Use of radioactive waste. What is the danger of radioactive waste

The existence of living organisms on earth (people, birds, animals, plants) largely depends on how protected the environment in which they live is from pollution. Every year, humanity accumulates a huge amount of garbage, and this leads to the fact that radioactive waste becomes a threat to the whole world if it is not destroyed.

Now there are already many countries where the problem of environmental pollution, the sources of which are household, industrial waste, pay special attention to:

separate household waste and then use methods for its safe recycling;
build waste recycling plants;
create specially equipped sites for the disposal of hazardous substances;
create new technologies for processing secondary raw materials.

Countries such as Japan, Sweden, Holland and some other states take the issues of radioactive waste disposal and household waste disposal seriously.

The result of an irresponsible attitude is the formation of giant landfills, where waste products decompose, turning into mountains of toxic garbage.

When did the waste appear?

With the advent of man on Earth, waste also appeared. But if the ancient inhabitants did not know what light bulbs, glass, polyethylene and others were modern achievements, then now scientific laboratories are working on the problem of destroying chemical waste, where talented scientists are attracted. It is still not entirely clear what awaits the world in hundreds, thousands of years if waste continues to accumulate.

The first household inventions appeared with the development of glass production. At first, little was produced, and no one thought about the problem of waste generation. Industry, keeping pace with scientific achievements, began to actively develop towards early XIX century. Factories that used machinery grew rapidly. Tons of processed coal were released into the atmosphere, which polluted the atmosphere due to the formation of acrid smoke. Now industrial giants are “feeding” rivers, seas and lakes with huge amounts of toxic emissions, natural springs inevitably become places of their burial.

Classification

In Russia, Federal Law No. 190 of July 11, 2011 is in force, which reflects the main provisions for the collection and management of radioactive waste. The main evaluation criteria by which radioactive waste is classified are:

disposed - radioactive waste that does not exceed the risks of radiation exposure and the costs of removal from storage with subsequent burial or management.
special - radioactive waste that exceeds the risks of radiation exposure and the costs of subsequent disposal or recovery.

Radiation sources are dangerous due to their detrimental effect on the human body, and therefore the need to localize active waste is extremely important. Nuclear power plants produce almost no greenhouse gases, but they pose another complex problem. Spent fuel is filled into containers; they remain radioactive for a long time, and its quantity is constantly growing. Back in the 50s, the first research attempts were made to solve the problem of radioactive waste. Proposals have been made to send them into space, store them on the ocean floor and other hard-to-reach places.

There are various waste disposal plans, but decisions about the use of the sites are disputed by public organizations and environmentalists. State scientific laboratories have been working on the problem of destroying the most dangerous waste almost since nuclear physics appeared.

If successful, this will reduce the amount of radioactive waste generated by nuclear power plants by up to 90 percent.

On nuclear power plants What happens is that the fuel rod containing uranium oxide is contained in a stainless steel cylinder. It is placed in a reactor, the uranium decays and releases thermal energy, it drives a turbine and produces electricity. But after only 5 percent of the uranium was exposed radioactive decay, the entire rod becomes contaminated with other elements and must be disposed of.

This produces so-called spent radioactive fuel. It is no longer useful for generating electricity and becomes waste. The substance contains impurities of plutonium, americium, cerium and other by-products of nuclear decay - this is a dangerous radioactive “cocktail”. American scientists are conducting experiments using special devices to artificially complete the nuclear decay cycle.

Waste disposal

Facilities where radioactive waste is stored are not marked on maps, there are no identification signs on the roads, and the perimeter is carefully guarded. At the same time, it is prohibited to show the security system to anyone. Several dozen such objects are scattered across Russia. Radioactive waste storage facilities are being built here. One of these associations reprocesses nuclear fuel. Useful substances are separated from active waste. They are disposed of, and valuable components are again sold.

The requirements of the foreign buyer are simple: he takes the fuel, uses it, and returns the radioactive waste. They are transported to the plant by rail, loading is done by robots, and it is mortally dangerous for a person to approach these containers. Sealed, durable containers are installed in special cars. A large carriage is turned over, containers with fuel are placed using special machines, then it is returned to the rails and special compounds with warning railway services and the Ministry of Internal Affairs, they are sent from the nuclear power plant to the enterprise point.

In 2002, “green” demonstrations took place, they protested against the import of nuclear waste. Russian nuclear scientists believe that they are being provoked by foreign competitors.

Specialized factories process waste of medium and low activity. Sources – everything that surrounds people in everyday life: irradiated parts of medical devices, parts electronic technology and other devices. They are brought in containers on special vehicles that deliver radioactive waste via regular roads, accompanied by police. Externally, they are distinguished from a standard garbage truck only by their coloring. At the entrance there is a sanitary checkpoint. Here everyone must change clothes and change shoes.

Only after this can you enter the workplace, where it is prohibited to eat, drink alcohol, smoke, use cosmetics, or be without overalls.

For employees of such specific enterprises, this is normal work. The difference is one thing: if a red light suddenly lights up on the control panel, you need to immediately run away: the sources of radiation can neither be seen nor felt. Control devices are installed in all rooms. When everything is in order, the green lamp is on. The workspaces are divided into 3 classes.

1st class

Waste is processed here. In the furnace, radioactive waste is turned into glass. People are prohibited from entering such premises - it is mortally dangerous. All processes are automated. You can only enter in the event of an accident while wearing special protective equipment:

insulating gas mask (special protection made of lead, absorbing radioactive radiation, eye protection shields);
special uniforms;
remote means: probes, grippers, special manipulators;

By working in such enterprises and following impeccable safety precautions, people are not exposed to radiation.

2nd grade

From here the operator controls the furnaces; on the monitor he sees everything that happens in them. The second class also includes rooms where they work with containers. They contain waste of different activity. There are three basic rules here: “stand further”, “work faster”, “don’t forget about protection”!

You cannot pick up a waste container with your bare hands. There is a risk of serious radiation exposure. Respirators and work gloves are worn only once; when they are removed, they also become radioactive waste. They are burned and the ashes are decontaminated. Each worker always wears an individual dosimeter, which shows how much radiation is collected during the work shift and the total dose; if it exceeds the norm, the person is transferred to safe work.

3rd grade

This includes corridors and ventilation shafts. There is a powerful air conditioning system here. Every 5 minutes the air is completely replaced. The radioactive waste processing plant is cleaner than the kitchen of a good housewife. After each transportation, the vehicles are watered with a special solution. Several people work in rubber boots with a hose in their hands, but the processes are automated so that they become less labor-intensive.

2 times a day the workshop area is washed with water and ordinary washing powder, the floor is covered with plastic, the corners are rounded, the seams are well sealed, there are no skirting boards or hard-to-reach places that cannot be thoroughly washed. After cleaning, the water becomes radioactive, it flows into special holes and is collected through pipes into a huge container underground. Liquid waste is carefully filtered. The water is purified so that it can be drunk.

Radioactive waste is hidden “under seven locks.” The depth of the bunkers is usually 7-8 meters, the walls are reinforced concrete, while the storage facility is being filled, a metal hangar is installed above it. Containers with a high degree of protection are used to store very hazardous waste. Inside such a container is lead, there are only 12 small holes the size of a gun cartridge. Less hazardous waste is placed in huge reinforced concrete containers. All this is lowered into the shafts and closed with a hatch.

These containers can later be removed and sent for subsequent processing to complete the final disposal of radioactive waste.

Filled storage facilities are filled with a special type of clay; in the event of an earthquake, it will glue the cracks together. The storage facility is covered with reinforced concrete slabs, cemented, asphalted and covered with earth. After this, radioactive waste poses no danger. Some of them decay into safe elements only after 100–200 years. On secret maps where vaults are marked, there is a stamp “keep forever”!

Landfills where radioactive waste is buried are located at a considerable distance from cities, towns and reservoirs. Nuclear energy, military programs - problems that concern everyone world community. They are not only to protect people from the influence of sources of radioactive waste, but also to carefully protect them from terrorists. It is possible that landfills where radioactive waste is stored could become targets during military conflicts.

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Collection, modification and disposal of radioactive waste must be carried out separately from other types of waste materials. Dumping them into water bodies is prohibited, otherwise the consequences will be very sad. Radioactive waste is waste that has no practical value for further production. They include a collection of radioactive chemical elements. According to Russian legislation, subsequent use of such compounds is prohibited.

Before starting the disposal process, radioactive waste must be sorted according to the degree of radioactivity, form and decay period. Subsequently, to reduce the volume of dangerous isotopes and neutralize radionuclides, they are processed through combustion, evaporation, pressing and filtration.

Subsequent treatment consists of fixing liquid waste with cement or bitumen for the purpose of solidification, or vitrification of highly active radioactive waste.

The fixed isotopes are placed in special, complexly designed containers with thick walls for their further transportation to the storage location. In order to increase safety, they are supplied with additional packaging.

General characteristics

Radioactive waste can be generated from various sources and have a variety of different shapes and properties.

Important characteristics of radioactive waste include:

Concentration. A parameter showing the value of specific activity. That is, this is the activity that accounts for one unit of mass. The most popular unit of measurement is Ci/T. Accordingly, the greater this characteristic, the more dangerous consequences may bring such rubbish with it.
Half life. The duration of the decay of half the atoms in a radioactive element. It is worth noting that the faster this period, the more energy the garbage releases, causing more harm, but in this case the substance loses its properties faster.

Harmful substances can have different forms; there are three main physical states:

Gaseous. As a rule, emissions from ventilation units of organizations involved in the direct processing of radioactive materials are included here.
In liquid forms. This may be liquid waste that was generated during the processing of already used fuel. Such waste is highly active and can therefore cause severe harm to the environment.
Solid form. These are glass and glassware from hospitals and research laboratories.

Storage of radioactive waste

The owner of a radioactive waste storage facility in Russia can be either a legal entity or a federal government agency. For temporary storage, radioactive waste must be placed in a special container that ensures the conservation of spent fuel. Moreover, the material from which the container is made should not enter into any chemical reaction with the substance.

Storage premises must be equipped with dry drums, which allow short-lived radioactive waste to decay before further processing. Such a room is a radioactive waste storage facility. The purpose of its operation is the temporary placement of radioactive waste for further transportation to their disposal sites.

Container for solid radioactive waste

Disposal of radioactive waste cannot be done without a special container called a container for radioactive waste. A container for radioactive waste is a vessel used as a storage facility for radioactive waste. In Russia, the law establishes a huge number of requirements for such an invention.

The main ones:

The non-returnable container is not intended for storing liquid radioactive waste. Its structure allows it to contain only solid or hardened substances.
The body that the container has must be sealed and not allow even a small part of the stored waste to pass through.
After removing the cover and decontamination, contamination should not exceed more than 5 particles per m2. It is impossible to allow more pollution, since unpleasant consequences can also affect the external environment.
The container must withstand the most severe temperature conditions from - 50 to + 70 degrees Celsius.
When draining a radioactive substance from high temperature into a container, the container must withstand temperatures up to + 130 degrees Celsius.
The container must withstand external physical influences, in particular earthquakes.

The isotope storage process in Russia must ensure:

Their isolation, compliance with protective measures, as well as monitoring the state of the environment. The consequences of violating such a rule can be disastrous, since the substances can almost instantly pollute nearby areas.
Possibility of facilitating further procedures at subsequent stages.

The main directions of the toxic waste storage process are:

Storage of radioactive waste with short term life. Subsequently, they are discharged in strictly regulated volumes.
Storage of high-level radioactive waste until disposal. This allows you to reduce the amount of heat they generate and reduce the consequences of harmful effects on the environment.

Disposal of radioactive waste

Problems with radioactive waste disposal still exist in Russia. Not only the environmental protection of humans, but also the environment must be ensured. This type of activity presupposes the availability of a license for the use of subsoil and the right to carry out work on the development of nuclear energy. Radioactive waste disposal facilities can be either federally owned or owned by the state corporation Rosatom. Today, radioactive waste is buried in the Russian Federation in specially designated places called radioactive waste repositories.

There are three types of disposal, their classification depends on the duration of storage of radioactive substances:

Long-term disposal of radioactive waste - ten years. Harmful elements are buried in trenches, small engineering structures made on or under the ground.
For hundreds of years. In this case, the burial of radioactive waste is carried out in the geological structures of the continent, which includes underground workings and natural cavities. In Russia and other countries, they actively practice the creation of burial grounds on the ocean floor.
Transmutation. A theoretically possible way to get rid of radioactive substances, which involves irradiating long-lived radionuclides and turning them into short-lived ones.

The type of burial is selected based on three parameters:

Specific activity of a substance
Packaging sealing level
Estimated shelf life

Radioactive waste storage facilities in Russia must meet the following requirements:

The radioactive waste storage facility should be located away from the city. The distance between them must be at least 20 kilometers. The consequences of violating this rule are poisoning and possible death of the population.
There should be no built-up areas near the burial site, otherwise there is a risk of damage to the containers.
There must be an area at the landfill where waste will be buried.
The level of ground sources should be as far away as possible. If waste gets into the water, the consequences will be sad - the death of animals and humans
Radioactive burial sites for solid and other waste must have a sanitary protection zone. Its length cannot be less than 1 kilometer from livestock grazing areas and populated areas.
At the landfill there should be a plant engaged in the detoxification of radioactive waste.

Waste recycling

Reprocessing of radioactive waste is a procedure aimed at direct transformation state of aggregation or properties of a radioactive substance, in order to create convenience for the transportation and storage of waste.

Each type of waste has its own methods for carrying out such a procedure:

For liquids - precipitation, exchange using ions and distillation.
For solids – combustion, pressing and calcination. Leftovers solid waste sent to burial sites.
For gases - chemical absorption and filtration. Substances will then be stored in high-pressure cylinders.

Regardless of which unit the product is processed, the end result will be immobilized compact blocks of solid types. For immobilization and further isolation solids, the following methods are used:

Cementing. Used for waste with low and medium activity of the substance. As a rule, this is solid waste.
Burning at high temperatures.
Vitrification.
Packaging in special containers. Typically these containers are made of steel or lead.

Deactivation

Due to active environmental pollution, in Russia and other countries of the world they are trying to find an up-to-date method for decontaminating radioactive waste. Yes, the burial and disposal of solid radioactive waste produces results, but unfortunately, these procedures do not ensure environmental safety, and therefore are not perfect. Currently, several methods of radioactive waste decontamination are practiced in Russia.

Using sodium carbonate

This method is used exclusively for solid waste that has entered the soil: sodium carbonate leaches radionuclides, which are extracted from the alkali solution by ion particles that include magnetic material. Next, the chelate complexes are removed using a magnet. This method of processing solids is quite effective, but there are disadvantages.

Method problem:

The lixiviant (formula Na2Co3) has a fairly limited chemical ability. He is simply not able to extract the entire range of radioactive compounds from solid state and convert them into liquid materials.
The high cost of the method is mainly due to the chemisorption material, which has a unique structure.

Dissolution in nitric acid

Let's apply the method to radioactive pulps and sediments; these substances are dissolved in nitric acid with an admixture of hydrazine. After this, the solution is packaged and vitrified.

The main problem is the high cost of the procedure, since the evaporation of the solution and further disposal of radioactive waste is quite expensive.

Soil elution

Used for decontamination of soil and soil. This method is the most environmentally friendly. The bottom line is this: contaminated soil or soil is treated by elution with water, aqueous solutions with additions of ammonium salts, and ammonia solutions.

The main problem is the relatively low efficiency in extracting radionuclides that are bound to the soil at the chemical level.

Decontamination of liquid waste

Radioactive waste of liquid types – special kind garbage that is difficult to store and dispose of. That is why decontamination is the best means of getting rid of such a substance.

There are three ways to clean harmful material from radionuclides:

Physical method. Refers to the process of evaporation or freezing of substances. Next, the hazardous elements are sealed and placed in waste repositories.
Physico-chemical. Extraction is carried out using a solution with selective extractants, i.e. removal of radionuclides.
Chemical. Purification of radionuclides using various natural reagents. The main problem with this method is large quantities the remaining sludge, which is sent to disposal sites.

Common problem with each method:

Physical methods - extremely high costs for evaporation and freezing of solutions.
Physico-chemical and chemical - huge volumes of radioactive sludge sent to burial sites. The burial procedure is quite expensive, it requires a lot of money and time.

Radioactive waste is a problem not only in Russia, but also in other countries. The main task of humanity at the moment is the disposal of radioactive waste and its disposal. Each state decides independently how to do this.

Switzerland does not independently reprocess and dispose of radioactive waste, but is actively developing programs for the management of such waste. If you do not take any action, the consequences can be the most tragic, including the death of humanity and animals.

Connoisseurs appreciate Fourier's champagne. It is obtained from grapes growing in the picturesque hills of Champagne. It's hard to believe that less than 10 km from the famous vineyards lies the largest radioactive waste storage facility. They are brought from all over France, delivered from abroad and buried for the next hundreds of years. The House of Fourier continues to make excellent champagne, the meadows are blooming around, the situation is controlled, complete cleanliness and safety are guaranteed in and around the landfill. Such a green lawn is the main goal of constructing radioactive waste disposal sites.

Roman Fishman

No matter what some hotheads say, we can say with confidence that Russia is not in danger of turning into a global radioactive dump in the foreseeable future. A federal law passed in 2011 specifically prohibits the transport of such waste across borders. The ban applies in both directions, with the only exception, concerning the return of radiation sources that were produced in the country and supplied abroad.

But even taking into account the law, nuclear energy produces little truly frightening waste. The most active and dangerous radionuclides are contained in spent nuclear fuel (SNF): fuel elements and assemblies in which they are placed emit even more strongly than fresh nuclear fuel and continue to generate heat. This is not waste, but a valuable resource; it contains a lot of uranium-235 and 238, plutonium and a number of other isotopes useful for medicine and science. All this makes up more than 95% of SNF and is successfully recovered at specialized enterprises - in Russia, this is primarily the famous Mayak Production Association in the Chelyabinsk region, where the third generation of reprocessing technologies is now being introduced, allowing 97% of SNF to be returned to work. Soon the production, operation and reprocessing of nuclear fuel will be closed into a single cycle that will not release virtually any hazardous substances.

However, even without spent nuclear fuel, the volume of radioactive waste will amount to thousands of tons per year. After all sanitary rules require that everything that emits above a certain level or contains more than the required amount of radionuclides be included here. This group includes almost any object that has been in contact with for a long time. ionizing radiation. Parts of cranes and machines that worked with ore and fuel, air and water filters, wires and equipment, empty containers and simply work clothes that have served their purpose and no longer have value. The IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) divides radioactive waste (RAW) into liquid and solid, into several categories, ranging from very low-level to high-level. And each has its own requirements for treatment.

RW classification

Class 1	Class 2	Class 3	Class 4	Class 5	Class 6
Solid				Liquid
Materials Equipment Products Solidified liquid radioactive waste HLW with high heat release	Materials Equipment Products Solidified liquid radioactive waste Low-heat HLW SAO are long-lived	Materials Equipment Products Solidified liquid radioactive waste SAO short-lived NAO are long-lived	Materials Equipment Products Biological objects Solidified liquid radioactive waste NAE is short-lived VLLW is long-lived	Organic and inorganic liquids SAO short-lived NAO are long-lived	RW generated during mining and processing uranium ores, mineral and organic raw materials with a high content of natural radionuclides
	Final isolation at deep burial sites with preliminary curing	Final isolation in deep burial sites at depths of up to 100 m	Final isolation at ground level near-surface disposal sites	Final isolation in existing deep disposal sites	Final isolation at near-surface disposal sites

Cold: recycling

The biggest environmental mistakes associated with the nuclear industry were made in the industry's early years. Not yet realizing all the consequences, the superpowers of the mid-twentieth century were in a hurry to get ahead of their competitors, to more fully master the power of the atom and did not pay attention to waste management special attention. However, the results of such a policy became obvious quite quickly, and already in 1957 the USSR adopted a decree “On measures to ensure safety when working with radioactive substances,” and a year later the first enterprises for their processing and storage opened.

Some of the enterprises are still operating today, already in the structures of Rosatom, and one retains its old “serial” name - “Radon”. One and a half dozen enterprises were transferred to the management of the specialized company RosRAO. Together with PA Mayak, the Mining and Chemical Combine and other Rosatom enterprises, they are licensed to handle radioactive waste of various categories. However, not only nuclear scientists resort to their services: radioactive substances are used for a variety of tasks, from cancer treatment and biochemical research to the production of radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs). And all of them, having served their purpose, turn into waste.

Most of them are low-level - and of course, over time, as short-lived isotopes decay, they become safer. Such waste is usually sent to prepared landfills for storage for tens or hundreds of years. They are pre-processed: what can burn is burned in furnaces, purifying the smoke with a complex system of filters. Ash, powders and other loose components are cemented or filled with molten borosilicate glass. Liquid waste of moderate volumes is filtered and concentrated by evaporation, extracting radionuclides from them with sorbents. Hard ones are crushed in presses. Everything is placed in 100 or 200 liter barrels and again pressed, placed in containers and cemented again. “Everything here is very strict,” Deputy General Director of RusRAO Sergei Nikolaevich Brykin told us. “When handling radioactive waste, everything that is not permitted by licenses is prohibited.”

Special containers are used for transportation and storage of radioactive waste: depending on the activity and type of radiation, they can be reinforced concrete, steel, lead, or even boron-enriched polyethylene. They try to carry out processing and packaging on site using mobile complexes in order to reduce the difficulties and risks of transportation, partly with the help of robotic technology. Transportation routes are thought out and agreed upon in advance. Each container has its own identifier, and their fate is traced to the very end.

RW conditioning and storage center in Andreeva Bay on the shore Barents Sea works on the site of the former technical base of the Northern Fleet.

Warmer: storage

The RTGs we mentioned above are almost never used on Earth today. They once provided power to automatic monitoring and navigation points in remote and hard-to-reach locations. However, numerous incidents with leaks of radioactive isotopes into the environment and the banal theft of non-ferrous metals forced them to abandon their use anywhere other than spacecraft. The USSR managed to produce and assemble more than a thousand RTGs, which were dismantled and continue to be disposed of.

More big problem represents heritage cold war: over the decades, almost 270 nuclear submarines alone were built, and today less than fifty remain in service, the rest have been disposed of or are awaiting this complex and expensive procedure. In this case, the spent fuel is unloaded, and the reactor compartment and two adjacent ones are cut out. The equipment is removed from them, additionally sealed and left to be stored afloat. This was done for years, and by the early 2000s, about 180 radioactive “floats” were rusting in the Russian Arctic and Far East. The problem was so acute that it was discussed at a meeting of the leaders of the countries " Big Eight", who agreed on international cooperation in cleaning the coast.

Dock pontoon for performing operations with reactor compartment blocks (85 x 31.2 x 29 m). Load capacity: 3500 t; draft when towing: 7.7 m; towing speed: up to 6 knots (11 km/h); service life: at least 50 years. Builder: Fincantieri. Operator: Rosatom. Location: Saida Guba in the Kola Bay, designed to store 120 reactor compartments.

Today, the blocks are lifted from the water and cleaned, the reactor compartments are cut out, and an anti-corrosion coating is applied to them. Treated packages are installed for long-term safe storage on prepared concrete sites. At the newly opened complex in Saida Guba in Murmansk region For this purpose, they even demolished a hill, the rocky base of which provided reliable support for a storage facility designed for 120 compartments. Lined up in a row, the thickly painted reactors resemble a neat factory site or industrial equipment warehouse, watched over by an attentive owner.

This result of the elimination of dangerous radiation objects is called a “brown lawn” in the language of nuclear scientists and is considered completely safe, although not very aesthetically pleasing. The ideal target of their manipulations is a “green lawn”, like the one that stretches over the already familiar French CSA storage facility (Centre de stockage de l’Aube). A waterproof coating and a thick layer of specially selected turf turn the roof of a buried bunker into a clearing in which you just want to lie down, especially since it is allowed. Only the most dangerous radioactive waste is destined not for the “lawn”, but for the gloomy darkness of final burial.

Hot: burial

High-level radioactive waste, including spent fuel reprocessing waste, requires reliable isolation for tens and hundreds of thousands of years. Sending waste into space is too expensive, dangerous due to accidents during launch, and burial in the ocean or in faults in the earth's crust is fraught with unpredictable consequences. For the first years or decades they can still be kept in pools of “wet” above-ground storage facilities, but then something will have to be done with them. For example, transfer it to a safer and longer-term dry place - and guarantee its reliability for hundreds and thousands of years.

“The main problem of dry storage is heat transfer,” explains Sergey Brykin. “If there is no aqueous environment, high-level waste heats up, which requires special engineering solutions.” In Russia, such a centralized ground storage facility with a well-thought-out passive passive air cooling works at the Mining and Chemical Combine near Krasnoyarsk. But this is only a half-measure: a truly reliable burial ground must be underground. Then it will be protected not only by engineering systems, but also by geological conditions, hundreds of meters of fixed and preferably waterproof rock or clay.

This underground dry storage facility has been in use since 2015 and continues to be built in parallel in Finland. In Onkalo, highly active radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel will be locked in granite rock at a depth of about 440 m, in copper canisters, additionally insulated with bentonite clay, and for a period of at least 100 thousand years. In 2017, Swedish energy engineers from SKB announced that they would adopt this method and build their own “eternal” storage facility near Forsmark. In the United States, debate continues over the construction of the Yucca Mountain repository in the Nevada desert, which will go hundreds of meters into the volcanic mountain range. The general fascination with underground storage facilities can be viewed from another angle: such reliable and protected burial can become a good business.

Taryn Simon, 2015−3015. Glass, radioactive waste. Vitrification of radioactive waste seals it inside a solid, inert substance for millennia. American artist Taryn Simon used this technology in her work dedicated to the centenary of Malevich’s Black Square. The black glass cube with vitrified radioactive waste was created in 2015 for the Moscow Garage Museum and has since been stored on the territory of the Radon plant in Sergiev Posad. It will end up in a museum in about a thousand years, when it becomes finally safe for the public.

From Siberia to Australia

Firstly, in the future, technologies may require new rare isotopes, of which there are many in spent nuclear fuel. Methods for their safe, cheap extraction may also emerge. Secondly, many countries are ready to pay for the disposal of high-level waste now. Russia has nowhere to go: the highly developed nuclear industry needs a modern “eternal” repository for such dangerous radioactive waste. Therefore, in the mid-2020s, an underground research laboratory should open near the Mining and Chemical Combine.

Three vertical shafts will go into the gneiss rock, which is poorly permeable to radionuclides, and at a depth of 500 m a laboratory will be equipped where canisters with electrically heated simulators of radioactive waste packages will be placed. In the future, compressed medium- and high-level waste, placed in special packaging and steel canisters, will be placed in containers and cemented with a bentonite-based mixture. In the meantime, about one and a half hundred experiments are planned here, and only after 15-20 years of testing and safety justification, the laboratory will be converted into a long-term dry storage facility for radioactive waste of the first and second classes - in a sparsely populated part of Siberia.

The population of a country is an important aspect of all such projects. People rarely welcome the creation of radioactive waste disposal sites a few kilometers from their own home, and in densely populated Europe or Asia it is not easy to find a place for construction. Therefore, they are actively trying to interest such sparsely populated countries as Russia or Finland. Recently, Australia has joined them with its rich uranium mines. According to Sergei Brykin, the country has put forward a proposal to build an international burial ground on its territory under the auspices of the IAEA. The authorities expect that this will bring additional money and new technologies. But then Russia is definitely not in danger of becoming a global radioactive dump.

The article “Green lawn above the nuclear burial ground” was published in the magazine “Popular Mechanics” (No. 3, March 2018).

Removal, processing and disposal of waste from hazard classes 1 to 5

We work with all regions of Russia. Valid license. A complete set of closing documents. Individual approach to the client and flexible pricing policy.

Using this form, you can submit a request for services, request a commercial offer, or receive a free consultation from our specialists.

In the 20th century, the non-stop search for an ideal energy source seemed to have ended. This source became the nuclei of atoms and the reactions occurring in them - active development began all over the world nuclear weapons and construction of nuclear power plants.

But the planet quickly faced the problem of processing and destroying nuclear waste. Energy nuclear reactors carries a lot of dangers, just like the waste from this industry. Until now, there is no thoroughly developed processing technology, while the field itself is actively developing. Therefore, safety depends primarily on proper disposal.

Definition

Nuclear waste contains radioactive isotopes of certain chemical elements. In Russia, according to the definition given in Federal Law No. 170 “On the Use of Atomic Energy” (dated November 21, 1995), the further use of such waste is not provided for.

The main danger of materials is the emission of gigantic doses of radiation, which has a detrimental effect on a living organism. The consequences of radioactive exposure include genetic disorders, radiation sickness and death.

Classification map

The main source of nuclear materials in Russia is the nuclear energy sector and military developments. All nuclear waste has three degrees of radiation, familiar to many from physics courses:

Alpha - radiating.
Beta - emitting.
Gamma - radiating.

The first are considered the most harmless, as they produce a non-hazardous level of radiation, unlike the other two. True, this does not prevent them from being included in the class of the most hazardous waste.

In general, the map of classifications of nuclear waste in Russia divides it into three types:

Solid nuclear debris. This includes a huge amount of maintenance materials in the energy sector, personnel clothing, and garbage that accumulates during work. Such waste is burned in furnaces, after which the ashes are mixed with a special cement mixture. It is poured into barrels, sealed and sent to storage. The burial is described in detail below.
Liquid. The operation of nuclear reactors is impossible without the use of technological solutions. In addition, this includes water that is used to treat special suits and wash workers. The liquids are thoroughly evaporated, and then burial occurs. Liquid waste is often recycled and used as fuel for nuclear reactors.
The design elements of reactors, transport and technical controls at the enterprise are separate group. Their disposal is the most expensive. Today, there are two options: installing the sarcophagus or dismantling it with its partial decontamination and further sending it to storage for burial.

The map of nuclear waste in Russia also identifies low-level and high-level:

Low-level waste - arises during the activities of medical institutions, institutes and research centers. Here radioactive substances are used to carry out chemical tests. The level of radiation emitted by these materials is very low. Proper disposal can turn hazardous waste into normal waste in about a few weeks, after which it can be disposed of as regular waste.
High-level waste is spent reactor fuel and materials used in the military industry to develop nuclear weapons. The fuel at the stations consists of special rods with radioactive substance. The reactor operates for approximately 12 - 18 months, after which the fuel must be changed. The volume of waste is simply colossal. And this figure is growing in all countries developing the nuclear energy sector. Disposal of high-level waste must take into account all the nuances in order to avoid disaster for the environment and humans.

Recycling and disposal

At the moment, there are several methods for disposing of nuclear waste. All of them have their advantages and disadvantages, but no matter how you look at them, they do not allow you to completely get rid of the danger of radioactive exposure.

Burial

Waste disposal is the most promising disposal method, which is especially actively used in Russia. First, the process of vitrification or “vitrification” of the waste occurs. The spent substance is calcined, after which quartz is added to the mixture, and this “liquid glass” is poured into special cylindrical steel molds. The resulting glass material is resistant to water, which reduces the possibility of radioactive elements entering the environment.

The finished cylinders are brewed and washed thoroughly, getting rid of the slightest contamination. Then they are sent to storage for a very long time. The storage facility is located in geologically stable areas so that the storage facility is not damaged.

Geological disposal is carried out at a depth of more than 300 meters in such a way that the waste does not require further maintenance for a long time.

Burning

Some nuclear materials, as mentioned above, are direct results of production, and a kind of by-product waste in the energy sector. These are materials that were exposed to irradiation during production: waste paper, wood, clothing, household waste.

All this is burned in specially designed furnaces to minimize the level of toxic substances into the atmosphere. The ash, among other wastes, is cemented.

Cementing

Disposal (one of the methods) of nuclear waste in Russia by cementing is one of the most common practices. The idea is to place irradiated materials and radioactive elements in special containers, which are then filled with a special solution. The composition of such a solution includes a whole cocktail of chemical elements.

As a result, it is practically not exposed to the external environment, which allows it to achieve an almost unlimited lifespan. But it is worth making a reservation that such burial is possible only for the disposal of waste of medium hazard level.

Seal

A long-standing and fairly reliable practice aimed at disposal and reduction of waste volume. It is not used for processing basic fuel materials, but can process other low-hazard wastes. This technology uses hydraulic and pneumatic presses with low pressure.

Reuse

The use of radioactive material in the field of energy does not occur to its full extent due to the specific activity of these substances. Having spent its time, the waste still remains a potential source of energy for reactors.

IN modern world and especially in Russia the situation with energy resources is quite serious, and therefore reuse nuclear materials as fuel for reactors no longer seems improbable.

Today, there are methods that make it possible to use spent raw materials for energy applications. Radioisotopes contained in waste are used for treatment food products and as a “battery” for the operation of thermoelectric reactors.

But the technology is still in development, and an ideal processing method has not been found. However, the processing and destruction of nuclear waste can partially resolve the issue with such waste by using it as fuel for reactors.

Unfortunately, in Russia, such a method of getting rid of nuclear waste is practically not being developed.

Volumes

In Russia, throughout the world, the volume of nuclear waste sent for disposal amounts to tens of thousands of cubic meters annually. Every year, European storage facilities accept about 45 thousand cubic meters of waste, while in the United States only one landfill in the state of Nevada absorbs this volume.

Nuclear waste and work related to it abroad and in Russia are the activities of specialized enterprises equipped with high-quality technology and equipment. At enterprises, waste is subjected to various processing methods described above. As a result, it is possible to reduce the volume, reduce the level of danger, and even use some waste in the energy sector as fuel for nuclear reactors.

The peaceful atom has long proven that everything is not so simple. The energy sector is developing and will continue to develop. The same can be said about the military sphere. But if we sometimes turn a blind eye to the emission of other waste, improperly disposed nuclear waste can cause a total catastrophe for all humanity. Therefore, this issue requires an early solution before it is too late.

Radioactive waste has become an extremely pressing problem of our time. If at the dawn of energy development few people thought about the need to store waste material, now this task has become extremely urgent. So why is everyone so worried?

Radioactivity

This phenomenon was discovered in connection with the study of the relationship between luminescence and x-rays. At the end of the 19th century, during a series of experiments with uranium compounds, the French physicist A. Becquerel discovered a previously unknown substance passing through opaque objects. He shared his discovery with the Curies, who began to study it closely. It was the world-famous Marie and Pierre who discovered that all uranium compounds have this property, just like he himself did in pure form, as well as thorium, polonium and radium. Their contribution was truly invaluable.

Later it became known that all chemical elements, starting with bismuth, are radioactive in one form or another. Scientists also thought about how the process of nuclear decay could be used to produce energy, and were able to initiate and reproduce it artificially. And to measure the level of radiation, a radiation dosimeter was invented.

Application

In addition to energy, radioactivity has received wide application and in other sectors: medicine, industry, scientific research And agriculture. Using this property, they have learned to stop the spread of cancer cells, make more accurate diagnoses, find out the age of archaeological values, and monitor the transformation of substances into various processes etc. List possible applications radioactivity is constantly expanding, so it is even surprising that the issue of disposal of waste materials has become so acute only in recent decades. But this is not just garbage that can be easily thrown into a landfill.

Radioactive waste

All materials have their own service life. This is no exception for elements used in nuclear energy. The output is waste that still has radiation, but no longer has any practical value. As a rule, used materials that can be recycled or used in other areas are considered separately. In this case we're talking about just about radioactive waste (RAW), the further use of which is not envisaged, so it is necessary to get rid of it.

Sources and forms

Due to the variety of uses, waste can also have different origins and condition. They can be either solid, liquid or gaseous. The sources can also be very different, since in one form or another such waste often arises during the extraction and processing of minerals, including oil and gas, and there are also categories such as medical and industrial radioactive waste. There are also natural sources. Conventionally, all this radioactive waste is divided into low-, medium- and high-level. In the USA there is also a category of transuranium radioactive waste.

Options

For quite a long time it was believed that the disposal of radioactive waste did not require special rules; it was enough just to disperse it into the environment. However, it was later discovered that isotopes tend to accumulate in certain systems, such as animal tissues. This discovery changed the opinion about radioactive waste, since in this case the probability of their movement and entry into the human body with food became quite high. Therefore, it was decided to develop some options for how to deal with this type of waste, especially for the high-level category.

Modern technologies make it possible to maximally neutralize the danger posed by radioactive waste by processing them in various ways or placing them in a space that is safe for humans.

Vitrification. This technology is otherwise called vitrification. In this case, radioactive waste goes through several stages of processing, as a result of which a fairly inert mass is obtained, which is placed in special containers. These containers are then sent to storage.
Sinrok. This is another method of radioactive waste neutralization developed in Australia. In this case, the reaction uses a special complex compound.
Burial. At this stage, a search is underway for suitable places in the earth's crust where radioactive waste could be placed. The most promising project seems to be one in which waste material is returned to
Transmutation. Reactors are already being developed that can convert high-level radioactive waste into less hazardous substances. At the same time as waste neutralization, they are capable of generating energy, so technologies in this direction are considered extremely promising.
Removal into outer space. Although this idea is attractive, it has many disadvantages. Firstly, this method is quite expensive. Secondly, there is a risk of a launch vehicle accident, which could be catastrophic. Finally, the contamination of outer space with such waste can lead to big problems after some time.

Disposal and storage rules

In Russia, the management of radioactive waste is regulated primarily by federal law and commentaries to it, as well as some related documents, for example, Water Code. According to the Federal Law, all radioactive waste must be buried in the most isolated places, while contamination of water bodies is not allowed, and sending into space is also prohibited.

Each category has its own regulations, in addition, the criteria for classifying waste as a particular type and all the necessary procedures are clearly defined. However, Russia has a lot of problems in this area. Firstly, the disposal of radioactive waste may very soon become a non-trivial task, because there are not many specially equipped storage facilities in the country, and quite soon they will be filled. Secondly, there is no unified system management of the recycling process, which seriously complicates control.

International projects

Taking into account the fact that the storage of radioactive waste has become most relevant after the termination, many countries prefer to cooperate on this issue. Unfortunately, it has not yet been possible to reach a consensus in this area, but discussions of various programs at the UN continue. The most promising projects seem to be to build a large international storage facility for radioactive waste in sparsely populated areas, as a rule, we are talking about Russia or Australia. However, citizens of the latter are actively protesting against this initiative.

Consequences of radiation

Almost immediately after the discovery of the phenomenon of radioactivity, it became clear that it negatively affects the health and life of humans and other living organisms. The research that the Curies carried out over several decades ultimately led to a severe form of radiation sickness in Maria, although she lived to be 66 years old.

This disease is the main consequence of human exposure to radiation. The manifestation of this disease and its severity mainly depend on the total radiation dose received. They can be quite mild or cause genetic changes and mutations, thus affecting subsequent generations. One of the first to suffer is the hematopoietic function; patients often experience some form of cancer. However, in most cases, treatment turns out to be quite ineffective and consists only of observing an aseptic regimen and eliminating symptoms.

Prevention

Preventing conditions associated with exposure to radiation is quite simple - just stay out of areas with high levels of radiation. Unfortunately, this is not always possible, because many modern technologies use active elements in one form or another. In addition, not everyone carries a portable radiation dosimeter with them to know that they are in an area where prolonged exposure can cause harm. However, there are certain measures to prevent and protect against dangerous radiation, although there are not many of them.

Firstly, this is shielding. Almost everyone who came for an x-ray of a certain part of the body encountered this. If we are talking about the cervical spine or skull, the doctor suggests wearing a special apron with lead elements sewn into it that does not allow radiation to pass through. Secondly, you can maintain the body's resistance by taking vitamins C, B 6 and P. Finally, there are special drugs - radioprotectors. In many cases they prove to be very effective.