InnoPlasmaTech

History

2024: Development of ion-plasma technology that processes nuclear fuel with 99% efficiency

On October 22, 2024, it became known that Russian scientists developed an innovative ion-plasma technology that allows processing spent nuclear fuel with 99% efficiency and deactivating irradiated reactor graphite. The technology, supported by a grant from the Russian Science Foundation (RNF), aims to significantly reduce the volume of radioactive waste and reduce the cost of their disposal.

According to the press service of the Russian Science Foundation, ion-plasma technology is based on the use of argon plasma to remove carbon-14 formed in reactor graphite due to neutron irradiation of nitrogen-14. This process preserves the integrity of graphite blocks while reducing their radiation hazards and waste disposal costs. Researchers from InnoPlasmaTech LLC proposed placing graphite blocks in a special plasma chamber, where they are heated to 1700 ° C, ensuring the movement of radionuclides to the surface of graphite for their removal. An important advantage of the technology is the lack of secondary radioactive waste, which makes it more environmentally friendly and efficient.

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OOO "InnoPlasmaTech"

Anna Petrovskaya, General Director and Candidate of Physical and Mathematical Sciences of InnoPlasmaTech LLC, said that the development is also applicable to the processing of nuclear fuel discharged annually from Russian nuclear power plants in the amount of about 650 tons. According to Petrovskaya, only 15% of this fuel is processed, while most of it is destroyed due to the high costs and complexity of radiochemical methods.

According to the study, spent nuclear fuel tablets are placed in a special separation pipe, where argon is passed through them. During plasma separation, the temperature in the pipe varies from 2600 ° C to room temperature, which makes it possible to accurately distribute the elements in different sections of the pipe. Thanks to this technology, components such as uranium and plutonium can be reused, and other elements can be used in industry or buried in a compact^[1]

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