Fuel cycle: from mining to waste management

This teaching unit covers the various aspects of the current fuel cycle and future nuclear cycles. It will cover concepts relating to the front end of the cycle (mineral resources, uranium extraction and purification, isotopic enrichment), the passage of fuels through nuclear reactors, and the back end of the cycle (reprocessing of spent fuel, recycling of recoverable materials and fuel remanufacturing, management of final nuclear waste). This will be followed by several aspects relating to future nuclear fuel cycles, in particular the use of unconventional resources, advanced separation concepts, and the development of fourth-generation reactors.

Hourly volumes:

            CM: 3 p.m.

            Tutorial: 5 hours

The objective of this teaching unit is to present energy issues, the place of nuclear power in the global energy mix, and related scientific questions. It will cover all the knowledge needed to understand the current nuclear fuel cycle in its entirety, from resource management and recycling of recoverable nuclear materials to the ultimate management of different categories of nuclear waste. It will also look ahead to several future developments: the use of unconventional resources, advanced separation concepts, and the development of fourth-generation reactors.

Basic elements of radioactivity

Chemistry of solutions applied to actinides

Continuous assessment

• Reminders about radioactivity.
• Energy challenges – the role of nuclear power – future directions
• Demand and prospects for change, supply and resources in fissile and fertile materials
• Role of nuclear power
• Reactor operating principles: fuel assemblies, developments for future systems
• Description of current and future nuclear fuel cycles
• Upstream of the fuel cycle:
• Natural resources
• Uranium extraction and purification
• Uranium enrichment
• Reactor passage:
• Definition of reactor channels and operating conditions
• Downstream of the fuel cycle:
• End-of-cycle options (reprocessing or direct storage)
• Recycling of recoverable materials: current PUREX process
• Advanced separation concepts considered
• Nuclear waste management:
• Inventory and classification of nuclear waste
• Short-, medium-, and long-term management methods for final waste
• Radiological safety and consequences
• Generation IV reactors
• Description of the different concepts for^{fourth-generation} nuclear reactors
• Future energy challenges and the evolution toward future generations of reactors