Nuclear energy waste from

With the close of activities devoted to the plutonium production for World War n, two activities have dominated waste management till the end of the Cold War Period, competition in nuclear weapons production and the growth of civilian use of nuclear energy. Wastes from civilian uses on a radioactivity scale were dominated by civilian nuclear power production while waste production from nuclear weapons systems was dominated by the rivalry between the Soviet Union and the United States of America. 

Even nuclear power, both fission and one day fusion (the emulation on Earth of the Sun), depend on the skills of chemists. The construction of nuclear reactors depends on the availability of new materials, and the extraction of nuclear fuel in the form of uranium and its oxides from its ores involves chemistry. Everyone knows that one fear that holds back the development and public acceptance of nuclear energy, apart from political and economic problems, is the problem of how to dispose of the highly radioactive spent fuel. Chemists contribute by finding ways to extract useful isotopes from nuclear waste and by finding ways to ensure that it does not enter the environment and become a hazard for centuries. 

Mani ement of radioactive wastes generated from the production of nuclear energy and from the use of radioactive materials in industrial plications, research and medicine has alwa)rs been recognized by the Agency as an issue of utmost importance for the protection of human health and the environment now and in the future. It is also an important issue for the future use of nuclear energy. 

Sekimoto H, Nakamura H, Takagi N. 1996. Toxicity of radioactive wastes discharged from nuclear energy center in the future equilibrium state. Ann Nucl Energy 23(8) 663-668. 

To fill this gap, we will need to increase our nuclear energy R D to cover the complete spectrum of research needs. . . from power generation. .. to non-proliferation. .. to waste disposal. The Department s Nuclear Energy Research Advisory Committee - NER4C - is currently working on an analysis of nuclear R D needs. We hope that this effort will further inform and focus our nuclear energy R D needs and help us fill our portfolio gaps. 

Learn how to concentrate and securely deal with the radioactive waste products from nuclear energy plants. 

FINGAL [Fixation in Glass of Active Liquors] A batch process for immobilizing nuclear waste in a borosilicate glass. Developed by the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority from 1958 and piloted at its Windscale Works 1962-1966. After a lapse of several years, the project was resumed in 1972 under the acronym HARVEST. 

William Randall Seeker received his Ph.D. in engineering (nuclear and chemical) from Kansas State University. He is the senior vice president and a member of the board of directors of Energy and Environmental Research Corporation. Dr. Seeker has extensive experience in the use of thermal treatment technologies and environmental control systems for managing hazardous waste. He is a member of the Executive Committee of the Environmental Protection Agency s Science Advisory Board. Dr. Seeker has authored over 100 technical papers on various aspects of technology and environment subjects. 

Polvani, C. (Chairman) et al "Objectives, Concepts and Strategies for the Management of Radioactive Waste Arising from Nuclear Power Programs" OECD Nuclear Energy Agency, Paris, 1977... 

This paper is concerned primarily with the application of chemistry to the control of radioactive waste products from the use of nuclear energy. As far as immediate effects are concerned, nuclear power from uranium is a particularly clean energy source (1). The radioactive waste prpducts are well contained within the used fuel bundles. Since some constituents of the radioactive wastes take almost a thousand years to decay to an innocuous level and a few persist for many millennia, e.g. we have to ensure... 

Tc-99, which has a half life of 2.12 x 10 years, can be recovered from nuclear fission waste in kilogram quantities. Solvent extraction, ion exchange, and volatilization processes are employed to separate it from the numerous other fission products. Because of its long half life and its emission of a soft (low energy) beta particle, it can be safely handled in milligram quantities. Almost all chemical studies of the element have been carried out with this isotope. 

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