Book Description

The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) National Spent Nuclear Fuel Program (NSNFP), located at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL), has been chartered with the responsibility for developing spent nuclear fuel (SNF) standardized canisters and a transportation cask system for shipping DOE SNF to the national repository. The mandate for this development is outlined in the Memorandum of Agreement for Acceptance of Department of Energy Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste that states, "EM shall design and fabricate ... DOE SNF canisters for shipment to RW." (1) It also states, "EM shall be responsible for the design, NRC certification, and fabrication of the transportation cask system for DOE SNF canisters or bare DOE SNF in accordance with 10 CFR Part 71." (2) In fulfillment of these requirements, the NSNFP has developed four SNF standardized canister configurations and has conceptually designed a versatile transportation cask system for shipping the canisters to the national repository.1 The standardized canister sizes were derived from the national repository waste package design for co-disposal of SNF with high-level waste (HLW). One SNF canister can be placed in the center of the waste package or one can be placed in one of five radial positions, replacing a HLW canister. The internal cavity of the transportation cask was derived using the same logic, matching the size of the internal cavity of the waste package. The size of the internal cavity for the transportation cask allows the shipment of multiple canister configurations with the application of a removable basket design. The standardized canisters have been designed to be loaded with DOE SNF, placed into interim storage, shipped to the national repository, and placed in a waste package without having to be reopened. Significant testing has been completed that clearly demonstrates that the standardized canisters can safely achieve their intended design goals. The transportation cask system will include all of the standard design features, with the addition of dual containment for the shipment of failed fuel. The transportation cask system will also meet the rigorous licensing requirements of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to ensure that the design and the methods of fabrication employed will result in a shipping cask that will safely contain the radioactive materials under all credible accident scenarios. The standardization of the SNF canisters and the versatile design of the transportation cask system will eliminate a proliferation of designs and simplify the operations at the user sites and the national repository.