Integrated S ystem for Spent Ion Exchange Resin Processing in Nuclear Power Stations - 11164

The Tsuruga nuclear power station Unit 1 owned by the Japan Atomic Power Company (JAPC) will terminate its commercial operation in 2016. For a safe decommissioning of the station, JAPC and JGC Corporation have investigated the processing of stored radioactive wastes such as spent ion exchange resin (IEX) and filter sludge (FS). A unique wet-oxidation process operating at 100 C under atmospheric pressure will be applied for decomposing organic substances in the waste. The treated waste containing radioactive species will undergo cementation using our Super Cement (SC) solidification process. For the treatment of high activity waste, the combined process of wet oxidation and SC solidification provides advantages over conventional incineration and direct solidification methods; for example, it can be operated environmentally safely under milder operating conditions with simple equipment and has the capability to reduce the volume of the waste material. It is expected that the combined process can be applied for the treatment of FS as well as spent IEX in other nuclear power stations.