A new coupled non-thermal plasma and sorption method for treatment of liquid radioactive wastes: design and on-site application to Chornobyl NPP-derived wastes
A new coupled non-thermal plasma and sorption method for treatment of liquid radioactive wastes: design and on-site application to Chornobyl NPP-derived wastes
Higher activity liquid wastes pose a significant management challenge at nuclear sites, and there is a strong drive to develop cost-effective (and more sustainable) waste treatment solutions that can remove radioactive and other contaminants from these liquid radioactive wastes (LRW) prior to their discharge or final storage/disposal. Here, results are presented from an on-site trial of a coupled non-thermal plasma / sorption-based LRW treatment system at the “Dibrova” Object in the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone. Over 2m3 of Cs-137 and Sr-90 contaminated LRW from settling tanks used for the holding of tailings and drain water from Chornobyl Building № 5 and deactivation solutions (used in the liquidation efforts following the 1986 Chornobyl disaster) were treated. The coupled treatment process removed greater than 90 % of Cs-137 and Sr-90 from the most contaminated liquids (containing 75 Bq/kg (Cs-137) and 195 Bq/kg (Sr-90)), generating a low mass (<100g ) iron-rich solid residue suitable for onward storage/disposal. Treatment efficiencies for other waste components (e.g. nitrites, phosphates and COD) were equivalent to or exceeded those previously reported for treatment of environmental liquid wastes by similar Advanced Oxidation Processes. The power requirements of the system (due to the pulsed nature of the plasma generated) were relatively low, at 10 kWh, for a LRW treatment rate of 15 - 20 L/h. The system can be operated remotely in autonomous mode, and its modular, easily transportable nature means that the process can be readily adapted for various on-site treatment scenarios.
Chornobyl, Cs-137, Decommissioning, Decontamination, Liquid radioactive wastes, Non-thermal plasma, Sr-90
Zabulonov, Yuriy
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Shpilka, Sergey
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Tutskyi, Danylo
505f0471-42aa-49c0-abea-3f470a930afd
Mikhalovsky, Sergey
347ba9b1-3a51-45b8-b748-b6b91b60240b
Illsley, Matthew
b1e0487c-b614-4a6e-b553-3b28cac59dad
Shokat, Alistair
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Cundy, Andrew B.
994fdc96-2dce-40f4-b74b-dc638286eb08
21 February 2025
Zabulonov, Yuriy
58f4b346-a4f2-4324-be03-f954d1e7de93
Shpilka, Sergey
c1d3b0c7-ab0a-407a-a129-981f1ac24238
Tutskyi, Danylo
505f0471-42aa-49c0-abea-3f470a930afd
Mikhalovsky, Sergey
347ba9b1-3a51-45b8-b748-b6b91b60240b
Illsley, Matthew
b1e0487c-b614-4a6e-b553-3b28cac59dad
Shokat, Alistair
fe7bdfd1-88b7-41ef-99d0-52c71c5673b9
Cundy, Andrew B.
994fdc96-2dce-40f4-b74b-dc638286eb08
Zabulonov, Yuriy, Shpilka, Sergey, Tutskyi, Danylo, Mikhalovsky, Sergey, Illsley, Matthew, Shokat, Alistair and Cundy, Andrew B.
(2025)
A new coupled non-thermal plasma and sorption method for treatment of liquid radioactive wastes: design and on-site application to Chornobyl NPP-derived wastes.
Journal of Hazardous Materials Advances, 18, [100646].
(doi:10.1016/j.hazadv.2025.100646).
Abstract
Higher activity liquid wastes pose a significant management challenge at nuclear sites, and there is a strong drive to develop cost-effective (and more sustainable) waste treatment solutions that can remove radioactive and other contaminants from these liquid radioactive wastes (LRW) prior to their discharge or final storage/disposal. Here, results are presented from an on-site trial of a coupled non-thermal plasma / sorption-based LRW treatment system at the “Dibrova” Object in the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone. Over 2m3 of Cs-137 and Sr-90 contaminated LRW from settling tanks used for the holding of tailings and drain water from Chornobyl Building № 5 and deactivation solutions (used in the liquidation efforts following the 1986 Chornobyl disaster) were treated. The coupled treatment process removed greater than 90 % of Cs-137 and Sr-90 from the most contaminated liquids (containing 75 Bq/kg (Cs-137) and 195 Bq/kg (Sr-90)), generating a low mass (<100g ) iron-rich solid residue suitable for onward storage/disposal. Treatment efficiencies for other waste components (e.g. nitrites, phosphates and COD) were equivalent to or exceeded those previously reported for treatment of environmental liquid wastes by similar Advanced Oxidation Processes. The power requirements of the system (due to the pulsed nature of the plasma generated) were relatively low, at 10 kWh, for a LRW treatment rate of 15 - 20 L/h. The system can be operated remotely in autonomous mode, and its modular, easily transportable nature means that the process can be readily adapted for various on-site treatment scenarios.
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Accepted/In Press date: 14 February 2025
e-pub ahead of print date: 15 February 2025
Published date: 21 February 2025
Keywords:
Chornobyl, Cs-137, Decommissioning, Decontamination, Liquid radioactive wastes, Non-thermal plasma, Sr-90
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 499438
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/499438
PURE UUID: bbdca13a-6d1d-460b-9f0f-408f86211a94
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Date deposited: 20 Mar 2025 17:31
Last modified: 22 Aug 2025 02:12
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Contributors
Author:
Yuriy Zabulonov
Author:
Sergey Shpilka
Author:
Danylo Tutskyi
Author:
Sergey Mikhalovsky
Author:
Matthew Illsley
Author:
Alistair Shokat
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