WHAT A WASTE

Let's not waste nuclear waste!

Currently, despite the publics perception, used nuclear fuel is safely stored and managed. But it still contains enormous amounts of energy.

It can be recycled, in advanced reactors known as a fast breeder reactors, and used to provide a future of abundant clean energy.

DEMAND AMBITION!

Nuclear waste is called waste, because we intend to waste it. Let's do better.

In our latest report by lead author Mark Lynas, we quantify how existing nuclear materials stockpiles currently considered ‘waste’ can instead be repurposed to provide energy to support wind and solar in achieving a net zero economy in Europe.

Nuclear Know-how

Nuclear waste is the byproduct of nuclear power generation, nuclear medicine, and nuclear weapons production. It refers to any material that contains radioactive elements that have reached the end of their useful life and are no longer needed for their original purpose.

Some examples of nuclear waste include spent fuel rods from nuclear power plants, protective gown, gloves and tools from nuclear research or medical facilities, and materials from decommissioned nuclear weapons.

Low-level radioactive waste has a lower level of radioactivity and is typically generated from various sources such as medical facilities, research institutions, and industries that use radioactive materials in their processes. Examples of low-level radioactive waste include contaminated materials from hospital rooms, laboratory instruments, and protective clothing. This type of waste is less hazardous and can be managed and disposed of in less specialised facilities, such as landfills designed for low-level radioactive waste. It's storage containers are sometimes the type of (yellow) barrels you'll see depicted in popular depictions of nuclear waste, however, this waste is neither unique to nuclear power, nor is it a serious hazard.

In contrast, highly radioactive waste, such as spent fuel from nuclear power plants or nuclear weapons production, is extremely radioactive and can remain hazardous for thousands of years. It is typically a solid ceramic, not the leaky green glowing goo from the Simpsons. This is the waste that has given rise to the question 'what about the waste?'.

This type of waste, spent nuclear fuel*, requires careful handling, transport, and storage, typically in special facilities designed for high-level radioactive waste. The radioactivity levels of highly radioactive waste are so high that it requires shielding to protect workers and the environment from exposure. This type of waste is either stored in pools on site to cool of, or in big metal/concrete canisters as you'll see in our video.

* This is also the kind of waste that can be recycled and turned into energy.

Yes, nuclear waste can be recycled using breeder reactors. Breeder reactors are a type of nuclear reactor that can produce more nuclear fuel than they consume by converting non-fissile isotopes into fissile isotopes.

By using breeder reactors, it's possible to extract the remaining uranium and plutonium from spent nuclear fuel and use them as fuel in the breeder reactor. The breeder reactor can then produce additional fuel, which can be used in other nuclear reactors, effectively recycling the nuclear waste.

One of the potential benefits of using breeder reactors for nuclear waste recycling is that it can significantly reduce the amount of radioactive waste that needs to be stored. Additionally, it can help reduce the demand for new uranium resources, as the breeder reactor can produce more fuel than it consumes.

It is theoretically possible for terrorist groups to use nuclear waste to produce an atomic weapon, but in reality technical and economic challenges would make it impossible to do so.

The process of creating an atomic weapon requires highly enriched uranium or plutonium, which is not typically found in nuclear waste. Instead, nuclear waste contains lower levels of these materials and other radioactive isotopes that are not suitable for weaponisation.

Moreover, the process of extracting the usable materials from nuclear waste is highly complex and requires specialised knowledge, technology, and equipment. This process is also highly regulated and monitored by national and international organisations to prevent the misuse of nuclear materials.

Furthermore, most countries have strict regulations in place to prevent the theft, diversion, or illegal trafficking of nuclear materials, including nuclear waste. These regulations include strict security measures, transportation requirements, and tracking systems to ensure that nuclear waste is properly accounted for and managed.

Overall, while it is theoretically possible for nuclear waste to be used in the production of an atomic weapon, the practical difficulties and regulatory measures in place make it highly unlikely, not to say, impossible.

Since the dawn of the civil nuclear power industry, spent nuclear fuel has never caused harm to people or planet. Spent nuclear fuel is therefore not dangerous, because it is regulated and handled as to not pose any threat to human health or the biosphere.

Spent fuel is either stored in spent fuel pools, to cool them of (and you could actually swim in these pools without receiving a significant dose of radiation larger than natural background radiation).

However, spent fuel is hazardous, since it contains radioactive materials that can cause cancerous growths and genetic problems.

The radioactive isotopes eventually decay, or disintegrate, into harmless materials. Some isotopes decay in hours or even minutes, but others decay very slowly over thousands of years. By recycling spent fuel we can reduce the lifetime of these isotopes (to a few hundred), and reduce the total volume of long lived highly radioactive spent nuclear fuel.

A breeder reactor is a nuclear reactor that generates more fissile material than it consumes. These reactors can be fuelled with more commonly available isotopes of uranium and thorium, such as uranium-238 or thorium-232, as opposed to the rare uranium-235 which is used in conventional reactors.

Unlike regular reactors, which barely use uranium-235 as their nuclear fuel, breeder reactors use natural uranium-238 (Uranium-235 is only available in low concentrations of about 0.7% of natural uranium with no enrichment, while uranium-238 is much more common).

Breeder reactors can create 30% more fuel than they consume. After an initial introduction of enriched uranium, the breeder reactor only needs infrequent addition of stable uranium, which is then converted into the fuel.