Processing for recycling

Separating and conditioning recyclable materials

Used fuel at the end of its service life, discharged from nuclear reactors, contains materials that can be recycled, including uranium (94% to 95% of the collected fuel) and plutonium (1%). The remaining 4% is made up of non-recyclable end waste (fission products and minor actinides).

The processing and recycling cycle for used fuel lasts around 10 years. It begins when the fuel is discharged from the reactor.

Used fuel processing consists of:

• separating usable materials and non-recyclable end waste (fission products and minor actinides) through a series of mechanical and chemical processes,
• conditioning uranium and plutonium for subsequent recycling,
• conditioning end fuel waste and technological waste.

The "separated" uranium, known as reprocessed uranium, is concentrated in the form of liquid nitrate and can be reused in the fabrication of new fuel.

The plutonium is transformed into plutonium oxide powder (PuO₂) to make new MOX fuel (a mixture of uranium and plutonium oxides), which can be returned for use in nuclear reactors.

MOX can also be produced using plutonium taken from the dismantling of nuclear weapons. In this way, a contribution to disarmament is made, demonstrating the peaceful nature of recycling.

Processing end waste

The treatment of used fuel enables us to:

• reduce the volume and toxicity of waste (compared to storage without processing),
• condition them in a safe, stable manner for thousands of years,
• ship them safely.

Fission products and minor actinides are:

• calcinated,
• incorporated in a chemically stable glass die,
• poured into a stainless steel container.

The metallic structures of the fuel assemblies are:

• compacted,
• placed in stainless steel containers similar to those used for vitrification.

The end waste is then sent to its owners, who take charge of its management.

All these operations are monitored by French and international authorities, including: the ASN (Autorité de Sûreté Nucléaire), Euratom (European Atomic Energy Community) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

AREVA carries out used fuel processing with electricity companies and operators, as well as bodies and institutions responsible for downstream management for the fuel cycle.

It has customers on 6 continents, mainly concentrated in Western Europe and Japan.

Conditioning materials for recycled fuel production

Once processing operations are finished, the La Hague plant provides:

• the plutonium oxide powder necessary for the powder mixing phase during the production of MOX fuel at AREVA MELOX,
• the concentrated reprocessed uranium in liquid form (uranyl nitrate) at AREVA Pierrelatte, where it will be converted into UF₆ gas (uranium hexafluoride) for its re-enrichment for further usage.

This plant has 2 production lines with a current capacity corresponding to electricity production of 450 tWh per year (1,700 tons of used fuel per year). Almost 929 tons were treated there in 2009.

AREVA Hague is the first employer of the Nord-Cotentin with 3000 employees AREVA la Hague and 2000 subcontractors.