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Studsvik
Waste Treatment
Technology
IoMC
26th March 2008
Joe Robinson, CEng CEnv MCIWEM
Studsvik UK Limited
Agenda
• Brief Introduction to Studsvik
• Waste Treatment Technology
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What do we mean?
THOR
Incineration
Metal Melting
• Video clips and Project Examples
• Conclusions about Waste Treatment for the Cumbrian cluster
of Nuclear Licensed Sites
Studsvik
• Leading supplier of services to the global nuclear industry
• 1,200 employees in 7 countries and annual sales of £100M
• Listed on the Nordic Stock Exchange
• Group operates by a number of subsidiaries across four
Strategic Business Areas (SBAs)
Operational
Efficiency
Decommissioning Waste Treatment
Studsvik UK Ltd
Service &
Maintenance
Studsvik: UK Operations
• Based in north east England with 4
regional offices
• Operating unit for all UK contracts
• Certified management systems to
ISO9001:2000,
ISO14001:2004 and
OHAS 18001
• ECIA and ROSPA awards for Safety
Performance
• Sites include Sellafield, AWE, Babcock
Marine Rosyth & Devonport, Hunterston,
Berkeley, Bradwell and Winfrith
Waste Options
• Limited options available for UK ILW/LLW historically
• LLWR capacity will be used in less than 2 years
• Planning permission for Vault 9 granted for storage
• Potential capacity is 700,000 m3, but
3.2M m3 is required
• Annual limits on total activity of waste
• Post-Closure Safety Case has not yet
been approved
• LLW policy (Cmd2919) was not
suitable for large scale
decommissioning
Waste Policy & Pressures
• In March 2007, a new UK
Government policy on Solid LLW
was published
• Adoption of The Waste
Management Hierarchy is a
central theme
• Implemented through LLW
Plans, Integrated Waste
Strategies and BPEO
• Significant cost benefits can be
achieved by volume reduction of
£1300/m3 – £130,000/m3
Studsvik Position
• Our services are focussed on solving customer problems
• Strong service alignment with Waste Management Hierarchy
• Our technologies are proven, but are continually evolving
• Decommissioning and Waste Treatment at Tier 2 are at our
core but also Tier 1 and Tier 3
• Services should be provided locally where possible
• Safety and environmental thinking is
built-in to our decision making process
• We look towards integration and
partnership with customer waste
management functions
Waste Treatment Team
Site Services
- Characterisation
- Health Physics
- Retrieval
- Packaging
- Mobile Equipment
Nuclear
Site License
Corporate
Body RPA
Waste Processing
Technical Services
- Metal Melting
- Incineration
- Pyrolysis
- Logistics
- Studsvik MRF
- Waste Strategy
- BPEO/BPM
- Regulatory support
- R&D
- Laboratories
Asbestos
License
Waste
Carrier
DGSAs
Waste Processing
THOR® Treatment of high activity wastes
Medium temperature pyrolysis / steam reforming
1000 m3 per year, volume reduction of 10:1
Suitable for PCM, organics, liquids, graphite, etc
METAL MELT 20 year history, 5000 t/yr
Size reduction, blasting and induction furnaces
97% of incoming metal recycled as ingots
Suitable for LLW including Fe, Al, Cu, Pb
INCINERATION 30 years, upgraded modern
standards facility, 500 t/yr
97% of incoming material destroyed
Suitable for LLW combustibles and oil
METALS RECYCLING FACILITY
Nuclear Licensed Site, Capacity of 3000 t/yr
Metals pre-processing, exemption
Facility refurbishment ongoing, opens Q4 2008
Introduction
• Thermal Organic Reduction (THOR)
• Proven pyrolysis/steam reforming
thermal treatment technology for
processing of LLW and ILW
• Solid, liquid, sludge or gaseous input
with no need for pre-treatment
• Applicable to a wide variety of organic
and inorganic wastes
• Volume reduced, stable final product
can be produced through the addition
of additives and co-reactants
• THOR® is a Studsvik patented
technology
Operational
since 1999
Pyrolysis / Steam Reforming
Steam Reforming uses high temperature (700°C-1100°C) steam, with
catalysts and/or additives, to break down organic and inorganic
materials and produce desired end products
PYROLYSIS
Gas
Water (Steam)
&
Hydrocarbons
RESIN
IX Resin
Carbon, Metals,
Inorganic Oxides & Salts
Metal Oxides &
Residual Carbon
Steam
Heat
STEAM REFORMING
THOR® Immobilizes at the Molecular Level within a
Cage-like Mineral Structure
• THOR® immobilizes radionuclides,
alkali metals, sulfate, chlorides,
fluorides, and non-volatile heavy
metals into a stable, water insoluble
mineral matrix
Studsvik Processing Facility (SPF)-Erwin, TN
Waste Processing
Processing of LLW/ILW
• Studsvik Processing Facility (SPF)
based in Erwin, TN
• Owned and Operated by Studsvik
• Processes 1000 m3 IX Resins/pa from
commercial reactor market in North
America
• Volume reduced inert final product
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Over 1600 Shipments to date
Over 6000 m3 treated to date
Over 2200 TBq of Activity Treated
Maximum container doserate 5 Sv.h-1
THOR: Two Deployment Options
4
FBSR
1.
Waste feed & injection pump
2.
Denitration and Mineralization
Reformer (DMR)
3.
Carbon Reduction Reformer
(CRR)
4.
Off-gas treatment filtration and
mercury adsorber
5.
Granular product receiver
6.
Filter and cooler
7.
Binder mixer
8.
Disposal container fill station
1
THOR DRUM AUTOCLAVE
SYSTEM
2
3
5
7
8
6
Waste Processing
Processing of LLW/ILW
• Within the DOE market we deploy the THOR technology
via a JV with Washington Group International, called
THOR Treatment Technologies (TTT)
• First major award in 2005, was design and build contract
for the THOR Integrated Waste Treatment Unit (IWTU) to
allow treatment of sodium bearing waste at Idaho
• 48 month construction programme, followed by 12
months to process the 3500 m3 of tank waste
Major Components
THOR® Technology Waste Forms for
Wet ILW
• Technology basis
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Removes liquids
Removes organics (no potential hydrogen generators)
Reacts chemicals (no interaction with solidification agent)
C14, H3 volatilisation
• Final product
– Volume reduced, inert product for disposal in storage or disposal
container (lowest cost, highest volume reduction)
– Volume reduced, inert product for solidification
– Volume reductions or ~10 or better are expected with IX Resin
Studsvik Site - Sweden
Metal Melting facility
Deep sea harbour
Incineration facility
Incineration
• Operated since 1976
• 500 tpa
• 97% volume reduction
• Inert end product
• Customer specific campaigns
• Ashes and secondary wastes returned
• Operates for waste treatment not disposal
• Modern standards off-gas system
Oil Incineration Project
• High level of interest in oil
incineration capability
• Recently completed project to
treat 43m3 contaminated oil
from the UK
• Multi-consignment under TFS
• Facility modifications for direct
injection
• Project will clear the entire
inventory of facility for re-use
or demolition
Oil Incineration
Melting Facility
• 8000 tpa Induction Furnace operated since 1987
• Licensed to 5000 tpa including “foreign waste”
• Applicable to all main metal types including lead
• Recycle 95% by mass
• Customer specific
campaigns
• Ideally suited to LLW scrap
and large components
Why Melting?
• Acts as an effective decontamination process for most metals
and associated radionuclide contamination
• Achieves complete volume reduction of the material
• Homogenises the metal for robust characterisation
• Provides an opportunity for re-use and recycling of valuable
material
Recycling 1 tonne of steel saves:
Water use 60% less
1.5t iron ore
Emissions 86% less
0.5t coal
1.3t solid waste Energy 75% less
Metals Treatment Process
• Sorting
• Size reduction
Receipt and
Inspection
• Decontamination
• Safety check
• Melting
• Activity assessment
• Return secondary waste
• Recycling
Free
Release
> 95%
Crushing
Melting
Blasting
Size Reduction
Sorting
Process for Containerised Scrap
Large component processing
Large Component Example
~ 85 % by weight and > 90 % of
the volume free released
~ 310 te
~ 400 m³
260 te
Exempt released
Secondary waste
~ 50 te
< 40 m³ (10 %)
Ringhals HX Project Result
• General contact dose rates 7 mSv
• Contact dose rate of 14 mSv on
tube bundle
• Total activity 34 TBq
Waste Treatment
Packaging and Transport
NPP
Melting Facility
Localised Loading
Unloading at Studsvik
All in accordance with IAEA
Regulations for the Safe
Transport of Radioactive
Materials
Germany to Sweden
Multi-Element Bottle Project
• Studsvik-Sellafield relationship began in
2003
• Demonstration project for empty fuel
element “bottles” from THORP
• Inactive and Active Trials
• Size reduction, decontamination, Metal
Melting, Monitoring, Recycling in
Sweden
• Secondary waste return to UK
• Regulated under Transfrontier Shipment
of Radioactive Waste Regulations 1993
Metal Melt: UK Experience since 2003
Sellafield MEB Treatment Project (THORP)
MEB Outcome
• First UK waste treated at Studsvik
• Successful treatment of 4 active MEBs
• Overall 60% - 75% reduction in waste disposal volume
• Secondary wastes successfully consigned to LLWR
• Methodology developed for full scale treatment for activities
up to 2000 Bq/g
• Proven the use of Transfrontier Shipment Regulations
Ferrous Scrap Project
• Routine LLW scrap arising from disused
transport containers from Sellafield
• Geometrically complex shapes: difficult to
decontaminate to UK exemption standards
• Regulatory approvals under TFS
• Blasting and melting proven to be highly
efficient
• Ingots directly releasable after treatment for
metal recycling
• 94% of material recycled
Ferrous Project Outcome
UK Demonstration Project 2006
UK Lead melting
Multi-consignment Lead Project 2007 - ongoing
Lead Project Outcome
• Shared understanding of TFS regulations between
Sellafield and Studsvik
• First multi-consignment project
• Transfrontier Shipment becomes routine
• Detailed protocols for secondary waste return agreed
• New package type developed by MHF Logistics
• >98% of material recycled
Ongoing UK Projects
UK Customers include: Sellafield Ltd, Magnox Electric,
Babcock Marine Rosyth & Devonport, Springfields, Urenco
UK Metals Recycling Facility
• Studsvik is developing a site in
Workington for Metals
Recycling
• Our target is to decontaminate
95% metallic waste to exempt
levels and release into metallic
scrap market for re-use
• Facility has planning
permission and all regulatory
permits are in place
• Facility opens Q4 2008
Changing Times for Waste Treatment
• Government policy has changed
• Our focus is on volume reduction and waste stabilisation,
principally through thermal treatment techniques
• Technologies including THOR, Metal Melt and oil
incineration are unique and innovative in the market
• These are all proven full scale technologies
• We have created the UKs first Nuclear Licensed Site for 25
years
• We have helped to break the stigma associated with
overseas shipment – DEFRA policy & regulators are
supportive – and UK customers are now using our services
on a routine basis
Conclusions
• New waste routes and technologies are required to meet the
UK’s nuclear decommissioning programme
• Overseas waste treatment routes are available and can be
utilised and meet the Waste Management Hierarchy today
• In the medium term technologies need to be developed
locally and Studsvik is helping to develop local Cumbrian
solutions via our site in Workington
• Continued focus will be placed on volume reduction
techniques including a range of thermal technologies
• These provide new challenges for the engineering
community, not least of which is stakeholder engagement