Spin-off pyroprocessing technology and inert anode materials to replace the conventional carbon-based smelting process for critical materials were introduced. Efforts to select inert anode materials through numerical analysis and selected experimental results were devised for the high-throughput reduction of oxide feedstocks. The electrochemical properties of the inert anode material were evaluated, and stable electrolysis behavior and CaCu generation were observed during molten salt recycling. Thereafter, CuTi was prepared by reacting rutile (TiO2) with CaCu in a Ti crucible. The formation of CuTi was confirmed when the concentration of CaO in the molten salt was controlled at 7.5mol%. A laboratory-scale electrorefining study was conducted using CuTi(Zr, Hf) alloys as the anodes, with a Ti electrodeposit conforming to the ASTM B299 standard recovered using a pilot-scale electrorefining device.

According to the ‘Basic Plan for High-Level Radioactive Waste Management (draft)’, the total amount of CANDU spent nuclear fuel is expected to be approximately 660,000 bundles. To safely and efficiently transport this amount to interim storage facilities, it is essential to develop a large-capacity transport cask. Therefore, we have been developing a large-capacity PHWR spent nuclear fuel transport cask, called the KTC-360 transport cask. According to the transport-cask related regulations, the KTC-360 transport cask was classified as a Type B package, and such packages must be able to withstand a temperature of 800°C for a period of 30 min. It is desirable to conduct a test using a fullscale model of a shipping package when performing tests to evaluate its integrity. However, it is costly to perform a test using a full-scale model. Therefore, to evaluate the thermal integrity of the KTC-360 transport cask, the fire test was conducted using a slice model. For comparison purposes, the fire test was also carried out using a 1/4 scale model. In the fire test using a slice model and in the fire test using a 1/4 scale model, the maximum temperature of the cask body was lower than the permitted maximum temperature limit. Therefore, the thermal integrity of the KTC-360 transport cask could be considered to be maintained. The temperature results from the fire test using a slice model were higher than those of the fire test using a 1/4 scale model. Therefore, the effect of flame on a transport cask without combustible materials, such as the KTC-360 transport cask, seems to be affected by the reduction in the time rather than the size reduction.

The safety of a KTC-360 transport cask, a large-capacity pressurized heavy-water reactor transport cask that transports CANDU spent nuclear fuel discharged from the reactor after burning in a pressurized heavy-water reactor, must be demonstrated under the normal transport and accident conditions specified under transport cask regulations. To confirm the thermal integrity of this cask under normal transport and accident conditions, high-temperature and fire tests were performed using a one-third slice model of an actual KTC-360 cask. The results revealed that the surface temperature of the cask was 62°C, indicating that such casks must be transported separately. The highest temperature of the CANDU spent nuclear fuel was predicted to be lower than the melting temperature of Zircaloy-4, which was the sheath material used. Therefore, if normal operating conditions are applied, the thermal integrity of a KTC-360 cask can be maintained under normal transport conditions. The fire test revealed that the maximum temperatures of the structural materials, stainless steel, and carbon steel were 446°C lower than the permitted maximum temperatures, proving the thermal integrity of the cask under fire accident conditions.

The design of a wooden impact limiter equipped to a transportation cask for radioactive materials was optimized. According to International Atomic Energy Agency Safety Standards, 9 m drop tests should be performed on the transportation cask to evaluate its structural integrity in a hypothetical accident condition. For impact resistance, the size of the impact limiter should be properly determined for the impact limiter to absorb the impact energy and reduce the impact force. Therefore, the design parameters of the impact limiter were optimized to obtain a feasible optimal design. The design feasibility criteria were investigated, and several objectives were defined to obtain various design solutions. Furthermore, a probabilistic approach was introduced considering the uncertainties included in an engineering system. The uncertainty of material properties was assumed to be a random variable, and the probabilistic feasibility, based on the stochastic approach, was evaluated using reliability. Monte Carlo simulation was used to calculate the reliability to ensure a proper safety margin under the influence of uncertainties. The proposed methodology can provide a useful approach for the preliminary design of the impact limiter prior to the detailed design stage.

Currently, the HI-STAR 63 transport cask, developed to transport CANDU spent nuclear fuel from the wet storage pool to the dry storage facility which is called the MACSTOR/KN-400, has a transport capacity of 120 bundles, which is unfavorable when considering transportation costs and other related aspects. According to the ‘Basic Plan for High-Level Radioactive Waste Management (draft)’, the total amount of CANDU spent nuclear fuel is expected to be approximately 660,000 bundles. To safely and efficiently transport this amount to interim storage facilities, it is essential to develop a large-capacity transport cask. Therefore, we have been developing a large-capacity PHWR spent nuclear fuel transport cask, called the KTC-360 transport cask. According to the transport-cask related regulations, the KTC-360 transport cask was classified as a Type B package, and such packages need to maintain integrity under the normal transport and accident conditions described in these regulations. To prove the thermal integrity of this cask under the normal transport and accident conditions, high-temperature and fire tests were performed using a one-third slice model of an actual KTC-360 cask. The results revealed that the surface temperature of the cask was 62°C, indicating that such casks need to be transported exclusively. The highest temperature of the CANDU spent nuclear fuel was predicted to be lower than the melting temperature of Zircaloy-4, which was the sheath material used. Therefore, if normal operating conditions are applied, the thermal integrity of a KTC- 360 cask could be maintained under normal transport conditions. The fire test revealed that the maximum temperatures of the structural materials, stainless steel, and carbon steel, were 446°C lower than the permitted maximum temperatures, proving the thermal integrity of the cask under fireaccident conditions.

Bird screen meshes are installed at the air inlet and outlet ducts of spent fuel storage casks to inhibit the intrusion of debris from the external environment. The presence of these screens introduces an additional resistance to air flow through the ducts. In this study, a porous media model was developed to simplify the bird screen meshes. CFD analyses were used to derive and verify the flow resistance factors for the porous media model. Thermal analyses were carried out for concrete storage cask using the porous media model. Thermal tests were performed for concrete casks with bird screen meshes. The measured temperatures were compared with the analysis results for the porous model. The analysis results agreed well with the test results. The analysis temperatures were slightly higher than the test temperatures. Therefore, the reliability and conservatism of the analysis results for the porous model have been verified.

본 연구에서는 비소 오염 토양의 안정화소재로서 주로 사용되고 있지만 그 품질관리가 어려운 제강슬래그의 재료적 특성을 파악하기 위한 기초적인 실험을 수행하였다. 제강슬래그의 입도에 따른 화학적 성질의 변화와 비소 안정화에 중요한 성분인 Fe 성분의 입도에 따른 용출특성 그리고 제강슬래그의 주요 성분인 철(Fe)과 칼슘(Ca) 성분의 구성 비율이 비소의 흡착에 미치는 영향 등에 대해서 흡착실험을 실시하여 관찰하였다. 제강슬래그의 입도는 화학적 성질에 영향을 주지는 못하는 것으로 나타났다. 그러나 용출은 입도가 작은 분말상태에서 높게 나타났으나 pH=2 조건에서만 용출이 발생되어 실제 자연상태에서 용출이 일어나기는 어려울 것으로 판단되었다. 철과 칼슘성분의 혼합비에 따른 비소의 흡착실험에서는 철과 칼슘이 일정비율 섞여 있는 경우에서 효과가 매우 우수한 것으로 나타났으며, 철이나 칼슘 성분 모두 25%이상만 혼합되면 비슷한 효과를 나타내는 것으로 보인다. 한편 칼슘만 존재하는 경우에는 초기의 효과는 높았으나 시간이 경과하면서 재용출 현상이 나타나 적당하지 않은 것으로 나타났으며, 철 성분만 사용한 경우에는 초기 효과는 낮았으나 시간이 경과하면서 흡착효과가 지속적으로 증가하는 것으로 나타나 장기효과가 높을 것으로 기대되었다.

월성원자력본부의 조밀건식저장시설인 MACSTOR/KN-400의 인허가 과정에서 사고조건에 대한 바스 켓의 안전성 평가를 위한 실증시험의 필요성이 제기되었다. 실증시험을 위한 낙하시험시설을 한국원자력 연구원에 설치하고 바스켓 낙하 실증시험을 수행하였다. 실증시험 결과 실린더 내 적재 바스켓의 상부 용 접부가 낙하 바스켓과 충돌하여 파손되고 누설이 발생하였다. 기존 바스켓이 실증시험에서 누설율 성능 요건을 만족하지 못함에 따라 바스켓의 설계 개선안 도출이 필요하게 되었다. 설계 개선을 위한 방향을 선정하고 이에 기초하여 6 종류의 설계 개선안을 도출하였다. 개별 설계 개선안에 대하여 구조해석 및 시편시험을 수행하였다. 구조해석 및 시편시험의 결과를 바탕으로 최종설계안을 확정하였다. 최종설계안은 바스켓의 중앙 포스트의 높이를 감소하여 낙하 바스켓과의 충돌속도를 감소시키는 설계안이었다. 최종설 계안에 대한 시험모델을 제작하여 낙하실증시험을 재수행한 결과 모든 성능요건을 만족하였다.

This research examined the possibility of the temperature maintenance of an anaerobic digestion reactor without external heating by the oxidation heat generated in an aerobic fermenter, considering the difficulties of anaerobic digestion because of the winter season in Korea. For the experiment, an anaerobic digestion chamber was installed inside, the device with aerobic fermentation installed outside was used, the anaerobic digestion chamber was covered, and the raw material was used in the perspective of handling livestock excretion and food waste. During 230 days of operation in total, normal operation was started after about 120 days, and during that operating time, the temperature change, degradation behavior of organisms, and digestion yield were analyzed; the results are shown below. In the situation excluding the aerobic reactor in the summer season, maintaining the temperature of the digestion chamber at 30°C was possible through heat storage within the house, but the temperature decreased to about 20°C because of the outside temperature in the winter season, and maintaining the temperature of the digestion chamber at 25°C was possible as long as the aerobic fermentation chamber maintained its temperature of more than 50°C. Regarding the results for the effects of the inside and outside temperature of the house on the aerobic reactor chamber temperature, a significant effect was not examined, and it was identified that the aerobic reactor temperature relied on the degree of aerobic microorganism vitalization. When using a hot-water system with solar heat, the possibility of usage as complementary energy in the unstable winter season was checked. Even in the winter season, maintaining the temperature of the anaerobic digestion chamber without external heating was possible, and even during the time of operation, although the temperature changed from 25°C to 38°C, methane gas was stably produced.