Nuclear Technology, 3. Fuel Cycle
Authors: Koch Günter , Träger Siegfried , Max Arthur , Krebs Wolf‐Dieter , Stoll Wolfgang , Heit Werner , Warnecke Ernst , Brennecke Peter , Merz Erich 
Published: November 2011

The article contains sections titled:1.Introduction2.Uranium Production, Conversion, and Enrichment2.1.Occurrence and Classification of Deposits2.2.Production2.3.Output and Demand2.4.Conversion2.5.Enrichment3.Fabrication of Fuel Elements3.1.Fuel Assemblies for Light‐Water Reactors3.1.1.Functions of Fuel Assemblies3.1.2.Raw Material for Nuclear Fuel3.1.3.Conversion Processes3.1.4.Production of Uranium Dioxide Sintered Pellets3.1.5.Production of Fuel Rods and Fuel Assemblies3.2.Fuel Elements for High‐Temperature Reactors3.2.1.General Aspects3.2.2.Production3.3.Fuel Assemblies made from Reprocessed Plutonium3.3.1.Availability of Plutonium3.3.2.Utilization Strategies3.3.3.Requirement for Mixed‐Oxide Thermal Fuel Assemblies3.3.4.Requirement for Fast Breeder Fuel Assemblies3.3.5.Problems in Handling Plutonium3.3.6.Fabrication of Mixed‐Oxide Fuel Assemblies3.3.7.Radiation Protection and Safety Aspects4.Chemical Reprocessing of Nuclear Fuels4.1.Reprocessing of LWR Fuel Elements4.1.1.General Scheme4.1.2.Fuel Composition and Purification Requirements4.1.3.Mechanical Head‐End4.1.4.Fuel Dissolution4.1.5.Feed Clarification and Make‐up4.1.6.PUREX Process: Chemistry4.1.7.PUREX Process: Flow Sheet4.1.8.PUREX Process: Product Purification4.1.9.PUREX Process: Extraction Equipment4.1.10.Off‐Gas Purification4.1.11.Nuclear Safety4.2.Research and Development4.2.1.Developments in LWR Fuel Reprocessing4.2.2.Reprocessing of Fast Breeder Reactor Fuels5.Radioactive Waste Management5.1.Classification of Radioactive Waste5.1.1.Generic Classification5.1.2.Waste Classification for Disposal5.1.3.Catalog of Waste Types5.2.Conditioning of Radioactive Waste5.2.1.Heat‐Generating Radioactive Waste5.2.2.Non‐Heat‐Generating Radioactive Waste5.3.Origin and Amount of Radioactive Waste5.3.1.Origin of Radioactive Waste5.3.2.Present Amount of Unconditioned and Conditioned Radioactive Waste5.3.3.Future Amounts of Radioactive Waste5.4.Disposal of Radioactive Waste5.4.1.Principles of Waste Disposal5.4.2.Underground Laboratories5.4.3.Near‐Surface Repositories5.4.4.Underground Repositories6.Safety Aspects in the Design of Reprocessing and Waste Treatment Plants6.1.Objectives of Protection6.2.Safety Through Multiple Barrier Enclosure6.3.Safety Measures for Protection of Employees6.4.Malfunction and Safety Analysis6.5.Environmental Protection and Radiological Exposure6.6.Radioactive Residual Substances and Waste6.7.Decommissioning and Dismantling6.8.International Coordination of Safety Regulations

Power reactors serve to supply energy. The heat created in commercial power reactors is used for the production of electrical energy. The economic motivation for building nuclear power plants is the high energy content of the nuclear fuel uranium and its low cost.

The first large‐scale nuclear power plant went on‐line at Calder Hall (United Kingdom) in 1956. At the beginning of 2005, 441 nuclear power plant units with a total output of 385 854 MWe were in operation worldwide. Since that time worldwide 103 prototype or commercial units have been shut down. In 2005 22 new nuclear power plants with a capacity of 26 102 MWe were under construction.

In this chapter a survey of the important technical and economic parameters of commercial nuclear power reactors is given. Reactors are classified according to characteristics like neutron energy, fuel, enrichment, fissile material, moderator, coolant, and operational cycle. Numbers and electric capacity of nuclear power plants in operation worldwide are shown.

Beside these technical and economic aspects of power reactors their influence on human life and nature by radiation burdens and radiation damage are outlined. Radiological quantities and units are introduced. Radiation protection from nuclear sources and radiation safety rules in Germany, Europe, and the world complete the survey.