Science and Technology for Disposal of Radioactive Tank Wastes

Download Science and Technology for Disposal of Radioactive Tank Wastes PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN 13 : 1489915435
Total Pages : 513 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (899 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Science and Technology for Disposal of Radioactive Tank Wastes by : Wallace W. Shulz

Download or read book Science and Technology for Disposal of Radioactive Tank Wastes written by Wallace W. Shulz and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-11-11 with total page 513 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Radioactive wastes resulting from over 40 years of production of nuclear weapons in the U. S. are currently stored in 273 underground tanks at the U. S. Department of Energy Hanford site, Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory, Oak Ridge Reservation, and Savannah River site. Combined, tanks at these sjtes contain approximately 94,000,000 gallons of waste in a variety of forms including liquid, concrete-like salt cake, and various sludges. More than 730,000,000 curies of several radioactive isotopes are present in the underground tanks. Certainly, one of the greatest challenges facing the U. S. Department of Energy is how to characterize, retrieve, treat, and immobilize the great variety of tank wastes in a safe, timely, and cost-effective manner. For several years now, the U. S. Department of Energy has initiated and sponsored scientific and engineering studies, tests, and demonstrations to develop the myriad of technologies required to dispose of the radioactive tank wastes. In recent times, much of the Department of Energy R&D activities concerning tank wastes have been closely coordinated and organized through the Tanks Focus Area (IF A); responsibility for technical operations of the TF A has been assigned to the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

Nuclear Wastes

Download Nuclear Wastes PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 0309176484
Total Pages : 590 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (91 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Nuclear Wastes by : National Research Council

Download or read book Nuclear Wastes written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 1996-02-23 with total page 590 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Disposal of radioactive waste from nuclear weapons production and power generation has caused public outcry and political consternation. Nuclear Wastes presents a critical review of some waste management and disposal alternatives to the current national policy of direct disposal of light water reactor spent fuel. The book offers clearcut conclusions for what the nation should do today and what solutions should be explored for tomorrow. The committee examines the currently used "once-through" fuel cycle versus different alternatives of separations and transmutation technology systems, by which hazardous radionuclides are converted to nuclides that are either stable or radioactive with short half-lives. The volume provides detailed findings and conclusions about the status and feasibility of plutonium extraction and more advanced separations technologies, as well as three principal transmutation concepts for commercial reactor spent fuel. The book discusses nuclear proliferation; the U.S. nuclear regulatory structure; issues of health, safety and transportation; the proposed sale of electrical energy as a means of paying for the transmutation system; and other key issues.

Tank Wastes Planned for On-Site Disposal at Three Department of Energy Sites

Download Tank Wastes Planned for On-Site Disposal at Three Department of Energy Sites PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 0309096936
Total Pages : 88 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (9 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Tank Wastes Planned for On-Site Disposal at Three Department of Energy Sites by : National Research Council

Download or read book Tank Wastes Planned for On-Site Disposal at Three Department of Energy Sites written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2005-09-05 with total page 88 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In response to a request from Congress, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) asked the National Academies to evaluate its plans for managing radioactive wastes from spent nuclear fuel at sites in Idaho, South Carolina, and Washington. This interim report evaluates storage facilities at the Savannah River Site in South Carolina, with a particular focus on plans to seal the tanks with grouting. The report finds that tanks at the site do not necessarily need to be sealed shut as soon as the bulk of the waste has been removed. Postponing permanent closure buys more time for the development and application of emerging technologies to remove and better immobilize residual waste, without increasing risks to the environment or delaying final closure of the "tank farms." The report also recommends alternatives to address the lack of tank space at the site, as well as the need for focused R&D activities to reduce the amount and improve the immobilization of residual waste in the tanks and to test some of the assumptions used in evaulating long-term risks at the site.

An End State Methodology for Identifying Technology Needs for Environmental Management, with an Example from the Hanford Site Tanks

Download An End State Methodology for Identifying Technology Needs for Environmental Management, with an Example from the Hanford Site Tanks PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 0309592259
Total Pages : 105 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (95 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis An End State Methodology for Identifying Technology Needs for Environmental Management, with an Example from the Hanford Site Tanks by : Committee on Technologies for Cleanup of High-Level Waste in Tanks in the DOE Weapons Complex

Download or read book An End State Methodology for Identifying Technology Needs for Environmental Management, with an Example from the Hanford Site Tanks written by Committee on Technologies for Cleanup of High-Level Waste in Tanks in the DOE Weapons Complex and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 1999-03-30 with total page 105 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A major issue in the cleanup of this country's nuclear weapons complex is how to dispose of the radioactive waste resulting primarily from the chemical processing operations for the recovery of plutonium and other defense strategic nuclear materials. The wastes are stored in hundreds of large underground tanks at four U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) sites throughout the United States. The tanks contain hundreds of thousands of cubic meters of radioactive and hazardous waste. Most of it is high-level waste (HLW), some of it is transuranic (TRU) or low- level waste (LLW), and essentially all containing significant amounts of chemicals deemed hazardous. Of the 278 tanks involved, about 70 are known or assumed to have leaked some of their contents to the environment. The remediation of the tanks and their contents requires the development of new technologies to enable cleanup and minimize costs while meeting various health, safety, and environmental objectives. While DOE has a process based on stakeholder participation for screening and formulating technology needs, it lacks transparency (in terms of being apparent to all concerned decision makers and other interested parties) and a systematic basis (in terms of identifying end states for the contaminants and developing pathways to these states from the present conditions). An End State Methodology for Identifying Technology Needs for Environmental Management, with an Example from the Hanford Site Tanks describes an approach for identifying technology development needs that is both systematic and transparent to enhance the cleanup and remediation of the tank contents and their sites. The authoring committee believes that the recommended end state based approach can be applied to DOE waste management in general, not just to waste in tanks. The approach is illustrated through an example based on the tanks at the DOE Hanford Site in southeastern Washington state, the location of some 60 percent by volume of the tank waste residues.

Tank Waste Retrieval, Processing, and On-site Disposal at Three Department of Energy Sites

Download Tank Waste Retrieval, Processing, and On-site Disposal at Three Department of Energy Sites PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 0309101700
Total Pages : 214 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (91 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Tank Waste Retrieval, Processing, and On-site Disposal at Three Department of Energy Sites by : National Research Council

Download or read book Tank Waste Retrieval, Processing, and On-site Disposal at Three Department of Energy Sites written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2006-10-12 with total page 214 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: DOE Tank Waste: How clean is clean enough? The U.S. Congress asked the National Academies to evaluate the Department of Energy's (DOE's) plans for cleaning up defense-related radioactive wastes stored in underground tanks at three sites: the Hanford Site in Washington State, the Savannah River Site in South Carolina, and the Idaho National Laboratory. DOE plans to remove the waste from the tanks, separate out high-level radioactive waste to be shipped to an off-site geological repository, and dispose of the remaining lower-activity waste onsite. The report concludes that DOE's overall plan is workable, but some important challenges must be overcomeâ€"including the removal of residual waste from some tanks, especially at Hanford and Savannah River. The report recommends that DOE pursue a more risk-informed, consistent, participatory, and transparent for making decisions about how much waste to retrieve from tanks and how much to dispose of onsite. The report offers several other detailed recommendations to improve the technical soundness of DOE's tank cleanup plans.

Waste Forms Technology and Performance

Download Waste Forms Technology and Performance PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 0309224977
Total Pages : 308 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (92 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Waste Forms Technology and Performance by : National Research Council

Download or read book Waste Forms Technology and Performance written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2011-08-05 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Department of Energy's Office of Environmental Management (DOE-EM) is responsible for cleaning up radioactive waste and environmental contamination resulting from five decades of nuclear weapons production and testing. A major focus of this program involves the retrieval, processing, and immobilization of waste into stable, solid waste forms for disposal. Waste Forms Technology and Performance, a report requested by DOE-EM, examines requirements for waste form technology and performance in the cleanup program. The report provides information to DOE-EM to support improvements in methods for processing waste and selecting and fabricating waste forms. Waste Forms Technology and Performance places particular emphasis on processing technologies for high-level radioactive waste, DOE's most expensive and arguably most difficult cleanup challenge. The report's key messages are presented in ten findings and one recommendation.

Radioactive Tank Waste Remediation Focus Area

Download Radioactive Tank Waste Remediation Focus Area PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 128 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (683 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Radioactive Tank Waste Remediation Focus Area by :

Download or read book Radioactive Tank Waste Remediation Focus Area written by and published by . This book was released on 1996 with total page 128 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: EM's Office of Science and Technology has established the Tank Focus Area (TFA) to manage and carry out an integrated national program of technology development for tank waste remediation. The TFA is responsible for the development, testing, evaluation, and deployment of remediation technologies within a system architecture to characterize, retrieve, treat, concentrate, and dispose of radioactive waste stored in the underground stabilize and close the tanks. The goal is to provide safe and cost-effective solutions that are acceptable to both the public and regulators. Within the DOE complex, 335 underground storage tanks have been used to process and store radioactive and chemical mixed waste generated from weapon materials production and manufacturing. Collectively, thes tanks hold over 90 million gallons of high-level and low-level radioactive liquid waste in sludge, saltcake, and as supernate and vapor. Very little has been treated and/or disposed or in final form.

Nuclear Waste Cleanup Technologies and Opportunities

Download Nuclear Waste Cleanup Technologies and Opportunities PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Elsevier
ISBN 13 : 0815518455
Total Pages : 473 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (155 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Nuclear Waste Cleanup Technologies and Opportunities by : Robert Noyes

Download or read book Nuclear Waste Cleanup Technologies and Opportunities written by Robert Noyes and published by Elsevier. This book was released on 1995-12-31 with total page 473 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: One of the largest, most complicated and expensive environmental problems in the United States is the cleanup of nuclear wastes. The US Department of Energy (DOE) has approximately 4,000 contaminated sites covering tens of thousands of acres and replete with contaminated hazardous or radioactive waste, soil, or structures. In addition to high-level waste, it has more than 250,000 cubic meters of transuranic waste and millions of cubic meters of low-level radio-active waste. In addition, DOE is responsible for thousands of facilities awaiting decontamination, decommissioning, and dismantling. DOE and its predecessors have been involved in the management of radioactive wastes since 1943, when such wastes were first generated in significant quantities as by-products of nuclear weapons production. Waste connected with DOE's nuclear weapons complex has been accumulating as a result of various operations spanning over five decades. The cost estimates for nuclear waste cleanup in the United States have been rapidly rising. It has recently been estimated to be in a range from $200 to $350 billion. Costs could vary considerably based on future philosophies as to whether to isolate certain sites (the ""iron fence"" philosophy), or clean them up to a pristine condition (the ""greenfields"" philosophy). Funding will also be based on Congressional action that may reduce environmental cleanup, based on budget considerations.

Nuclear Waste Cleanup Technologies and Opportunities

Download Nuclear Waste Cleanup Technologies and Opportunities PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 0080946194
Total Pages : 473 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (89 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Nuclear Waste Cleanup Technologies and Opportunities by : Robert Noyes

Download or read book Nuclear Waste Cleanup Technologies and Opportunities written by Robert Noyes and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2013-01-15 with total page 473 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: One of the largest, most complicated and expensive environmental problems in the United States is the cleanup of nuclear wastes. The US Department of Energy (DOE) has approximately 4,000 contaminated sites covering tens of thousands of acres and replete with contaminated hazardous or radioactive waste, soil, or structures. In addition to high-level waste, it has more than 250,000 cubic meters of transuranic waste and millions of cubic meters of low-level radio-active waste. In addition, DOE is responsible for thousands of facilities awaiting decontamination, decommissioning, and dismantling. DOE and its predecessors have been involved in the management of radioactive wastes since 1943, when such wastes were first generated in significant quantities as by-products of nuclear weapons production. Waste connected with DOE's nuclear weapons complex has been accumulating as a result of various operations spanning over five decades. The cost estimates for nuclear waste cleanup in the United States have been rapidly rising. It has recently been estimated to be in a range from $200 to $350 billion. Costs could vary considerably based on future philosophies as to whether to isolate certain sites (the ""iron fence"" philosophy), or clean them up to a pristine condition (the ""greenfields"" philosophy). Funding will also be based on Congressional action that may reduce environmental cleanup, based on budget considerations.

Radioactive Waste Management, Second Edition

Download Radioactive Waste Management, Second Edition PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : CRC Press
ISBN 13 : 9781560328421
Total Pages : 430 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (284 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Radioactive Waste Management, Second Edition by : James Saling

Download or read book Radioactive Waste Management, Second Edition written by James Saling and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2001-11-07 with total page 430 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This reviews sources of radioactive waste and introduces radioactive decay and radiation shielding calculations. It covers technical and regulatory aspects of waste management with discussion questions at the end of each chapter to provide an opportunity to explore the many facets of waste management issues. An extensive reference list at the end of each chapter retains the references from the first edition of the book and incorporates references used in preparing this revised text, giving readers an opportunity to look at historical records as well as current information.

Nuclear Waste Disposal

Download Nuclear Waste Disposal PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Nova Publishers
ISBN 13 : 9781590338506
Total Pages : 162 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (385 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Nuclear Waste Disposal by : Warren S. Melfort

Download or read book Nuclear Waste Disposal written by Warren S. Melfort and published by Nova Publishers. This book was released on 2003 with total page 162 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The disposal of nuclear waste is becoming a major concern. Many nuclear power plants around the world are nearing the end of their operating lives. This is particularly true in the United States where most nuclear power plants are approaching the end of the operational time period allowed in their licenses. The disposal of radioactive waste from nuclear power plants and nuclear missiles is as politically intense an issue as the plants and missiles themselves. Yet the three issues have remained curiously separate in spite of their close physical ties. Few debates on nuclear power or nuclear weapons discuss the problems of waste disposal should the power plant or missile be decommissioned. Few debates on nuclear waste disposal discuss the opportunities to close nuclear power plants or get rid of nuclear weapons a disposal site would afford. Nuclear waste can be generally classified a either "low level" radioactive waste or "high level" radioactive waste. Low level nuclear waste usually includes material used to handle the highly radioactive parts of nuclear reactors (i.e. cooling water pipes and radiation suits) and waste from medical procedures involving radioactive treatments or x-rays. Low level waste is comparatively easy to dispose of. The level of radioactivity and the half life of the radioactive isotopes in low level waste is relatively small. Storing the waste for a period of 10 to 50 years will allow most of the radioactive isotopes in low level waste to decay, at which point the waste can be disposed of as normal refuse. High level radioactive waste is generally material from the core of the nuclear reactor or nuclear weapon. This waste includes uranium, plutonium, and other highly radioactive elements made during fission. Most of the radioactive isotopes in high level waste emit large amounts of radiation and have extremely long half-lives (some longer than 100,000 years) creating long time periods before the waste will settle to safe levels of radioactivity. This new book explores the issues pertaining, either directly or indirectly, to nuclear waste disposal.

Independent Assessment of Science and Technology for the Department of Energy's Defense Environmental Cleanup Program

Download Independent Assessment of Science and Technology for the Department of Energy's Defense Environmental Cleanup Program PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 0309487781
Total Pages : 123 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (94 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Independent Assessment of Science and Technology for the Department of Energy's Defense Environmental Cleanup Program by : National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

Download or read book Independent Assessment of Science and Technology for the Department of Energy's Defense Environmental Cleanup Program written by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2019-03-27 with total page 123 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2017 contained a request for a National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine review and assessment of science and technology development efforts within the Department of Energy's Office of Environmental Management (DOE-EM). This technical report is the result of the review and presents findings and recommendations.

The Hanford Tanks

Download The Hanford Tanks PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 0309055857
Total Pages : 84 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (9 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis The Hanford Tanks by : National Research Council

Download or read book The Hanford Tanks written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 1996-10-10 with total page 84 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Hanford Site (also known as the Hanford Reservation) occupies approximately 1,450 km2 (560 square miles) along the Columbia River in south-central Washington, north of the city of Richland. The site was established by the federal government in 1943 to produce plutonium for nuclear weapons. Currently, the mission of the site, under the responsibility of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), is management of wastes generated by the weapons program and remediation of the environment contaminated by that waste. As part of that mission, DOE and the State of Washington Department of Ecology prepared the Hanford Site Tank Waste Remediation System Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS). The Hanford Tanks is a general review of the DEIS. Its findings and recommendations are the subject of this report. Selection of a disposition plan for these wastes is a decision of national importance, involving potential environmental and health risks, technical challenges, and costs of tens to hundreds of billions of dollars. The last comprehensive analysis of these issues was completed 10 years ago, and several major changes in plans have occurred since. Therefore, the current reevaluation is timely and prudent. This report endorses the decision to prepare this new environmental impact statement, and in particular the decision to evaluate a wide range of alternatives not restricted to those encouraged by current regulatory policies.

Alternatives for High-Level Waste Salt Processing at the Savannah River Site

Download Alternatives for High-Level Waste Salt Processing at the Savannah River Site PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 030917158X
Total Pages : 154 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (91 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Alternatives for High-Level Waste Salt Processing at the Savannah River Site by : National Research Council

Download or read book Alternatives for High-Level Waste Salt Processing at the Savannah River Site written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2000-10-30 with total page 154 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Second World War introduced the world to nuclear weapons and their consequences. Behind the scene of these nuclear weapons and an aspect of their consequences is radioactive waste. Radioactive waste has varying degrees of harmfulness and poses a problem when it comes to storage and disposal. Radioactive waste is usually kept below ground in varying containers, which depend on how radioactive the waste it. High-level radioactive waste (HLW) can be stored in underground carbon-steel tanks. However, radioactive waste must also be further immobilized to ensure our safety. There are several sites in the United States where high-level radioactive waste (HLW) are stored; including the Savannah River Site (SRS), established in 1950 to produce plutonium and tritium isotopes for defense purposes. In order to further immobilize the radioactive waste at this site an in-tank precipitation (ITP) process is utilized. Through this method, the sludge portion of the tank wastes is being removed and immobilized in borosilicate glass for eventual disposal in a geological repository. As a result, a highly alkaline salt, present in both liquid and solid forms, is produced. The salt contains cesium, strontium, actinides such as plutonium and neptunium, and other radionuclides. But is this the best method? The National Research Council (NRC) has empanelled a committee, at the request of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), to provide an independent technical review of alternatives to the discontinued in-tank precipitation (ITP) process for treating the HLW stored in tanks at the SRS. Alternatives for High-Level Waste Salt Processing at the Savannah RIver Site summarizes the finding of the committee which sought to answer 4 questions including: "Was an appropriately comprehensive set of cesium partitioning alternatives identified and are there other alternatives that should be explored?" and "Are there significant barriers to the implementation of any of the preferred alternatives, taking into account their state of development and their ability to be integrated into the existing SRS HLW system?"

Radioactive Waste Management

Download Radioactive Waste Management PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 536 pages
Book Rating : 4.X/5 (2 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Radioactive Waste Management by :

Download or read book Radioactive Waste Management written by and published by . This book was released on 1981 with total page 536 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

End Points for Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste in Russia and the United States

Download End Points for Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste in Russia and the United States PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 0309087244
Total Pages : 153 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (9 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis End Points for Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste in Russia and the United States by : National Research Council

Download or read book End Points for Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste in Russia and the United States written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2003-06-12 with total page 153 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: End Points for spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste in Russian and the United States provides an analysis of the management of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste in Russia and the United States, describing inventories, comparing approaches, and assessing the end-point options for storage and disposal of materials and wastes. The authoring committee finds that despite differences in philosophy about nuclear fuel cycles, Russia and the United States need similar kinds of facilities and face similar challenges, although in Russia many of the problems are worse and funding is less available. This book contains recommendations for immediate and near-term actions, for example, protecting and stabilizing materials that are security and safety hazards, actions for the longer term, such as developing more interim storage capacity and studying effects of deep injection, and areas for collaboration.

Geological Disposal of Radioactive Wastes and Natural Analogues

Download Geological Disposal of Radioactive Wastes and Natural Analogues PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Elsevier
ISBN 13 : 0080532454
Total Pages : 329 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (85 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Geological Disposal of Radioactive Wastes and Natural Analogues by : W. Miller

Download or read book Geological Disposal of Radioactive Wastes and Natural Analogues written by W. Miller and published by Elsevier. This book was released on 2000-11-09 with total page 329 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Many countries are currently exploring the option to dispose of highly radioactive solid wastes deep underground in purpose built, engineered repositories. A number of surface and shallow repositories for less radioactive wastes are already in operation. One of the challenges facing the nuclear industry is to demonstrate confidently that a repository will contain wastes for so long that any releases that might take place in the future will pose no significant health or environmental risk. One method for building confidence in the long-term future safety of a repository is to look at the physical and chemical processes which operate in natural and archaeological systems, and to draw appropriate parallels with the repository. For example, to understand why some uranium orebodies have remained isolated underground for billions of years. Such studies are called 'natural analogues'. This book investigates the concept of geological disposal and examines the wide range of natural analogues which have been studied. Lessons learnt from studies of archaeological and natural systems can be used to improve our capabilities for assessing the future safety of a radioactive waste repository.