Annual Report

mobilise the HDSA wastes will be simple, low
cost and low temperature to avoid volatilisation
of the Cs and Sr, and will produce a wasteform
that does not form hydrogen over timescales of
hundreds of years via radiolysis when in contact
with water. This project is examining options
using low-melting temperature borate
and borosilicate glasses to vitrify the HDSA.
This project will develop the processing route
and characterise the wasteforms produced using
inactive Cs and Sr radionuclides in the UK
and active ones in Japan. Characterisation will
be done using XRD, thermal methods, FTIR,
NMR and electron microscopy techniques and
long term stability examined using leach testing.
Virtual Reality in Nuclear Decommissioning
Researcher: Ben Nash
Supervisors: Prof Bill Lee and Trevor Chambers
Sponsors: AWE
The use of computer graphics has long been
recognised as a valuable tool in visualising
both design data and results from computational
models. As a part of the CONSORT II research
reactor decommissioning project a simulation
has been created to aid in the training
of staff undertaking the decommissioning of
the reactor. A major outcome of the project will
be a comparison of methods between using
Virtual and Physical mock-ups. By overlaying
the results from a particle transport simulation
with engineering design data, a new tool for
predicting and analysing occupational dose in
real-time is currently being developed. The aim
of creating these tools is to provide improved
training and improved procedures for decommissioning
to minimise a workers exposure to
ionising radiation.
Ben Nash: Development of a virtual reality rig to
help train operators to use manipulators during
decommissioning. The image shows tongs being used
with a camera based position tracking system which
allows users to operate a computer visualisation of a
cropping cell using physical controls.
Nanoscale Investigation and Control of
Radionuclides in Waste Management
Researcher: Eleonora Cali
Supervisors: Prof Mary Ryan, Dr Luc Vandeperre and
Thomas Carey (NNL)
Sponsors: EPSRC DISTINCTIVE Consortium
The rapid development of the nuclear industry
and the associated production of toxic waste,
especially heavy metals, has created a large demand
for the development of new novel materials.
The treatment of contaminated water has
been and continues to be a technical challenge
as it is necessary to remove soluble metals and
radionuclides for safe and efficient waste disposal.The
Legacy Ponds and Silos (LP&S) at
Sellafield Nuclear Site, built to develop an underwater
radioactive waste temporary storage
system, contains large amounts of waste and
sludge from corroded fuel accumulated from
53 http://www.imperial.ac.uk/nuclear-engineering