Current Practices of NPP Spent
Nuclear Fuel Management in
Romania
Oana Velicu, CNCAN
Madalina Budu, CNCAN
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from
Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
Topics
1. Introduction
2. Radioactive Waste and Spent Nuclear Fuel
Policies in Romania
3. Legislative and Regulatory Framework
4. Legal Responsibilities for Radioactive Waste
Management
5. NPP Spent Fuel Management System and
Practices
6. Licensing Procedures
7. Conclusions
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
1. Introduction
• Late 70’s: Romania chose CANDU type reactor for its first
NPP
– high safety features of this technology
– the possibility to manufacture internally the nuclear fuel and the heavy
water
• The U ore mined in country is transported to a processing
plant (Feldioara Plant)
• The nuclear fuel is produced by Pitesti Nuclear Fuel Plant
– 1994: AECL and Zircatec Precision Industries Inc. Canada qualified
FCN Pitesti as a CANDU-6 fuel manufacturer
– FCN Pitesti supplies all the fuel necessary for the operation of
Cernavoda NPP Units 1 & 2
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
2. Radioactive Waste and SNF Policies
• According to national legislation, SNF is considered to be
another form of Radioactive Waste.
• The general objective of the Romanian radioactive waste
management policy is to ensure the safe management of
radioactive waste.
• Some of the main aspects of the national waste management
policy are the following ones:
– the radioactive waste management, including the transport, shall be
licensed and shall be performed according to the provisions of the
applicable laws and regulations
– the licensees have the responsibility for management of radioactive waste
arising from the operation and decommissioning of their own nuclear and
radiological facilities, up to disposal
– the import of radioactive waste is prohibited
– spent fuel produced by NPP’s shall not be reprocessed
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
3. Legislative and Regulatory Framework
• Applicable Laws:
– Law no.111/1996 on the safe deployment, regulation,
licensing and control of nuclear activities, republished
– Law no.105/1999 on the ratification of Joint Convention on the
safe management of nuclear fuel and on the safe
management of radioactive waste
– Government Ordinance no. 195/2005 on environmental
protection
– Law no. 43/1995 on ratification of Nuclear Safety Convention
– Law no. 703/2001 on civil liability for nuclear damages
– Governmental Ordinance no. 11/2003 regarding the
management of nuclear spent fuel and radioactive waste,
including their disposal, with subsequent modifications and
completions
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
3 (cont’d)
• Fundamental regulations on radiological safety:
– Order no. 14/2000 of CNCAN President on the approval of
Radiological Safety Fundamental Regulations (the
transposition of the European Council Directive
96/29/EURATOM of 13 May 1996 laying down basic safety
standards for the protection of the health of workers and the
general public against the dangers arising from ionizing
radiation);
– Fundamental Regulations on the Safe Management of
Radioactive Waste (Order no. 56/2004 of CNCAN President)
– Fundamental Sanitary Regulations on the Safe Deployment
of Nuclear Activities (Order no. 381/2004 of Health Minister)
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
3 (cont’d)
• Specific regulations:
- Regulations on the Clearance of Materials;
- Regulations on the Classification of Radioactive Waste;
- Regulations on General Requirements for Near Surface
Disposal of Radioactive Waste;
- Regulations on the Decommissioning of Nuclear Facilities;
- Radiological Safety Regulations on Management of
Radioactive Waste from Mining and Milling of Uranium and
Thorium Ores;
- Regulations on Supervising and Control of International
Shipments of Radioactive Waste involving Romanian
Territory;
- Regulations on the Transport of Radioactive Materials;
- Regulations on Safeguards in Nuclear Field, etc.
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
3 (cont’d)
• Also, for spent fuel and radioactive waste
management, there are still in force some old
regulations, such as the Republican Nuclear
Safety Regulations for Nuclear Reactors and
Nuclear Power Plants, issued by CNCAN in 1975.
• In order to fill the gap, till new regulations will be
issued, international regulations are used (e.g.
IAEA recommendations and guides, Canadian
Standards and US NRC Regulatory Guides and
NUREG’s).
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
4. Legal Responsibilities
• The National Commission for Nuclear Activities
Control (CNCAN) is the nuclear regulatory body,
empowered with the regulation, licensing and control of
nuclear activities in Romania, an independent authority,
reporting to the Prime Minister through the General
Secretariat of the Romanian Government.
• The Nuclear Agency for Radioactive Waste
(AN&DR) is the national competent authority in the field
of promoting, development and monitoring of nuclear
activities in exclusive peaceful purposes and of safe
management of radioactive waste, including final
disposal.
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 20
4 (cont’d)
• The prime responsibility for the safety of a nuclear or
radiological installation rests with the licensee.
• This includes the responsibility for the management
of the spent fuel and of the radioactive waste
generated within the practice, and also the
responsibility for the decommissioning of the facility.
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
5. NPP SNF Management Systems and Practices
• Romania operates in present only one NPP, located at
1 km distance of Cernavoda town, close to Danube
River
• Cernavoda NPP is equipped with 5 PHWR - CANDU-6
type reactors, with 705 MW(e) gross capacity each:
-
Unit 1 in commercial operation since December 1996
Unit 2 in commercial operation since November, 2007
Units 3, 4 and 5 under preservation, since 1992
It is expected that in the following couple of years, the
construction of Units 3 and 4 will be resumed
• SNF Management systems of Cernavoda NPP:
- 2 Spent Fuel Handling Systems (for each unit)
- the Interim Spent Fuel Dry Storage Facility (DICA)
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
5 (cont’d)
• The Spent Fuel Handling System includes the
following:
- Discharge and Transfer Equipment;
- Spent Fuel Reception and Storage Equipment;
- Spent Fuel Reception Bay;
- Spent Fuel Bay (main storage bay) and Defective Fuel Bay.
• Units 1 & 2 produce in one year ~ 6,000 bundles of irradiated
fuel, each one. After one year of irradiation, the SNF bundles
are transferred into the Spent Fuel Bay of the respective Unit,
under water, through a Transfer Channel.
• The Spent Fuel Bay is designed to ensure the safe storage of
fuel bundles, the biological protection against ionizing radiations
and the evacuation of residual heat.
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
5 (cont’d)
• After min. 6 years storage in the spent fuel bay, the
SNF is transferred to Intermediate Dry Storage
Spent Fuel Facility (DICA).
• DICA is located on NPP site, it can accommodate the
SNF generated by two reactors operating 30 years, in
27 spent fuel modules; its designed storage capacity
will be expanded gradually from 12,000 to 324,000
spent fuel bundles.
• The first module of DICA was put in operation in 2003,
the second and the third modules are in operation
since 2006 and the construction of the fourth one was
licensed in 2009.
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
5 (cont’d)
• The dry storage technology is based on the AECL
MACSTOR System. It consists of storage modules
located outdoors in the storage site, and equipment
operated at the spent fuel storage bay for preparing
the SNF for dry storage. The SNF is transferred from
the preparation area to the storage site in a transfer
flask. The transportation is on-site.
• The designed lifetime of DICA is 50 years. The
Romanian strategy for the management of the back
end of the fuel cycle is the disposal in geological
repository of spent nuclear fuel from nuclear power
plant.
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
5 (cont’d)
• The basic principle of dry storage system could be
expressed as following: „The storage of spent fuel
for a period of at least 50 years, in nuclear safety
conditions for operating personnel, as well as for
the population and for the environment”, by:
– Ensuring the necessary barriers to confine the fuel from
the surrounding environment (besides the fuel sheath);
– Removing the residual heat from the stored fuel, through
natural convection of air;
– Ensuring the storage area against external events
(natural and induced by man);
– Ensuring the adequate biological protection.
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
5 (cont’d)
• The MACSTOR solution, specific to dry storage of
CANDU spent fuel, implies the following:
- the use of Spent Fuel Bay for loading the SNF in storage
baskets;
- the construction of a new building, adjacent to the Spent
Fuel Bay, for the loading of the transfer flask on the transport
vehicle;
- the construction of a modular type storage facility, to ensure
the necessary storage capacity, sequencially increased, for
the SNF periodically evacuated from the Spent Fuel Bay.
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
5 (cont’d)
• The principal activities, specific of this solution, are
the following:
- the preparation of the SNF for dry storage (done in the
Spent Fuel Bay and its extension)
- the transfer of SNF (from NPP to DICA)
- the storage of SNF (in DICA)
• The condition of the SNF stored in the DICA
modules is periodically checked, by sampling the air
inside the storage precincts, in order to verify the
integrity of the confining barriers.
• Also, periodically the radiation levels in the vicinity of
the module walls are monitored.
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
6. Licensing Procedures
• According to the provisions of the Law No.111/1996
republished, the licensing phases of a nuclear installation are
the following:
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
,
design;
sitting;
production;
construction;
commissioning;
trial operation;
operation;
repair and/or maintenance;
modification;
conservation;
decommissioning.
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
6 (cont’d)
• As stipulated by the Republican Nuclear Safety
Regulations on Nuclear Reactors and Nuclear
Power Plants, in order to obtain the necessary
licenses from CNCAN, an applicant must present a
nuclear safety documentation, consisting in:
- the Initial Safety Assessment Report, for the Sitting
License;
- the Preliminary Safety Assessment Report, for the
Construction License;
- the Final Safety Assessment Report, for the
Operation License.
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
6 (cont’d)
• The Sitting License for DICA was issued by CNCAN in
August 2001 and it contains the conditions related to the
constructive solution, the confirmation of seismic entry data,
and the completeness of list of Design Basis Accidents.
• It was also required for the Preliminary Safety Analysis Report,
requested in support of the application for Construction
License, to demonstrate the observance of dose constraints for
the members of the public during normal operation (0.1
mSv/year) and to demonstrate the observance of Romanian
regulations related to dose limits in case of Design Basis
Accidents (the exclusion zone and the reduced population zone
shall remain inside the area established for Cernavoda NPP
site).
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
6 (cont’d)
• The Construction License of the first module of DICA was
issued in May 2002 and it contains conditions related to the
constructive solution, and to the reconsideration of the air crash
severe accident.
• It was requested the Final Safety Analysis Report to improve the
scenario, to justify the emission height, and to present the
support documentation for radionuclide concentrations and dose
calculations, for all meteorological conditions and all distances
and heights relevant for emergency planning).
• Also, it was requested to be analyzed the situation of a critical
group inside the exclusion zone, and to demonstrate that in
normal operation, the dose constraint for members of the public
is not exceeded.
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
6 (cont’d)
• All these requirements have been addressed in the Final
Safety Analysis Report that was submitted to CNCAN in
order to obtain the Operating License for module 1 of DICA.
• In 2005 and 2008, the Preliminary Safety Analysis Report of
DICA was revised in order to obtain the Construction License
of modules 2, 3 and 4.
• The Operation License for the first module of the Spent Fuel
Dry Storage was issued in 2003, based on Final Safety
Analysis Report.
• The Operation License was renewed in 2006 and 2007, in
order to include in operation the modules 2 and 3.
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
7. Conclusions
What will be the end of the Romanian Fuel Cycle?
• Current plans of AN&DR foresee the development of a deep
geological repository for the final disposal of SNF, to start
operation in 2055.
• The studies of a geological repository are in a relatively early
stage: theoretical studies of mapping Romania identified
potential host-rocks (salt, volcanic tuff, granite, clay, basalt
and green schist).
• Starting with 2010, AN&DR will issue site investigation
programs on preferred sites, for 3 geological formations, such
as: granite, salt and, probably, green schist.
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010
THANK YOU!
International Conference on Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors,
IAEA, Vienna, 31 May – 4 June, 2010