Development of new treatment process for low level liquid waste at Tokai reprocessing plant

Saito, Yasuo ; Takano, Masato; Tanaka, Kenji; Kobayashi, Kentaro; Otani, Yoshikuni

The Low-radioactive Waste Treatment Facility (LWTF), which aims to provide the safe, efficient and economic treatment and disposal of Low-level Liquid Waste (LLW) generated from LWR spent fuel reprocessing, was constructed at the Tokai Reprocessing Plant (TRP), and a cold test is now being carried out. New treatment processes such as a removal process for radio-nuclides and the ROBE (BORSAURE EINENGUNG ANLAGE) solidification process are being implemented in the LWTF. In order to treat the large amount of sodium nitrate contained in the concentrated LLW with higher safety and economy, R&D work on nitrate-ion decomposition technology using a catalytic reduction method and on the solidification process by cementation is being undertaken. The results of this R&D will be adopted in the LWTF in the near future. This report describes an outline of liquid waste treatment in the LWTF and new treatment technologies for LLW to achieve safe, efficient and economic treatment and disposal.