<p>Waste minimization is a basic principle of radioactive waste management, and cleaning and control is one of the important ways to implement waste minimization policies. The process of cleaning and de-control of radioactive waste includes operating conditions, source item investigation, waste sampling, analysis of nuclide concentration, de-control evaluation and quality assurance, etc. This article mainly introduces the cleaning and control activities of uranium-containing calcium fluoride slag carried out by my country's uranium enrichment and component manufacturing plants, and provides relevant management and technical recommendations for the cleaning and control of uranium-containing calcium fluoride slag on the basis of the above practices.</p><p>During the operation of the front-end facilities of the nuclear fuel cycle (uranium purification and conversion, uranium enrichment, and component manufacturing), a large amount of uranium-containing and fluorine-containing wastewater will be generated, which requires de-uranium and de-fluorine treatment before discharge. The commonly used method for removing fluoride is lime chemical precipitation method, that is, adding lime to fluorine-containing wastewater to combine fluoride ions with calcium ions to form calcium fluoride precipitation that is insoluble in water. This method has the advantages of low cost and easy operation, but it will produce a large amount of uranium-containing calcium fluoride slag. The content of CaF2 in these slags is more than 80%. If the uranium-containing calcium fluoride slag is cleaned and controlled and reused as a non-radioactive waste, it will not only use fluorine resources, but also eliminate the secondary pollution of fluorine.</p>

Summary of the Practice of Clearance of Uranium-Containing Calcium Fluoride Slags in Chinaâ€™s Nuclear Facilities

Paper Proceedings: https://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/ICONE/ICONE28/volume/85246

2021 28th International Conference on Nuclear Engineering (ICONE28)

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