The HADES Facility for High Activity Decommissioning Engineering & Science: part of the UK National Nuclear User Facility

TLDR

Research and innovation are essential to the UK Government’s civil nuclear energy policy, especially to reduce the hazard, timescale, and cost of legacy decommissioning and geological disposal of radioactive waste. The HADES Facility was established as a national centre of excellence to support research and innovation in high‑activity decommissioning engineering and science, and this paper describes its development, current capabilities, and equipment specifications. The facility provides unique capabilities—including handling weighable quantities of 99Tc and transuranics, quantitative electron‑probe microanalysis, hot isostatic pressing, and laboratory X‑ray absorption/emission spectroscopy—and demonstrates them via a case study of thermally treating a real radioactive ion‑exchange resin waste to produce a conceptual vitrified waste form.

Abstract

Abstract Research and innovation is key to delivering UK Government’s civil nuclear energy policy, in particular to accelerate reduction in the hazard, timescale and cost of legacy decommissioning and geological disposal of radioactive wastes. To address this challenge, a national centre of excellence, the HADES Facility, has been established to support research and innovation in High Activity Decommissioning Engineering & Science, as part of the wider network of UK National Nuclear User Facilities. Herein, we describe the development of this user facility, the current status of its capability, and functional equipment specifications. The unique capabilities of the HADES Facility, in the UK academic landscape, are emphasised, including: handling of weighable quantities of 99 Tc and transuranics; quantitative electron probe microanalysis of radioactive materials; hot isostatic pressing of radioactive materials; and laboratory-based X-ray absorption and emission spectroscopy. An example case study of the application of the HADES capability is described, involving thermal treatment of a real radioactive ion exchange resin waste to produce a conceptual vitrified waste form.