Pioneering work on radioactive waste

A WARRINGTON-based company has successfully completed a pioneering trial to dispose of radioactive waste at a nuclear power station.
The process invented by Arvia Technology, based at Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus, could have far-reaching implications for the global nuclear industry.
An organic waste treatment solution is used to dispose of orphan radioactive oil at the Magnox Trawsfynydd power station, North Wales, which is currently being decommissioned.
Arvia was formed as a spin-out company from the University of Manchester. It is now based at Daresbury where it is able to co-locate its office and laboratory facilities.
The science and business campus, which will become an Enterprise Zone in April, is home to more than 100 companies as well as the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) and the Nuclear Skills Academy.
Arvia is conducting research at the campus’s I-TAC laboratory facilities into other applications for its technology across a range of domestic and industrial uses.
Significantly, a number of other nuclear power stations are exploring using the same technology in the decommissioning process.
Nuclear Decommissioning Agency research manager Dr Darrell Morris said: “A number of other decommissioning projects are now investigating whether this approach could be applied to some of their more challenging wastes. The benefits of sharing this success could be considerable.”
Arvia technical director Dr Nigel Brown said: “The success of this approach has major positive implications for the global nuclear industry. Scores of power stations are in the process of being decommissioned across the world and our technology provides a safe and relatively low-cost solution to the problem of dealing with radioactive organics such as oil.”
Radioactive oil, categorised as Intermediate Level Waste (ILW), is one of the most difficult waste challenges for the nuclear industry and exists in various quantities across the world.
Strict regulations mean conventional disposal processes are expensive and require significant logistical resources.
Off-site incineration, at facilities as far afield as Sweden, incurs transport costs, the need for additional fuel to aid combustion and a residue of contaminated ash for subsequent disposal by the site operator.
Passive storage, the only other viable option, is limited by the tendency for oil to “creep” over time and deteriorate the cement in which it is encased.
Arvia adapted water treatment technology into a practical on-site solution that was both low-cost and low-energy for site operator Magnox.
For further information on the technology, visit www.arvianuclear.com