Use of Deep Geologic Horizons for Liquid Waste Disposal at Power Complexes in Central Russia

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the use of deep geologic horizons for liquid waste disposal at power complexes in Central Russia. The results from studies of deep geological formations in European Russia, as well as injection experience and expertise, show that liquid salt wastes from nuclear power plants can be successfully injected into deep geological formations. The existence of a favorable geological structure is a necessary condition for the application of deep-well injection. In the central part of European Russia, known geologically as the Russian Platform, vast territories of the big sedimentary basin are characterized by favorable conditions for deep-well injection of liquid industrial waste. Liquid waste for injection is created by the equipment for demineralization of natural water used for replenishment of technological systems in the first and second loops of the nuclear reactor. The volume of liquid wastes that is suitable for injection at atomic power plants can be increased through the use of new effective sorption materials developed by the Russian Federation. By applying these materials in the preprocessing of liquid radioactive waste, total radioactive activity can be reduced to levels below those established for radioactive wastes.