Removal of Tritiated Light Water from Fuel Bays using Thermal Stratification

Abstract

The spent fuel bay in the National Research Universal (NRU) reactor has elevated levels of tritiated light water. The tritium concentration has increased over the years due to nuclear isotope production and ongoing fuel operations. The proposed solution to reduce the tritium levels is to efficiently replace the entire volume of the bay (1.07 million liters) in approximately 48 hours using a thermal stratification method. This paper describes the development and testing of the method from bench scale to full scale. Experimental and numerical results will be presented.