NS&D Monitor
8/29/2014
Seismic Activity in Oak Ridge Could be More Severe Than Previously Thought
New data from the U.S. Geologic Survey suggests that seismic activity in Oak Ridge might be more severe than previously predicted. The information was released this month, updating 2008 data and indicating an increase in potential seismic activity, and an Oak Ridge-based nuclear activist group keyed on the information, suggesting that the Department of Energy and National Nuclear Security Administration should account for the new information when modernizing and maintaining production facilities at the Y-12 National Security Complex. The group, the Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance, also said it raises questions about keeping nuclear facilities in East Tennessee. “The triad of potentially worse seismic activity, the higher likelihood of seismic activity and the aging of the Y-12 facility create the atmosphere for a perfect nuclear storm,” OREPA Director Ralph Hutchison said in a statement. The NNSA did not respond to a request for comment.
High Flux Isotope Reactor Running Out of Spent Fuel Storage Space
The High Flux Isotope Reactor, which uses highly enriched uranium fuel (reported to be 93.8 percent U-235), is accumulating spent fuel in its adjacent canal because the traditional storage space at Savannah River Site has run out of room. Tim Powers, the reactors chief at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, confirmed that spent fuel–once shipped to Savannah River on a monthly basis–has not been sent to South Carolina since September 2011. He said the lab’s storage place at Savannah River’s L Basin “is full or nearly so.” He said there is no reason for alarm, citing, “We have seven to 10 years of storage capacity in our fuel pool.”
Powers indicated that more space at Savannah River may come about when some of the backlog of HFIR fuel is processed and dispositioned. “We believe future processing will attempt to remove the uranium (from the highly enriched fuel) and down-blend to make fuel for some commercial nuclear plants,” he said. According to ORNL Director Thom Mason, the used fuel–after it’s removed from HFIR–is still 60 percent HEU. Powers said ORNL is working with Savannah River and others to resume processing at some point in the future, although he didn’t specify a timeframe. The Department of Energy’s Idaho site isn’t an option because the lab there doesn’t accept aluminum-clad fuels, he said.
Conversion Date for HFIR Continues to be Pushed Back
Meanwhile, it appears that the High Flux Isotope Reactor will continue using highly enriched fuel for the foreseeable future, even though the Obama Administration had made conversion of reactors around the globe one of its nonproliferation goals. The target date for converting HFIR to a low enriched fuel (less than 20 percent U-235) continues to be pushed back.
A decade ago, the conversion date for HFIR was projected to be 2014. It was later postponed until 2020. According to Powers, the current timetable for converting the Oak Ridge reactor is now 2030. It apparently is the last U.S. reactor scheduled for conversion. “Conversion dates for all the reactors have been pushed out,” Powers said. He cited fabrication and testing issues with the first wave of LEU elements. According to the ORNL officials, there are two unique design features about the High Flux Isotope Reactor that makes it a difficult candidate for fuel conversion—the “radially contoured fuel zone” and inclusion of a neutron absorber in some of the fuel plates.
