000 years.
Since intense radioactive radiation is dangerous to living organisms it is necessary to store th'is high-levèl waste during a long period (thousands of years) in such a way that it is kept isolated from all life.
In the reprocessing operation the high-level waste is sepa-; rated in the form of an aqueous solution which is concentrated as~
:;
- 2 - ~ ~
,. . . . . ~ , . . ~, .
&~
much as possible. However, tllis solution is not sulted for final storage, and after a certain cooling period it is therefore con-verted into solid form. It is thought that the best method of converting the waste to solici form is to vitrify the waste. This means that the waste solution is evaporated and calcinated and then heated to a suitable temperature with an addition of glass making substances. By this process a fused glass mass is ob-tained which is filled into containers or canisters. These canisters are then placed in a suitable repository.
It has been proposed that the solidified high-level waste should be finally stored in rock cavities located at a great depth in bedrock. One proposed storage system of this kind consists of a receiving station located on the ground surface for receiving the waste. A vertical transport tunnel is bored from this receiving station to a great depth into the bedrock,and ~rom the bottom part of this vertical tunnel a horizontal transport tunnel is extended in the bottom of which is taken up a number of vertical holes. By means of automatic transport vehicles the waste canisters are transported through said tunnels and are lowered like plugs into the vertical holes in the bottom of the horizontal tunnel.
As the holes are filled with waste canisters they are sealed at the top e.g. with concrete. `
Such a repository provides an effective screening of the~
radioactive radiation. However, the bedrock does not constitute any homogenous material but usually contains crevices and cavities and often contains ground water. The rock may also be subjected to deformations e.g. by earth quakes. Also, for various reasons the bedrock may undergo slowly proceedin~ deformations. In a repository of the kind described above there is a risk that such deformations
,. . . . . ~ , . . ~, .
&~
much as possible. However, tllis solution is not sulted for final storage, and after a certain cooling period it is therefore con-verted into solid form. It is thought that the best method of converting the waste to solici form is to vitrify the waste. This means that the waste solution is evaporated and calcinated and then heated to a suitable temperature with an addition of glass making substances. By this process a fused glass mass is ob-tained which is filled into containers or canisters. These canisters are then placed in a suitable repository.
It has been proposed that the solidified high-level waste should be finally stored in rock cavities located at a great depth in bedrock. One proposed storage system of this kind consists of a receiving station located on the ground surface for receiving the waste. A vertical transport tunnel is bored from this receiving station to a great depth into the bedrock,and ~rom the bottom part of this vertical tunnel a horizontal transport tunnel is extended in the bottom of which is taken up a number of vertical holes. By means of automatic transport vehicles the waste canisters are transported through said tunnels and are lowered like plugs into the vertical holes in the bottom of the horizontal tunnel.
As the holes are filled with waste canisters they are sealed at the top e.g. with concrete. `
Such a repository provides an effective screening of the~
radioactive radiation. However, the bedrock does not constitute any homogenous material but usually contains crevices and cavities and often contains ground water. The rock may also be subjected to deformations e.g. by earth quakes. Also, for various reasons the bedrock may undergo slowly proceedin~ deformations. In a repository of the kind described above there is a risk that such deformations
- 3 -L~
of the rock may cause the breakin~ of the waste canisters stored in the rock. Also there is a risk that ground water comes in-to contact with the radioac-tive waste which may thereby be dispersed in an uncontrollable manner. The radioactive disintegration also generates heat which gives rise to convection currents in the ground water. The radioactive radiation may also cause a chemical disintegration, so called radiolysis, of material exposed to the radiation. The radiolysis makes the surrounding water attain a much higher content of oxygen than ordinary water whereby the water becomes highly corrosive so that -there is a risk that the casing of the radioactive was-te will corrode away leaving the waste in direct contact with the ground water.
The object of the present invention is to provide a system for the storage of radioactive material in rock in which the abovementioned hazards are eliminated. Thus, the invention relates to a repository Eulfilling the following requirements:
1) It shall not be possible for the radioactive material to come into contact with ground water and to be spread by this.
2) It shall not be possible for the radioactive material to escape into the environment due to deformations of the rock, e.g. deformations caused by seismic activity (earth quakes).
3) The heat generated by the disintegration of the radioactive material shall be dissipa-ted without any dangerous rise in temperature in the environment.
The repository of this invention is primarily intended for the final storage of the radioactive waste produced by re- ;
processing spent nuclear fuel. However, the repository of the invention could also be used for the interim storage of spent nuclear fuel before this is reprocessed. The repository of the . ~
,. . . .
, :
':
invention namely ~ermits the material stored therein to be easily removed if so desired.
The repository of the invention comprises a hollow body of a solid material the in-terior of which constitutes a space for the accommodation of the radioactive material. This hollow body is placed in an inner cavity in the roc~, said cavity hav:ing larger dimensions than the hollow body which is so situated in -this cavity that its outer side is everywhere spaced from the sides of the cavity. The space between the hollow body and the sides of the inner cavity is filled with a plastically deformable material.
In the rock outside the inner caivity there may be excavated an outer cavity surrounding the inner cavity on all sides and being also filled with a plastically deformable material.
The hollow body is preferably made of concrete and has an ellipsoid-like or spherical shape. ~ereby the hollow body attains a very high resistivity against the action of external forces.
The plastically deformable material surrounding the hollow body and filling the outer cavity preferably is clay. Clay is particularly suited for this purpose because it is capable of absorbing ions, has a small permabili-ty -to water and can be deformed without cracking due to its plas-ticity, The rock mass between the inner and the outer cavity will be wholly embedded by the plastically deformable material. Th~is material may have a sufficient supporting capacity to prevent the rock mass from sinking in it, but to make sure that such sinking shall not occur it may be advisable to stabilize the material by the addition of some suitable stabilizing agent in the area under the rock mass.
Other objects and features of the invention will become ,, ': ,' ' ' :- - . . ~
.
apparent from -the followln~ description with reEerence to the accompanying drawings which show preferred embodiments of the invention.
Fig; 1 shows a vertical section of a repository in accordance with a first embodiment of the invention.
Fig. 2 shows on a larger scale and in section the inner cavity and the hollow body located therein.
Fig. 3 shows a section taken along line I-I in Fig. 1 Fig. 4 shows a vertical section of a repository according to a second embodiment of the invention.
Fig. 5 shows a similar embodimen-t having supPorting means for supporting the hollow body within a concrete shell.
Fig. 6 shows a vertical section of a modification of the embodiment shown in Figures 1 - 3.
Fig. 7 shows a vertical section of another embodiment of the invention.
Fig. 8 shows a half horizontal section taken along line VIII-VIII in Fig. 7.
Fig. 9 shows a half horizontal section taken along line IX-IX in Fig. 7.
Fig. 10 shows in a ver-tical section still another embodimcnt of the invention, Fig. 11 shows on a larger scale the central part of the embodiment according to Fig. lo.
Fig. 12 shows in perspective view a tubeshaped member contained in the interior of the hollow body of Fig. 11.
Fig. 13 shows one of a plurality of concrete balls filliny the interior of the hollow body of Fig. 11.
Referring now to Figs. 1 - 3 numeral 1 designates the ,...._ ~
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bedrock in which the repository is situated at a certain depth under the ground surface 2. In the rock is excavated an inner cavity -the outline of which is designated 3. A hollow body 4 which is made of concrete and the interior of which constitutes the space for accommodating the radioactive material is placed within the cavity 3 in such manner that the outside o~ -the concrete body 4 everywhere is spaced from the wall of the cavity 3. The space between the wall of cavity 3 and the concrete body 4 is filled with clay 5.
The cavity 3 is wholly surrounded by rock mass 6 and this is surrounded by an outer cavity the boundary lines of which are designated 7. The outer cavity 7 is also filled with clay 8.
The cavities 3 and 7 as seen in a horizontal section preferably have a circular form. The boundary walls 7 of the outer cavity as seen in a horizontal section taken along line I-I in Fig. 1 thus form two concentric circles as shown in Fig. 3.
The concrete body 4 which has an ellipsoidal form is provided with an opening at its top which is in communication with a horizontal tunnel 10 through a shaft 9. Through the tunnel 10 and the shaft 9 the radioactive materiai can be transported into the hollow concrete body 4. In Fig. 2 the hollow concrete body 4 is shown in section. Its in-terior is divided by means of horizontal partitions 11 into several apartments located above each other. The partitions 11 are provided with openings 12 which are situated straiyht under the bottom opening of shaft 9. The radioactive material is successively introduced into these apartments beginning with the bottom one. In Fig. 2 some containers 1:3 for the radioactive waste are shown in the bottom apartment. When -the whole volume of an apartment is fully utilized the opening 12 can be closed with a lid 1~ or be permanently sealed.
As shown in Fig. 2 the concrete body 4 is at one side provided with inspec-tion openings 15 into which are fitted windows 16 of lead glacs. The openings 15 o~en into a shaft 17 which extends upwards to the horizontal -tunnel 10 (Fig. 1).
Supervision personnel can be hoisted down through the shaft 17 to inspect visually the interior of the concre-te body 4. The supervision can also be effected by means of a television system having cameras placed in the openings 15 and monitors placed at a supervision site remote from the repository.
The outside of the concrete body 4 may be covered with a layer 18 of plastics which is heat insulating and water tight.
The plastics layer 18 may be provided with cooling channels for the circulation of a suitable coolant.
The inner cavity 3 may also be provided with a layer 23 of a heat insulating material on its walls.
A vertical shaft or boring 19 extends through the rock mass 6 up to the horizontal tunnel 10. In the shaft 19 are mounted measuring devices (not shown) for the measurement of temperature, moisture and radioactive radiation. These measuring devices may be connected through wires in shaft 9 and tunnel 10 with indicating means at a supervision site.
Drainage tunnels 20 may be provided in the bedrock outside the repository extending circularly around the repository. The object of these drainage tunnels 20 is to lead away ground wat~er that my exist in the bedrock outside the repository. A boring 21 extends from the drainage tunnels 20 to the ground surface.
The horizontal tunnel 10 shown in Fig. 1 may communicate :
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directly with a plant for reprocessing spen-t nuclear fuel.
Hereby the hazards accompanying a transport of radioactive wastes are decreased. However, the tunnel 10 is not essential to the system of tlle invention. Thus, the shafts 9, 17, and 19 may open into some suitable building for the reception of the radioactive waste. This building ma~ be situated on the ground surface or in a cavity in the rock.
The system is of course provided with suitable hoisting and transport means for the transport of the radioactive wastes through the shaft 9 and distribution of the wastes in the space within the concrete body 4. Such hoisting and transport means which are preferably remote controlled could be designed according to known techniques and wiIl not be described more in particular.
- The construction of the system can be effected by the use of wellknown methods of rock excavation. At first working and transport tunnels are driven in the rock to the places where the two cavities are to be located. The excavation of the two cavities will take place from below and upwards. The outer - 20 cavity 7 is filled with clay as the rock mass is removed. The clay is compressed so that no cavities will remain in it. In an area situated at the bottom of the outer cavity -the clay could be stabilized by the addition of a suitable stabilizing agent to be capable of supporting more~safely the load of the rock mass 6. Such a s-tabilized area is indicated in Fig. l by dotted lines 22. When the inner cavity 3 is excavated~clay is placed on the bottom of the cavity up to a certain height. Then the hollow ` concrete body and the connecting shafts 9 and 17 are cast. When the concrete has hard_ned and the ln~ulating ~lastlco layer 18 been placed on the outside oE the concrete body the space between the concrete body and the walls oE -the inner cavi-ty is wholly filled with clay. When the structure is comp~eted the said working and transport tunnels may be filled with concrete.
Cracks and fissures that may be presen-t in the rock adjacent to the two cavities could be sealed by injection of concrete.
The repository according to the invention can be said to consist of a plurali-ty of shells of different material arranged within each other, namely in the embodiment shown in Figures 1 - 3, an innermost concrete shell 4, a first shell 5 of clay, a shell 6 consisting of rock mass, and a second shell 8 of clay which is wholly surrounded by the rock.
If displacements and subside~ces should occur in the rock outside the repository these movements of -the rock will first cause a deformation of the outer clay shell 8. If this clay shell is sufficiently thick -the deformation forces will not be trans-ferred to the inner shells. If the deformations should be of such magnitude that even the shell 6 of rock is affected, the deformation forces will be further damped by the inner clay shell 5. The innermost concrete shell 4 which has preferably an ellipsoidal or sherical form has a very high resistivity against pressure forces acting from -the outside. Therefore, not even very extensive deformations, e.g. deformations caused by earth quakes, can affect the system to such extent that even the innermost concrete shell 4 collapses.
Figures 4 and 5 show embodiments which differ from that shown in figures 1 - 3 by the shell 6 of rock shown in figures 1 and 3 being replaced by a shell 106 of concrete which is , - ' ' ' ' ' :
preferably reinforced. Also the form of the outer cavity 7 in the embodiments shown in figures 4 and 5 is somewhat different from the form of cavity 7 shown in figure 1.
The concrete shell or body 106 has ~referably an ellipsoidal (egg-like) form whereby it can bes-t resist the action o~
external forces. The term "ellipsoidal form" also covers a purely spherical form, since a sphere can be considered as a special case of an ellipsoid. Even other forms, e.g. cylindrical, are possible for the shell 106. The thickness of the shell is dependent of the total size of the system and may for instance amount to some meters. The bottom part of shell 106 is preferably formed with a plane horizontal surface.
- The concrete shell 106 and the parts enclosed therein, namely the clay shell 5 and the hollow body 4 with its content of radioactive material, have a considerable weight, and -this weight is to be supported by that part of the plastically deformable material 8 which is located between the bottom portion of shell 106 and the bottom of the cavity 7. The Plastically deformable material may have a sufficient supporting capacity to prevent the shell 106 with its contents from sinking towards the bottom of the cavity 7, but to make sure that such sinking shall not occur it may be advisable to provide supporting means in the plastically deformable material 8 under the shell 106.
Such supporting means are indicated by dotted lines and designated 25 in Fig. 4. Similar supporting means 26 may also be provided at the center of shell 106 and even highér up as shown in the figure. The supporting means 25 and 26 are preferably made of a material which has a very large compressive strength but lS
somewhat elaotic. Such a material is hard rubber. The supporti;ng means 25 and 26 preferably are in the form of rods having e.g.
circular cross-section. This suppor-tin~ means s-tabilize the position of shell 106 within the cavity 7. The suppor-ting means 25 may also consist of pillars of rock remaining af-ter the excavation of the cavi-ty 7.
The construc-tion of the system shown in Fig. 4 can be effected by the use of wellknown methods of rock excavation and concrete casting. At first working and transport tunnels are driven into the rock to the place where tlle cavity 7 is to be situated, and this cavity is excavated. The the cavity 7 is filled with clay or other plastically deformable material up to a certain level above the bottom of the cavity. Then the construction of the concrete shell 106 is begun. This shell is built up in stages. In a first s~tage the shell is built up to a level b, and clay or other plastically deformable material is filled outside the shell u~ to this level. Within the shell 106 clay is filled up to the level c, and within this clay layer the hollow body 4 is built up. The construc-tion of shell 106 then continues in further stages, and as the construction proceeds, clay or other plastically deformable material is filled both within the shell around the hollow body 4 and outside the shell in the space between the outside of the shell and the wall of the cavity 7. If supporting means 25 are to be used these are placed at their respective sites before the filling of the clay.
The hollow body 4 can be positioned within the concrete~
shell 106 by means of supporting means designed and arranged in similar manner as the su~porting means 25 and 26 between the concrete shell 106 and the wall oE the cavity 7.
Fig. 5 illustrates another way o ~positioning the hollow :
, :, ; -~¢3$~
body 4 within the shell 106. ~lere the hollow body 4 is sus~ended by stays or wires 27 and 28 which may be made of steel. One end of each stay 27 and 28 is anchored in known manner in the body 4 and the other end is anchorecl in the concrete shell 106.
If the space between the hollow body 4 and the concrete shell 106 is filled with a plastically deforma~le material, e.g.
clay, this material will exert a pressure on all sides of the hollow body 4. The force resultant from this pressure is directed upwards. As long as the hollow body 4 is empty or filled only in part with radioactive material this force may be larger than the weight of the body. The stays 28 anchored in the bottom of body 4 -then prevent the body 4 from moving upwards.
When the hollow body is filled to a certain part, the resultant force will strive to move the body.downwards. Such movement is prevented by the upwards extending stays 27.
Since the stays 27 and 28 alone maintain the hollow body in correct position within the shell 106 so that the body 4 is everywhere spaced from the inside of shell 106, the filling of plastically deformable material in the space between the body 4 and the shell 106 can be omitted, and this space can be filled with air.
The embodiment shown in Fig. 6 differs from the embodiment shown in figures 1 - 3 only in that the outer cavity the boundary walls of which are designated 7 extends up to the ground surface 2. Seen in horizontal section the cavity 7 has ~referakly the form of an annulus. Thus, the plastically deformable material 8, e.g. clay, which fills this cavity has the form of a cylindrical or -tube shaped shell which is terminated by a conical bottom. This tube shaped shell of plastically deformable i5 ~
material 8 surrounds a core 6 of rock mass. The outside of -the shell 8 is also surrounded by rock. ~t the ground surface the cavity 7 is sealed with a layer of concre-te 29. The concrete layer 29 prevents precipitation from penetrating the plastically deformable material 8. The concrete layer 29 is made sufficiently thick to prevent deliberate damage to the system e.g. through actions of war. The top side of the concrete layer could be rounded convexly as shown in the figure so that missiles hitting the concrete layer will rebound away from it.
The embodiment shown in Fig. 6 is particularly suitable if the ground water level in the surrounding rock is high. The core 6 of rock mass which is located inside the clay shell 8 can be ; drained so that it becomes free from ground water, and the clay shell 8 effectively prevents gro~nd water in the outer rock from penetrating into the system.
Other parts shown in Fig. 6 can be designed in the same manner as the corresponding parts of the embodiment described with reference to figures l - 3 and will not be described in particular.
Figures 7 to 9 show another embodiment of the invention in which there is provided only one layer or shell of plastically deformable material (e.g. clay) around the inner hollow body.
The repository shown in figures 7 - 9 is assumed to be situated in a rock formation at a suitable depth, e.g. 300 to 600 meters below the ground surface.
In the rock is excavated a cavi-ty the walls of which are designated 31. This cavity is so excavated that a core 32 of rock mass remains in its interior. The space between this core
of the rock may cause the breakin~ of the waste canisters stored in the rock. Also there is a risk that ground water comes in-to contact with the radioac-tive waste which may thereby be dispersed in an uncontrollable manner. The radioactive disintegration also generates heat which gives rise to convection currents in the ground water. The radioactive radiation may also cause a chemical disintegration, so called radiolysis, of material exposed to the radiation. The radiolysis makes the surrounding water attain a much higher content of oxygen than ordinary water whereby the water becomes highly corrosive so that -there is a risk that the casing of the radioactive was-te will corrode away leaving the waste in direct contact with the ground water.
The object of the present invention is to provide a system for the storage of radioactive material in rock in which the abovementioned hazards are eliminated. Thus, the invention relates to a repository Eulfilling the following requirements:
1) It shall not be possible for the radioactive material to come into contact with ground water and to be spread by this.
2) It shall not be possible for the radioactive material to escape into the environment due to deformations of the rock, e.g. deformations caused by seismic activity (earth quakes).
3) The heat generated by the disintegration of the radioactive material shall be dissipa-ted without any dangerous rise in temperature in the environment.
The repository of this invention is primarily intended for the final storage of the radioactive waste produced by re- ;
processing spent nuclear fuel. However, the repository of the invention could also be used for the interim storage of spent nuclear fuel before this is reprocessed. The repository of the . ~
,. . . .
, :
':
invention namely ~ermits the material stored therein to be easily removed if so desired.
The repository of the invention comprises a hollow body of a solid material the in-terior of which constitutes a space for the accommodation of the radioactive material. This hollow body is placed in an inner cavity in the roc~, said cavity hav:ing larger dimensions than the hollow body which is so situated in -this cavity that its outer side is everywhere spaced from the sides of the cavity. The space between the hollow body and the sides of the inner cavity is filled with a plastically deformable material.
In the rock outside the inner caivity there may be excavated an outer cavity surrounding the inner cavity on all sides and being also filled with a plastically deformable material.
The hollow body is preferably made of concrete and has an ellipsoid-like or spherical shape. ~ereby the hollow body attains a very high resistivity against the action of external forces.
The plastically deformable material surrounding the hollow body and filling the outer cavity preferably is clay. Clay is particularly suited for this purpose because it is capable of absorbing ions, has a small permabili-ty -to water and can be deformed without cracking due to its plas-ticity, The rock mass between the inner and the outer cavity will be wholly embedded by the plastically deformable material. Th~is material may have a sufficient supporting capacity to prevent the rock mass from sinking in it, but to make sure that such sinking shall not occur it may be advisable to stabilize the material by the addition of some suitable stabilizing agent in the area under the rock mass.
Other objects and features of the invention will become ,, ': ,' ' ' :- - . . ~
.
apparent from -the followln~ description with reEerence to the accompanying drawings which show preferred embodiments of the invention.
Fig; 1 shows a vertical section of a repository in accordance with a first embodiment of the invention.
Fig. 2 shows on a larger scale and in section the inner cavity and the hollow body located therein.
Fig. 3 shows a section taken along line I-I in Fig. 1 Fig. 4 shows a vertical section of a repository according to a second embodiment of the invention.
Fig. 5 shows a similar embodimen-t having supPorting means for supporting the hollow body within a concrete shell.
Fig. 6 shows a vertical section of a modification of the embodiment shown in Figures 1 - 3.
Fig. 7 shows a vertical section of another embodiment of the invention.
Fig. 8 shows a half horizontal section taken along line VIII-VIII in Fig. 7.
Fig. 9 shows a half horizontal section taken along line IX-IX in Fig. 7.
Fig. 10 shows in a ver-tical section still another embodimcnt of the invention, Fig. 11 shows on a larger scale the central part of the embodiment according to Fig. lo.
Fig. 12 shows in perspective view a tubeshaped member contained in the interior of the hollow body of Fig. 11.
Fig. 13 shows one of a plurality of concrete balls filliny the interior of the hollow body of Fig. 11.
Referring now to Figs. 1 - 3 numeral 1 designates the ,...._ ~
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bedrock in which the repository is situated at a certain depth under the ground surface 2. In the rock is excavated an inner cavity -the outline of which is designated 3. A hollow body 4 which is made of concrete and the interior of which constitutes the space for accommodating the radioactive material is placed within the cavity 3 in such manner that the outside o~ -the concrete body 4 everywhere is spaced from the wall of the cavity 3. The space between the wall of cavity 3 and the concrete body 4 is filled with clay 5.
The cavity 3 is wholly surrounded by rock mass 6 and this is surrounded by an outer cavity the boundary lines of which are designated 7. The outer cavity 7 is also filled with clay 8.
The cavities 3 and 7 as seen in a horizontal section preferably have a circular form. The boundary walls 7 of the outer cavity as seen in a horizontal section taken along line I-I in Fig. 1 thus form two concentric circles as shown in Fig. 3.
The concrete body 4 which has an ellipsoidal form is provided with an opening at its top which is in communication with a horizontal tunnel 10 through a shaft 9. Through the tunnel 10 and the shaft 9 the radioactive materiai can be transported into the hollow concrete body 4. In Fig. 2 the hollow concrete body 4 is shown in section. Its in-terior is divided by means of horizontal partitions 11 into several apartments located above each other. The partitions 11 are provided with openings 12 which are situated straiyht under the bottom opening of shaft 9. The radioactive material is successively introduced into these apartments beginning with the bottom one. In Fig. 2 some containers 1:3 for the radioactive waste are shown in the bottom apartment. When -the whole volume of an apartment is fully utilized the opening 12 can be closed with a lid 1~ or be permanently sealed.
As shown in Fig. 2 the concrete body 4 is at one side provided with inspec-tion openings 15 into which are fitted windows 16 of lead glacs. The openings 15 o~en into a shaft 17 which extends upwards to the horizontal -tunnel 10 (Fig. 1).
Supervision personnel can be hoisted down through the shaft 17 to inspect visually the interior of the concre-te body 4. The supervision can also be effected by means of a television system having cameras placed in the openings 15 and monitors placed at a supervision site remote from the repository.
The outside of the concrete body 4 may be covered with a layer 18 of plastics which is heat insulating and water tight.
The plastics layer 18 may be provided with cooling channels for the circulation of a suitable coolant.
The inner cavity 3 may also be provided with a layer 23 of a heat insulating material on its walls.
A vertical shaft or boring 19 extends through the rock mass 6 up to the horizontal tunnel 10. In the shaft 19 are mounted measuring devices (not shown) for the measurement of temperature, moisture and radioactive radiation. These measuring devices may be connected through wires in shaft 9 and tunnel 10 with indicating means at a supervision site.
Drainage tunnels 20 may be provided in the bedrock outside the repository extending circularly around the repository. The object of these drainage tunnels 20 is to lead away ground wat~er that my exist in the bedrock outside the repository. A boring 21 extends from the drainage tunnels 20 to the ground surface.
The horizontal tunnel 10 shown in Fig. 1 may communicate :
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directly with a plant for reprocessing spen-t nuclear fuel.
Hereby the hazards accompanying a transport of radioactive wastes are decreased. However, the tunnel 10 is not essential to the system of tlle invention. Thus, the shafts 9, 17, and 19 may open into some suitable building for the reception of the radioactive waste. This building ma~ be situated on the ground surface or in a cavity in the rock.
The system is of course provided with suitable hoisting and transport means for the transport of the radioactive wastes through the shaft 9 and distribution of the wastes in the space within the concrete body 4. Such hoisting and transport means which are preferably remote controlled could be designed according to known techniques and wiIl not be described more in particular.
- The construction of the system can be effected by the use of wellknown methods of rock excavation. At first working and transport tunnels are driven in the rock to the places where the two cavities are to be located. The excavation of the two cavities will take place from below and upwards. The outer - 20 cavity 7 is filled with clay as the rock mass is removed. The clay is compressed so that no cavities will remain in it. In an area situated at the bottom of the outer cavity -the clay could be stabilized by the addition of a suitable stabilizing agent to be capable of supporting more~safely the load of the rock mass 6. Such a s-tabilized area is indicated in Fig. l by dotted lines 22. When the inner cavity 3 is excavated~clay is placed on the bottom of the cavity up to a certain height. Then the hollow ` concrete body and the connecting shafts 9 and 17 are cast. When the concrete has hard_ned and the ln~ulating ~lastlco layer 18 been placed on the outside oE the concrete body the space between the concrete body and the walls oE -the inner cavi-ty is wholly filled with clay. When the structure is comp~eted the said working and transport tunnels may be filled with concrete.
Cracks and fissures that may be presen-t in the rock adjacent to the two cavities could be sealed by injection of concrete.
The repository according to the invention can be said to consist of a plurali-ty of shells of different material arranged within each other, namely in the embodiment shown in Figures 1 - 3, an innermost concrete shell 4, a first shell 5 of clay, a shell 6 consisting of rock mass, and a second shell 8 of clay which is wholly surrounded by the rock.
If displacements and subside~ces should occur in the rock outside the repository these movements of -the rock will first cause a deformation of the outer clay shell 8. If this clay shell is sufficiently thick -the deformation forces will not be trans-ferred to the inner shells. If the deformations should be of such magnitude that even the shell 6 of rock is affected, the deformation forces will be further damped by the inner clay shell 5. The innermost concrete shell 4 which has preferably an ellipsoidal or sherical form has a very high resistivity against pressure forces acting from -the outside. Therefore, not even very extensive deformations, e.g. deformations caused by earth quakes, can affect the system to such extent that even the innermost concrete shell 4 collapses.
Figures 4 and 5 show embodiments which differ from that shown in figures 1 - 3 by the shell 6 of rock shown in figures 1 and 3 being replaced by a shell 106 of concrete which is , - ' ' ' ' ' :
preferably reinforced. Also the form of the outer cavity 7 in the embodiments shown in figures 4 and 5 is somewhat different from the form of cavity 7 shown in figure 1.
The concrete shell or body 106 has ~referably an ellipsoidal (egg-like) form whereby it can bes-t resist the action o~
external forces. The term "ellipsoidal form" also covers a purely spherical form, since a sphere can be considered as a special case of an ellipsoid. Even other forms, e.g. cylindrical, are possible for the shell 106. The thickness of the shell is dependent of the total size of the system and may for instance amount to some meters. The bottom part of shell 106 is preferably formed with a plane horizontal surface.
- The concrete shell 106 and the parts enclosed therein, namely the clay shell 5 and the hollow body 4 with its content of radioactive material, have a considerable weight, and -this weight is to be supported by that part of the plastically deformable material 8 which is located between the bottom portion of shell 106 and the bottom of the cavity 7. The Plastically deformable material may have a sufficient supporting capacity to prevent the shell 106 with its contents from sinking towards the bottom of the cavity 7, but to make sure that such sinking shall not occur it may be advisable to provide supporting means in the plastically deformable material 8 under the shell 106.
Such supporting means are indicated by dotted lines and designated 25 in Fig. 4. Similar supporting means 26 may also be provided at the center of shell 106 and even highér up as shown in the figure. The supporting means 25 and 26 are preferably made of a material which has a very large compressive strength but lS
somewhat elaotic. Such a material is hard rubber. The supporti;ng means 25 and 26 preferably are in the form of rods having e.g.
circular cross-section. This suppor-tin~ means s-tabilize the position of shell 106 within the cavity 7. The suppor-ting means 25 may also consist of pillars of rock remaining af-ter the excavation of the cavi-ty 7.
The construc-tion of the system shown in Fig. 4 can be effected by the use of wellknown methods of rock excavation and concrete casting. At first working and transport tunnels are driven into the rock to the place where tlle cavity 7 is to be situated, and this cavity is excavated. The the cavity 7 is filled with clay or other plastically deformable material up to a certain level above the bottom of the cavity. Then the construction of the concrete shell 106 is begun. This shell is built up in stages. In a first s~tage the shell is built up to a level b, and clay or other plastically deformable material is filled outside the shell u~ to this level. Within the shell 106 clay is filled up to the level c, and within this clay layer the hollow body 4 is built up. The construc-tion of shell 106 then continues in further stages, and as the construction proceeds, clay or other plastically deformable material is filled both within the shell around the hollow body 4 and outside the shell in the space between the outside of the shell and the wall of the cavity 7. If supporting means 25 are to be used these are placed at their respective sites before the filling of the clay.
The hollow body 4 can be positioned within the concrete~
shell 106 by means of supporting means designed and arranged in similar manner as the su~porting means 25 and 26 between the concrete shell 106 and the wall oE the cavity 7.
Fig. 5 illustrates another way o ~positioning the hollow :
, :, ; -~¢3$~
body 4 within the shell 106. ~lere the hollow body 4 is sus~ended by stays or wires 27 and 28 which may be made of steel. One end of each stay 27 and 28 is anchored in known manner in the body 4 and the other end is anchorecl in the concrete shell 106.
If the space between the hollow body 4 and the concrete shell 106 is filled with a plastically deforma~le material, e.g.
clay, this material will exert a pressure on all sides of the hollow body 4. The force resultant from this pressure is directed upwards. As long as the hollow body 4 is empty or filled only in part with radioactive material this force may be larger than the weight of the body. The stays 28 anchored in the bottom of body 4 -then prevent the body 4 from moving upwards.
When the hollow body is filled to a certain part, the resultant force will strive to move the body.downwards. Such movement is prevented by the upwards extending stays 27.
Since the stays 27 and 28 alone maintain the hollow body in correct position within the shell 106 so that the body 4 is everywhere spaced from the inside of shell 106, the filling of plastically deformable material in the space between the body 4 and the shell 106 can be omitted, and this space can be filled with air.
The embodiment shown in Fig. 6 differs from the embodiment shown in figures 1 - 3 only in that the outer cavity the boundary walls of which are designated 7 extends up to the ground surface 2. Seen in horizontal section the cavity 7 has ~referakly the form of an annulus. Thus, the plastically deformable material 8, e.g. clay, which fills this cavity has the form of a cylindrical or -tube shaped shell which is terminated by a conical bottom. This tube shaped shell of plastically deformable i5 ~
material 8 surrounds a core 6 of rock mass. The outside of -the shell 8 is also surrounded by rock. ~t the ground surface the cavity 7 is sealed with a layer of concre-te 29. The concrete layer 29 prevents precipitation from penetrating the plastically deformable material 8. The concrete layer 29 is made sufficiently thick to prevent deliberate damage to the system e.g. through actions of war. The top side of the concrete layer could be rounded convexly as shown in the figure so that missiles hitting the concrete layer will rebound away from it.
The embodiment shown in Fig. 6 is particularly suitable if the ground water level in the surrounding rock is high. The core 6 of rock mass which is located inside the clay shell 8 can be ; drained so that it becomes free from ground water, and the clay shell 8 effectively prevents gro~nd water in the outer rock from penetrating into the system.
Other parts shown in Fig. 6 can be designed in the same manner as the corresponding parts of the embodiment described with reference to figures l - 3 and will not be described in particular.
Figures 7 to 9 show another embodiment of the invention in which there is provided only one layer or shell of plastically deformable material (e.g. clay) around the inner hollow body.
The repository shown in figures 7 - 9 is assumed to be situated in a rock formation at a suitable depth, e.g. 300 to 600 meters below the ground surface.
In the rock is excavated a cavi-ty the walls of which are designated 31. This cavity is so excavated that a core 32 of rock mass remains in its interior. The space between this core
4 9L
and the outer rock is filled with a plastically deformable material 33, e.g. clay.
In the core 32 is excavated an inner cavi-ty 34 which has the form of a cylinder with a vertical axis. The walls of cavity 34 are provicled with a large number of recesses 35 which extend radially from the cavity into the core 32. The recesses 35 are intended to form storage spaces for the radioactive material. If this material consists of fuel rods containing spent but not reprocessed nuclear fuel, the form of the recesses 34 is adapted - 10 to the form of these fuel rods, so that a fuel rod can be inserted in each recess 35. However, in the first hand the repository is to be used for the storage of the radioactive waste that is produced by reprocessing spent nuclear fuel. Such waste is converted by known methods to solid form, e.g. by vitrifying~and is filled in containers which preferably have an oblong cylindrical form. The storage spaces 35 can be adapted to the form of these waste containers. Thus, the recesses 35 are preferably arranged in groups which are placed above each other, the recesses of each group extending radially outwards from the inside of the cavity 34 with equal angular spacing as seen ln Figs. 7 and 9.
The cavity 34 communicates through a vertical shaft 36~with a horizontal tunnel 37. Through tunnel 37 and shaft 36 the radio-active material is transported into the cavity 34. The repository~
is of course provided with suitable hoisting and transport means for transporting the radioactive material through shaft 36 and for distributing the waste in the recesses 35. These hoisting and transport devices which are preferably remote controlled may be of a kind well known in the art and will no-t be described .
more in particular.
The core 32 is supported at its bottom ~y concrete pillars 3~ which rest upon the rock outside the shell 33 of clay. The form and arrangement of these pillars is mos-t clearly seen in Fig. 8.
The repository is provided with an inner cooling system which consists of a plurality of conduits 39 containing a suitable coolant which is preferably water. Each conduit 38 forms a closed loop which is situated in a vertical plane and which extends along the inner wall of cavity 34 and along the outside of the core. In that oart of the cooling loop 39 which is situated in the cavity 34, the coolant will be heated by the heat developed - by the radioactive material in the recesses 35, and therefore the coolant is caused to circulate,~around the loop 39 and is cooled at the outside of core 32 where the tem~erature i~ lower.
The reoository is also provided with an outer cooling system which consists of a tunnel which extends in a helix having a plurality of turns concentrically with the whole system and along its whole height. The helix-shaped part 40 of this tunnel is connected at the top to a tunnel 41 for the removal of hot coolant and connected at the bottom to a tunnel 42 for the supply of cooler coolant. At some dis-tance from the system the tunnels 41 and 42 are connected to each other ~not shown in the drawing) so that a closed cooling system is formed which likewlse operates according to the thermosiphon principle.
Cracks and crevices that may be present in the rock core 32 are sealed by injection of some suitable sealing material, e.g. ~
sodium silicate which as time goes on is converted into silicium;
dioxide.
.
The construction of this repository can likewise be effec-ted by the use of well known methods of rock excavation.
At first workin~ and transport tunnels are driven in the rock to the place where the cavity 35 is to be located. The excavation of the cavity will take place from below and upwards. The cavity is filled with clay as the rock mass is removed. Before the cavity is filled with clay in its bottom part the concrete pillars 38 are cast.
If the repository is to be used for the final storage of radioactive waste, e.g. such waste that is produced in reprocessing spent nuclear fuel, the whole repository can be sealed when all recesses 35 are filled with radioactive waste. This sealing can be effected by filling the cavity 34, the shaft 36 and the tunnel 37 wholly or in part with clay or other suitable material.
The dimensions of the reposi-tory may of course vary within wide limits. The core 32 can e.g. have a largest diameter of 25 meters and a height of 60 meters, and the shell 33 of clay can have a thickness of 6 meters. These dimensions are given only by way of example and the invention is of course not restricted to these dimensions.
Figures 10-13 illustrate an embodiment of the invention in which the heat generated by the stored radioactive material is distributed and dissipated in a particularly simple and effective way.
- The repository shown in figures 10-13 can be located in the bedrock 1 at a certain depth below the ground level 2. This depth may be for instance 300 to 600 meters. In the bedrock 1 there is excavated an outer cavity the outline of which is designated 53 in Fig. 10, and in this cavity there is left a :
core 54 of rock. The space between this core 54 and the outer rock is filled with clay 55 which forms a shell enclosing the core 5~ of rock. The core 54 is pos:itioned in relation to the outer bedrock 1 by means of supporting members 56 which may consist of reinforced concrete or of left rock.
The core 54 contains an inner cavity 57 of a spherical form. Thus,the core 54 forms a shell of rock around the cavity 57. The cavity 57 communicates through a vertical shaft 58 with a horizontal tunnel 59 which is located adjacent to the ground level. The cavity 57 and the shaft 58 are lined with reinforced concrete 60.
The cavity 57 constitutes the storage space for the radio-active material. A vertically standing cylinder 61 of reinforced concrete is placed within the cavity 57. This cylinder is shown in detail in Fig. 12. As seen in this figure the wall thickness of`the cylinder may be larger in the central part of the cylinder and decrease towards the ends of the cylinder. At the lower end of cylinder 61 there are arranged two rows of ventilation holes 62 along the periphery of the cylinder.
Adjacent to the top end of the cylinder there are also provided a row of holes 63 along the periphery of the cylinder wall. The cylinder 61 rests by its lower end on the bottom part of the cavity 57 while its upper end is at some dis-tance from the top part of the cavity 57. Thus, the cylinder 61 divides the cavity 57 in an outer space between the outside of cylinder 61 and the wall of cavity 57 and an inner space formed by the interior of the cylinder. These spaces communicate with each other through the openings 62 in the lower end of the , _ ... . . . .. _ . . ._ .
cylinder 61 and through the open upper end of the cylinder and the holes 63.
As shown in Fig. 11 the space in cavity 57 which is not occupied by the cylinder 61 is filled with spherical bodies in the form of balls 64 of concrete which are all of the same diameter. Such a ball 64 is shown more in detail in Fig. 13.
- The ball is provided with a plurality of through cylindrieal openings 65. In the embodiment shown in Fig. 13 there are three sueh openings. The openings 65 have the form of straight eylinders and seen in a cross-section at right angles to their axes they are so disposed that the center lines are at the corners of an equila-teral triangle. Each ball 64 is provided with a hook or strap 66 which is anchored in the ball and by means of whieh the ball can be lifted and lowered. The balls 64 are so placed in the cavity 57 that the openings extend in a direetion at a certain angle to horizontal plane. This angle should be such that the openings terminate in the spaces between the balls. The hook or strap 66 is so loeated in relation to the openings that when the ball is lowered into the cavity 57 hanging in the hook or strap 66, the openings 65 will automati-eally assume the desired direetion.
All the balls 64, both those loeated outside and those loeated inside the cylinder 61, are provided with such openings 65. The purPose of these openings is to facilitate the eireulation of air within the eavity 57. In figure 11 those balls 64 whieh aeeommodate radioaetive material have been indieated by eireles crossed by oblique parallel lines, whereas balls 64 not eontaining radioaetive material are indieated by empty eireles.
The radioaetive material to be stored in the repository~
' ' ' ~ ~ ,~ ' ' ' : ' -is assumed to be solid and shaped into rods. Thus, spent fuel rods and fuel assemblies from a nuclear reactor can be stored without any further treatment in the repository according to the invention.
The rods of radioactive material are entered into the openings 65 in some of the balls 64, namely those balls that are placed within the cylinder 61 and preferably only in those balls 64 which are at the lower part of the interior of cylinder 61. Preferably the cylinder 61 is filled with balls 64 containing radioactive material only to one third of its height. The rods ~ of radioactive material are placed in the openings 65 in the balls 64 in such a way that the rods are spaced from the inside of the openings 65 so that air can freely circulate through the openings along the rods of radioactive material. Fig. 13 shows some fuel assemblies 67 placed in the openings 65 in the ball 64.
The rods are positioned within the openings 65 by means of suitable support means (not shown~.
The cavity 57 is closed by means of a seal 68 located in the shaft 58 near its opening into the cavity 57. The cavity 57 may contain sensing means sensing temperature, pressure and radioactive radiation. These sensing means could be connected with measuring instruments located outside the repository by means of cables 69 which are drawn through the seal 68 and the shaft 58.
The construction of the repository can be effected by the use of rock blasting methods well known in the art and will therefore not he described more in particular. The cavity 57 should be line~ on its inside with heavily reinforced concrete.
The concrete cylinder 61 is manufactured by casting on its place - 20 ~
within the cavity 57. The space outside the cylinder 51 is filled with concrete balls 64 which are lowered through the shaft 58. Concrete balls 64 containing radioactive material are placed at the bottom of cylinder 61 and above these balls are placed concrete balls 64 not containing radioactive material.
The shaft 5~ opens straight above the upper opening of cylinder 61. If so desirèd the balls 6~ can easily be removed from the interior of -the cylinder~ which may be desirable for instance if the stored radioactive material is to be removed for reprocessing.
In the repository according to figures 10 - 13 air in the bottom part of the tubeshaped member 61 will be heated by the radioactive material and caused to rise upwards within the tube-shaped member to its top end where the air is forced through the openings at the top end against the wall of the cavity where the air is cooled and flows downwards in the outer space between the tubeshaped member and the wall of the cavity, whereupon the air again flows into the tubeshaped member through the openings at its bottom end and again comes in contact with the radioactive material and is heated anew so that the flow cycle is repeated.
The air flows through the spaces bewteen the spherical bodies 14 and through the openings in these bodies. Thus, the spherical bodies act as a porous mass which makes possible a relatively free and rapid air flow and simultaneously prevents the cavity from being compressed and collapsing under the action of high external forces.
The heat generated by the radioac-tive material is thus distributed by convection nearly uniformly over the whole cavity,~
and large temperature peaks in limited areas of the interior of ,,, ,.................................... ~-the cavity are avoided.
The generated heat spreads through the rock surrounding the cavity and further on to the clay shell. Due -to the spherical shape of the cavity it is relatively simple to calcula-te the temperature distribution in the environment oE the cavity. For a given amount of stored radioactive material it is thus possible to estimate the variation with time of -the temperature in the rock and the clay shell and the resulting maximum temperatures.
- These temperatures will of course be dependent of the dimensions o~ the rock mass and the clay shell, and it is therefore possible to deter~nine beforehand these dimensions so that the temperature cannot assume critical values. By "critical values"
of the temperature are ment such values which may cause undesir-able changes in the rock and the clay, e.g. crumbling of the rock and drying-up of the clay so that it loses its plasticity.
A repository for the storage of 350 metric tons of spent fuel from a reactor will for instance have the following dimensions:
Radius of cavity 57 = 20 meters Distance from the center of cavity 57 to the inner side of the clay barrier 55 = 65 meters The maxiumum temperature in shell 54 o~ rock will then amount to about 200C and the maximum temperature in the clay shell 55 to less than 50 C.
In the embodiment shown in Fig. 10 the clay shell 55 and the space occupied by this shell in the rock has a spherical shape. However, the clay shell 55 and the space occupied thereby could also have otherishapes, e.~. cylindrical shape within the scope of the invention.
~ :
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It is not necessary to locate the repository according to this invention at a very large depth. Thus, -the repository could be located above the ~round water level and even in less stable rock formations. It is also possible to locate the reposi-tory according to the invention in mountains rising above the surrounding ground.
Thus, a repository constructed according to this inven-tion will make possible a safe storage of radioactive waste during a time period sufficiently long to allow the radioactive radiation to decrease to a harmless level.
- However, it will be understood that a repository in ^ accordance with this invention can also be used for the disposal of other materials than radioactive material. ~
, .
and the outer rock is filled with a plastically deformable material 33, e.g. clay.
In the core 32 is excavated an inner cavi-ty 34 which has the form of a cylinder with a vertical axis. The walls of cavity 34 are provicled with a large number of recesses 35 which extend radially from the cavity into the core 32. The recesses 35 are intended to form storage spaces for the radioactive material. If this material consists of fuel rods containing spent but not reprocessed nuclear fuel, the form of the recesses 34 is adapted - 10 to the form of these fuel rods, so that a fuel rod can be inserted in each recess 35. However, in the first hand the repository is to be used for the storage of the radioactive waste that is produced by reprocessing spent nuclear fuel. Such waste is converted by known methods to solid form, e.g. by vitrifying~and is filled in containers which preferably have an oblong cylindrical form. The storage spaces 35 can be adapted to the form of these waste containers. Thus, the recesses 35 are preferably arranged in groups which are placed above each other, the recesses of each group extending radially outwards from the inside of the cavity 34 with equal angular spacing as seen ln Figs. 7 and 9.
The cavity 34 communicates through a vertical shaft 36~with a horizontal tunnel 37. Through tunnel 37 and shaft 36 the radio-active material is transported into the cavity 34. The repository~
is of course provided with suitable hoisting and transport means for transporting the radioactive material through shaft 36 and for distributing the waste in the recesses 35. These hoisting and transport devices which are preferably remote controlled may be of a kind well known in the art and will no-t be described .
more in particular.
The core 32 is supported at its bottom ~y concrete pillars 3~ which rest upon the rock outside the shell 33 of clay. The form and arrangement of these pillars is mos-t clearly seen in Fig. 8.
The repository is provided with an inner cooling system which consists of a plurality of conduits 39 containing a suitable coolant which is preferably water. Each conduit 38 forms a closed loop which is situated in a vertical plane and which extends along the inner wall of cavity 34 and along the outside of the core. In that oart of the cooling loop 39 which is situated in the cavity 34, the coolant will be heated by the heat developed - by the radioactive material in the recesses 35, and therefore the coolant is caused to circulate,~around the loop 39 and is cooled at the outside of core 32 where the tem~erature i~ lower.
The reoository is also provided with an outer cooling system which consists of a tunnel which extends in a helix having a plurality of turns concentrically with the whole system and along its whole height. The helix-shaped part 40 of this tunnel is connected at the top to a tunnel 41 for the removal of hot coolant and connected at the bottom to a tunnel 42 for the supply of cooler coolant. At some dis-tance from the system the tunnels 41 and 42 are connected to each other ~not shown in the drawing) so that a closed cooling system is formed which likewlse operates according to the thermosiphon principle.
Cracks and crevices that may be present in the rock core 32 are sealed by injection of some suitable sealing material, e.g. ~
sodium silicate which as time goes on is converted into silicium;
dioxide.
.
The construction of this repository can likewise be effec-ted by the use of well known methods of rock excavation.
At first workin~ and transport tunnels are driven in the rock to the place where the cavity 35 is to be located. The excavation of the cavity will take place from below and upwards. The cavity is filled with clay as the rock mass is removed. Before the cavity is filled with clay in its bottom part the concrete pillars 38 are cast.
If the repository is to be used for the final storage of radioactive waste, e.g. such waste that is produced in reprocessing spent nuclear fuel, the whole repository can be sealed when all recesses 35 are filled with radioactive waste. This sealing can be effected by filling the cavity 34, the shaft 36 and the tunnel 37 wholly or in part with clay or other suitable material.
The dimensions of the reposi-tory may of course vary within wide limits. The core 32 can e.g. have a largest diameter of 25 meters and a height of 60 meters, and the shell 33 of clay can have a thickness of 6 meters. These dimensions are given only by way of example and the invention is of course not restricted to these dimensions.
Figures 10-13 illustrate an embodiment of the invention in which the heat generated by the stored radioactive material is distributed and dissipated in a particularly simple and effective way.
- The repository shown in figures 10-13 can be located in the bedrock 1 at a certain depth below the ground level 2. This depth may be for instance 300 to 600 meters. In the bedrock 1 there is excavated an outer cavity the outline of which is designated 53 in Fig. 10, and in this cavity there is left a :
core 54 of rock. The space between this core 54 and the outer rock is filled with clay 55 which forms a shell enclosing the core 5~ of rock. The core 54 is pos:itioned in relation to the outer bedrock 1 by means of supporting members 56 which may consist of reinforced concrete or of left rock.
The core 54 contains an inner cavity 57 of a spherical form. Thus,the core 54 forms a shell of rock around the cavity 57. The cavity 57 communicates through a vertical shaft 58 with a horizontal tunnel 59 which is located adjacent to the ground level. The cavity 57 and the shaft 58 are lined with reinforced concrete 60.
The cavity 57 constitutes the storage space for the radio-active material. A vertically standing cylinder 61 of reinforced concrete is placed within the cavity 57. This cylinder is shown in detail in Fig. 12. As seen in this figure the wall thickness of`the cylinder may be larger in the central part of the cylinder and decrease towards the ends of the cylinder. At the lower end of cylinder 61 there are arranged two rows of ventilation holes 62 along the periphery of the cylinder.
Adjacent to the top end of the cylinder there are also provided a row of holes 63 along the periphery of the cylinder wall. The cylinder 61 rests by its lower end on the bottom part of the cavity 57 while its upper end is at some dis-tance from the top part of the cavity 57. Thus, the cylinder 61 divides the cavity 57 in an outer space between the outside of cylinder 61 and the wall of cavity 57 and an inner space formed by the interior of the cylinder. These spaces communicate with each other through the openings 62 in the lower end of the , _ ... . . . .. _ . . ._ .
cylinder 61 and through the open upper end of the cylinder and the holes 63.
As shown in Fig. 11 the space in cavity 57 which is not occupied by the cylinder 61 is filled with spherical bodies in the form of balls 64 of concrete which are all of the same diameter. Such a ball 64 is shown more in detail in Fig. 13.
- The ball is provided with a plurality of through cylindrieal openings 65. In the embodiment shown in Fig. 13 there are three sueh openings. The openings 65 have the form of straight eylinders and seen in a cross-section at right angles to their axes they are so disposed that the center lines are at the corners of an equila-teral triangle. Each ball 64 is provided with a hook or strap 66 which is anchored in the ball and by means of whieh the ball can be lifted and lowered. The balls 64 are so placed in the cavity 57 that the openings extend in a direetion at a certain angle to horizontal plane. This angle should be such that the openings terminate in the spaces between the balls. The hook or strap 66 is so loeated in relation to the openings that when the ball is lowered into the cavity 57 hanging in the hook or strap 66, the openings 65 will automati-eally assume the desired direetion.
All the balls 64, both those loeated outside and those loeated inside the cylinder 61, are provided with such openings 65. The purPose of these openings is to facilitate the eireulation of air within the eavity 57. In figure 11 those balls 64 whieh aeeommodate radioaetive material have been indieated by eireles crossed by oblique parallel lines, whereas balls 64 not eontaining radioaetive material are indieated by empty eireles.
The radioaetive material to be stored in the repository~
' ' ' ~ ~ ,~ ' ' ' : ' -is assumed to be solid and shaped into rods. Thus, spent fuel rods and fuel assemblies from a nuclear reactor can be stored without any further treatment in the repository according to the invention.
The rods of radioactive material are entered into the openings 65 in some of the balls 64, namely those balls that are placed within the cylinder 61 and preferably only in those balls 64 which are at the lower part of the interior of cylinder 61. Preferably the cylinder 61 is filled with balls 64 containing radioactive material only to one third of its height. The rods ~ of radioactive material are placed in the openings 65 in the balls 64 in such a way that the rods are spaced from the inside of the openings 65 so that air can freely circulate through the openings along the rods of radioactive material. Fig. 13 shows some fuel assemblies 67 placed in the openings 65 in the ball 64.
The rods are positioned within the openings 65 by means of suitable support means (not shown~.
The cavity 57 is closed by means of a seal 68 located in the shaft 58 near its opening into the cavity 57. The cavity 57 may contain sensing means sensing temperature, pressure and radioactive radiation. These sensing means could be connected with measuring instruments located outside the repository by means of cables 69 which are drawn through the seal 68 and the shaft 58.
The construction of the repository can be effected by the use of rock blasting methods well known in the art and will therefore not he described more in particular. The cavity 57 should be line~ on its inside with heavily reinforced concrete.
The concrete cylinder 61 is manufactured by casting on its place - 20 ~
within the cavity 57. The space outside the cylinder 51 is filled with concrete balls 64 which are lowered through the shaft 58. Concrete balls 64 containing radioactive material are placed at the bottom of cylinder 61 and above these balls are placed concrete balls 64 not containing radioactive material.
The shaft 5~ opens straight above the upper opening of cylinder 61. If so desirèd the balls 6~ can easily be removed from the interior of -the cylinder~ which may be desirable for instance if the stored radioactive material is to be removed for reprocessing.
In the repository according to figures 10 - 13 air in the bottom part of the tubeshaped member 61 will be heated by the radioactive material and caused to rise upwards within the tube-shaped member to its top end where the air is forced through the openings at the top end against the wall of the cavity where the air is cooled and flows downwards in the outer space between the tubeshaped member and the wall of the cavity, whereupon the air again flows into the tubeshaped member through the openings at its bottom end and again comes in contact with the radioactive material and is heated anew so that the flow cycle is repeated.
The air flows through the spaces bewteen the spherical bodies 14 and through the openings in these bodies. Thus, the spherical bodies act as a porous mass which makes possible a relatively free and rapid air flow and simultaneously prevents the cavity from being compressed and collapsing under the action of high external forces.
The heat generated by the radioac-tive material is thus distributed by convection nearly uniformly over the whole cavity,~
and large temperature peaks in limited areas of the interior of ,,, ,.................................... ~-the cavity are avoided.
The generated heat spreads through the rock surrounding the cavity and further on to the clay shell. Due -to the spherical shape of the cavity it is relatively simple to calcula-te the temperature distribution in the environment oE the cavity. For a given amount of stored radioactive material it is thus possible to estimate the variation with time of -the temperature in the rock and the clay shell and the resulting maximum temperatures.
- These temperatures will of course be dependent of the dimensions o~ the rock mass and the clay shell, and it is therefore possible to deter~nine beforehand these dimensions so that the temperature cannot assume critical values. By "critical values"
of the temperature are ment such values which may cause undesir-able changes in the rock and the clay, e.g. crumbling of the rock and drying-up of the clay so that it loses its plasticity.
A repository for the storage of 350 metric tons of spent fuel from a reactor will for instance have the following dimensions:
Radius of cavity 57 = 20 meters Distance from the center of cavity 57 to the inner side of the clay barrier 55 = 65 meters The maxiumum temperature in shell 54 o~ rock will then amount to about 200C and the maximum temperature in the clay shell 55 to less than 50 C.
In the embodiment shown in Fig. 10 the clay shell 55 and the space occupied by this shell in the rock has a spherical shape. However, the clay shell 55 and the space occupied thereby could also have otherishapes, e.~. cylindrical shape within the scope of the invention.
~ :
.
It is not necessary to locate the repository according to this invention at a very large depth. Thus, -the repository could be located above the ~round water level and even in less stable rock formations. It is also possible to locate the reposi-tory according to the invention in mountains rising above the surrounding ground.
Thus, a repository constructed according to this inven-tion will make possible a safe storage of radioactive waste during a time period sufficiently long to allow the radioactive radiation to decrease to a harmless level.
- However, it will be understood that a repository in ^ accordance with this invention can also be used for the disposal of other materials than radioactive material. ~
, .
Claims (16)
OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:
1. An underground repository for the storage of radioactive material and other materials in a rock formation, comprising a first cavity in said rock formation, a first body of rock derived from said rock formation by having been left at the excavation of said first cavity so as to be located within said first cavity and spaced on all sides from the walls of said first cavity, the space between said first body of rock and the walls of said first cavity being filled with a water-insoluble, plastically deformable material supporting said first body of rock in said spaced relationship relative to the walls of said first cavity, said first body of rock being hollow and containing in its interior storage space for the material to be stored, and shaft means extending through said rock formation, said space filled with said plastically deformable material and said first body of rock to said storage space for the transfer of the material to be stored into said storage space.
2. A repository as claimed in claim 1, wherein said first body of rock has a substantially ellipsoidal form.
3. A repository as claimed in claim 1, wherein said plastically deformable material is clay.
4. A repository as claimed in claim 1, wherein said first cavity is extended up to the ground level of said rock formation.
5. A repository as claimed in claim 4, wherein said first cavity is sealed with concrete at the ground level.
6. A repository as claimed in claim 1, comprising a second cavity within said first body of rock, said second cavity serving, at least partially, as said storage space.
7. A repository as claimed in claim 6, wherein the walls of said second cavity are provided with recesses forming said storage space.
8. A repository as claimed in claim 7, in which said second cavity is substantially cylindrical with a substantially vertical axis, said recesses extending substantially radially outwards from the cylindrical wall of said second cavity.
9. A repository as claimed in claim 1, comprising a cooling system including a plurality of closed conduit loops for the circulation of a coolant, each of said conduit loops having a first part extending through the interior of said first body of rock between the lower part and the upper part thereof and a second part extending outside said first body of rock in said space between said first body of rock and the walls of said first cavity.
10. A repository as claimed in claim 1, wherein said plastically deformable material is stabilized in the lower portion of said space.
11. A repository as claimed in claim 1, comprising a second cavity located within said first body of rock, a second body of a solid material disposed within said second cavity so as to be spaced on all sides from the walls of said second cavity, said second body being hollow and containing said storage space in its interior, said shaft means extending into the interior of said second body so as to communicate with said storage space therein.
12. A repository as claimed in claim 11, wherein said second body is made of concrete.
13. A repository as claimed in claim 1, in which the interior of said hollow body contains a tubeshaped member of solid material, said tubeshaped member extending in a vertical direction and being open at both ends thereby dividing the interior of said hollow body in an outer space and an inner space, said outer and inner spaces communicating with each other at the top and bottom ends of said tubeshaped member, both said outer space and said inner space being filled with spherical bodies of a heat resistant material, said bodies being provided with through openings and being arranged so that these openings extend at an angle to the horizontal plane, and said openings in the spherical bodies located at the lower part of the interior of said tubeshaped member being adapted to accommodate solidified radioactive material formed into rods having a less diameter than said openings.
14. A repository as claimed in claim 13, in which said tube-shaped member consists of a cylindrical tube of concrete which is open at both ends and also provided with apertures around its periphery adjacent to both ends of the tube.
15. A repository as claimed in claim 13, in which said spherical bodies are made of concrete.
16. A repository as claimed in claim 13, in which the spherical bodies are provided with hooks or straps for lifting the bodies.
Applications Claiming Priority (8)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| SE7613996A SE402176B (en) | 1976-12-13 | 1976-12-13 | FACILITY FOR STORAGE OF RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL IN BERG |
| SE7613996-3 | 1976-12-13 | ||
| SE7700552-8 | 1977-01-19 | ||
| SE7700552A SE420780B (en) | 1977-01-19 | 1977-01-19 | PLANT FOR STORAGE OF RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL IN BERG |
| SE7702310-9 | 1977-03-02 | ||
| SE7702310A SE420781B (en) | 1977-03-02 | 1977-03-02 | PLANT FOR STORAGE OF RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL IN BERG |
| SE7707639A SE416690B (en) | 1977-06-30 | 1977-06-30 | PLANT FOR STORAGE OF RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL IN BERG |
| SE7707639-6 | 1977-06-30 |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1096644A true CA1096644A (en) | 1981-03-03 |
Family
ID=27484608
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA292,492A Expired CA1096644A (en) | 1976-12-13 | 1977-12-06 | System for the storage of radioactive material in rock |
Country Status (10)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| JP (1) | JPS5387000A (en) |
| BR (1) | BR7708254A (en) |
| CA (1) | CA1096644A (en) |
| DE (1) | DE2755554C2 (en) |
| ES (1) | ES464822A1 (en) |
| FI (1) | FI63091C (en) |
| FR (1) | FR2373861A1 (en) |
| GB (1) | GB1598355A (en) |
| IT (1) | IT1088531B (en) |
| MX (1) | MX4571E (en) |
Families Citing this family (24)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AT370906B (en) * | 1978-04-21 | 1983-05-10 | Ngt Nova Gruendungstechnik Ges | ARRANGEMENT FOR UNDERGROUND STORAGE OF SUBSTANCES OF ANY KIND |
| US4326820A (en) * | 1978-11-28 | 1982-04-27 | Gesellschaft Fur Strahlen-Und Umweltforschung Mbh Munchen | Final depository for radioactive wastes |
| US4288174A (en) * | 1979-09-10 | 1981-09-08 | Laws Awbrey C | System for groundwater flow control |
| FR2526574A1 (en) * | 1982-05-05 | 1983-11-10 | Commissariat Energie Atomique | RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL METHOD AND GEOLOGICAL FACILITY FOR THE EVACUATION OF THESE WASTE |
| US4701280A (en) * | 1982-06-09 | 1987-10-20 | John Canevall | Procedure for permanently storing radioactive material |
| GB2128801B (en) * | 1982-09-20 | 1986-11-12 | William Robert Burton | Disposal of hazardous and toxic waste material |
| GB2128800B (en) * | 1982-09-24 | 1986-01-08 | Nat Nuclear Corp Ltd | Disposal of radio active and/or toxic waste |
| SE442926B (en) * | 1983-09-19 | 1986-02-03 | Boliden Ab | PLANT FOR STORAGE OF RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL IN BERG |
| DE3340101A1 (en) * | 1983-11-05 | 1985-05-23 | Deutsche Gesellschaft für Wiederaufarbeitung von Kernbrennstoffen mbH, 3000 Hannover | UNDERGROUND INTERMEDIATE STORAGE FOR COMBUSED CORE REACTOR FUEL ELEMENTS AND FOR GLAZED RADIOACTIVE WASTE |
| GB8416237D0 (en) * | 1984-06-26 | 1984-08-01 | Nat Nuclear Corp Ltd | Disposal of radio-active waste materials |
| GB8426142D0 (en) * | 1984-10-16 | 1984-12-12 | Nuclear Technology Consultants | Hazardous waste disposal |
| GB8429241D0 (en) * | 1984-11-20 | 1985-02-13 | Nuclear Technology Consultants | Repositories for waste material |
| JPH0631881B2 (en) * | 1985-03-06 | 1994-04-27 | 清水建設株式会社 | Storage facility for radioactive waste in bedrock |
| FR2582141B1 (en) * | 1985-05-14 | 1988-08-19 | Commw Scient Ind Res Org | METHOD AND DEPOSIT FOR STORING RADIOACTIVE WASTE |
| DE3539474A1 (en) * | 1985-11-07 | 1987-05-21 | Didier Werke Ag | Process for filling a space in a salt dome |
| JPS62260692A (en) * | 1986-05-06 | 1987-11-12 | 清水建設株式会社 | Heat-insulating material fitting structure of pc egg type digestor chamber |
| GB2199180B (en) * | 1986-12-23 | 1990-05-30 | Nuclear Technology | Disposal of waste material |
| AT397444B (en) * | 1991-09-10 | 1994-04-25 | Lehmden Anton | EARTHQUAKE SAFE SYSTEM FOR RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL |
| GB9418325D0 (en) * | 1994-09-12 | 1994-11-02 | Burton William R | Waste disposal |
| GB2295484A (en) * | 1994-11-17 | 1996-05-29 | William Robert Burton | Improvements in or relating to disposal of waste |
| CL2011001664A1 (en) * | 2011-07-07 | 2011-11-04 | Cristobal Leiva Guzman Juan | Modular system of underground construction of a nuclear plant that is constituted as a hermetic sarcophagus from the moment it stops working or breaks down, consisting of an access module, a transfer module and a connector, a temporary closure and a main container with permanent closure. |
| JP2017524951A (en) * | 2014-06-13 | 2017-08-31 | ▲長▼江勘▲測▼▲規▼▲劃▼▲設▼▲計▼研究有限▲責▼任公司 | Underground nuclear power plant radioactive drainage underground migration protection system |
| DE102015208492A1 (en) * | 2015-05-07 | 2016-11-10 | Reiner Diefenbach | Repository for the storage of radioactive material, and method for its production |
| DE102016222017A1 (en) * | 2016-11-09 | 2018-05-09 | Reiner Diefenbach Unternehmergesellschaft (haftungsbeschränkt) | Repository for the storage of radioactive material, and method for its production |
Family Cites Families (5)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US2333315A (en) * | 1938-09-05 | 1943-11-02 | Svenska Entreprenad Aktiebolag | Construction of underground tanks for storing liquid fuels and other fluids |
| US3236053A (en) * | 1959-10-09 | 1966-02-22 | Gaines H Billue | Underground storage and disposal of radioactive products |
| US3307361A (en) * | 1964-10-21 | 1967-03-07 | Halliburton Co | Method of constructing an underground structure |
| US3396539A (en) * | 1966-02-14 | 1968-08-13 | Inst Gas Technology | Vapor barrier means for underground storage system |
| SE7308359L (en) * | 1973-06-14 | 1974-12-16 | Arne Lorens Beckstrom |
-
1977
- 1977-12-06 ES ES464822A patent/ES464822A1/en not_active Expired
- 1977-12-06 CA CA292,492A patent/CA1096644A/en not_active Expired
- 1977-12-08 MX MX10063877U patent/MX4571E/en unknown
- 1977-12-09 GB GB5140777A patent/GB1598355A/en not_active Expired
- 1977-12-12 FI FI773751A patent/FI63091C/en not_active IP Right Cessation
- 1977-12-12 BR BR7708254A patent/BR7708254A/en unknown
- 1977-12-13 FR FR7737486A patent/FR2373861A1/en active Granted
- 1977-12-13 JP JP14980077A patent/JPS5387000A/en active Granted
- 1977-12-13 IT IT3066177A patent/IT1088531B/en active
- 1977-12-13 DE DE19772755554 patent/DE2755554C2/en not_active Expired
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| GB1598355A (en) | 1981-09-16 |
| FI773751A (en) | 1978-06-14 |
| IT1088531B (en) | 1985-06-10 |
| FI63091C (en) | 1983-04-11 |
| FR2373861A1 (en) | 1978-07-07 |
| ES464822A1 (en) | 1979-05-01 |
| BR7708254A (en) | 1978-08-15 |
| MX4571E (en) | 1982-06-17 |
| FR2373861B1 (en) | 1982-12-10 |
| JPS57480B2 (en) | 1982-01-06 |
| DE2755554C2 (en) | 1983-09-08 |
| DE2755554A1 (en) | 1978-06-29 |
| FI63091B (en) | 1982-12-31 |
| JPS5387000A (en) | 1978-07-31 |
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