Nuclear Decommissioning Analytical Instrumentation

Ensuring Safe and Efficient Decommissioning

Nuclear decommissioning is a complex and highly regulated process that involves safely dismantling nuclear facilities, managing radioactive waste, and restoring sites to a safe condition. With stringent safety standards and environmental considerations, having the right equipment is crucial for efficiency and compliance. Raddec provides advanced solutions to support the decommissioning process in particular contributing to radionuclide waste characterisation. This is a key requisite for proper waste sentencing. Efficient waste sentencing leads to possible reductions in waste volumes and can lead to cost reductions.

Photo: courtesy Magnox Ltd

Understanding Nuclear Decommissioning

The decommissioning of a nuclear facility follows a structured approach, generally beginning with planning and preparation. This involves a detailed assessment of the facility, including radiation mapping and risk evaluations, to establish a safe and effective decommissioning strategy. The next stage, decontamination, focuses on removing or reducing radioactive contamination from surfaces and materials to minimise exposure and waste volumes. Following this, dismantling and removal take place, requiring controlled disassembly of structures, components, and equipment using specialised tools and remote handling technologies. Waste management and disposal then ensures that the classification, containment, and disposal or sentencing of radioactive waste materials is in accordance with strict regulatory guidelines. Finally, site remediation and monitoring restore the site to an environmentally safe condition, with long-term monitoring conducted to ensure ongoing safety.

Key Challenges in Nuclear Decommissioning

1. Safety and Radiation Protection – Preventing exposure to ionising radiation is a top priority, requiring advanced shielding and protective measures.
2. Waste Characterisation and Management – Accurately identifying and processing different types of radioactive waste is critical for compliance and efficiency.
3. Regulatory Compliance – Meeting international and national safety regulations demands precision and adherence to stringent protocols.
4. Cost and Time Constraints – Decommissioning projects are often lengthy and expensive, necessitating innovative technologies to improve efficiency.

Raddec’s Role in Nuclear Decommissioning

Raddec analytical equipment is specifically designed to support the process of radioactive waste characterisation and waste sentencing. Specifically, its systems provide quantitative extraction of volatile radionuclides from any material prior to radioanalytical determinations. The instruments are also applied to environmental materials collected during monitoring programmes.

Pyrolyser-Trio Furnace Systems

These are the most widely applied high efficiency systems used by laboratories for volatile radionuclide characterisation (typically tritium, carbon-14, chlorine-36, and iodine-129).

Pyrolyser Mini Furnace System

This is a compact instrument for laboratories and on-site decommissioning facilities with specific constraints. These instrument are well suited to installation in limited spaces or more commonly in fume cupboards or glove boxes where high sample activities need to be handled.

Raddec Hyperbaric Oxidiser (HBO2)

A specialised system designed for the rapid extraction of tritium and carbon-14 from single samples using closed-vessel oxidation.

Global impact

The Pyrolyser system has been adopted internationally in many countries with nuclear programmes or interests in nuclear research. Over 200 systems are operational throughout Europe as well as Australia, Canada, China, India, Japan, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, Ukraine and the USA. The instruments rigorous development and overall capability has led to its becoming an industry-standard device for the extraction of volatile radionuclides.

Conclusion

Nuclear decommissioning requires meticulous planning, advanced equipment, and strict adherence to safety regulations. Raddec’s specialised analytical solutions play a vital role in streamlining the process, offering precise radionuclide extraction and measurement to support safe and efficient decommissioning efforts. Raddec’s advanced analytical equipment installed in numerous specialised laboratories supports waste characterisation for decommissioning operations. Organisations using Raddec technologies benefit from improved analytical throughputs, accuracy and reduced decommissioning costs. To learn more about how Raddec can assist in your decommissioning project, contact us today.

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Posted on 8^th March, 2025