CHEM02200704003 Nilamadhab Pandhy - Homi Bhabha National ...

Chapter 1
tonnes in association with other heavy minerals. An Advanced Heavy Water Reactor (AHWR)
designed to draw about two-third power from thorium fuel is under development, and will provide
experience in all aspects of technology related to thorium fuel cycle. Overall, with these long-term
strategies, the nuclear industry is expected to undergo a paradigm shift from a mere electricity
producer to being an indispensable part of India’s energy policy.
1.2 Necessity of spent nuclear fuel reprocessing
Reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel [25,26] refers to a chemical separation process with the
fractionation of useful radionuclide, and safe waste management. Over the last five decades the
prime objective of the spent nuclear fuel reprocessing is to recover the plutonium, and unused
uranium for contribution towards energy security as well as avoiding wastage of valuable energy
resources. The recovered materials can effectively close the fuel cycle, thereby lowering the large
extent dependence on fossil fuel, and improving the energy security. In once-through cycle
advantage is that it avoids the difficulties of reprocessing, however it can only extract about half a
percent of energy content of mined uranium. Moreover, the recovered material can directly be
enriched reducing the demand of mining and milling of new uranium.
The initiatives for nuclear fuel reprocessing in India started in 1964 as the known sources
of uranium is inadequate to meet the long-term nuclear power programme [27]. At present India is
having three nuclear fuel reprocessing plants, one at Trombay of reprocessing capacity 60 tonne
per year, the second and third plants located at Tarapur and Kalpakkam, respectively with capacity
of 100 tonne of power reactor fuel per year. As India moved into reprocessing of spent nuclear
fuel, PUREX (Plutonium Uranium Reduction EXtraction) was the main separation process. Thus
reprocessing programme initiated with design, construction and commissioning of demonstration
plant at Trombay using PUREX as aqueous reprocessing process. The schematic of a typical
PUREX process is shown in Fig.1.1 [28].