Cost Estimation and efficiency analysis of raw materials and disposal alternatives in nuclear energy

Abstract

In Korea, spent fuel is temporarily stored in storage tanks or facilities at nuclear reactor sites. As of the end of 2011, the spent fuel amounts about 12,000 tons. Assuming that the annual production of spent fuel is about 700~750 tons, the storage facilities will soon fill up to their maximum capacity of 16,500-17,000 tons. The country is expected to face serious problems if there are no additional storage facilities or if the amount of spent fuel production is not sharply reduced. Against this backdrop, the first essay analyzes the cost efficiency when BeO-UO2 is used as nuclear fuel for the purpose of reducing spent fuel and second essay analyzes cost efficiency of four disposal alternatives in consideration of current price and price volatility. Eventually, this study involves cost estimation and cost efficiency analysis of the nuclear sector. The objective of this study is to analyze changes in cost efficiency with respect to raw materials in the first essay, and to conduct cost efficiency analysis for alternatives to the construction of radioactive waste repositories in second essay.

First essay quantifies the credits of beryllium and uranium which are used as the raw materials for BeO-UO2 nuclear fuel by analyzing the influence of their credits on the nuclear fuel cycle cost was analyzed, where the credit was defined as the value of raw materials recovered from spent fuel and the raw materials that were re-cycled. The credits of beryllium and uranium at 60 MWD/kg burn-up were - 0.22 Mills/kWh and - 0.14 Mills/kWh, respectively. These findings were based on the assumption that the optimal mixing proportion of beryllium in the BeO-UO2 nuclear fuel is 4.8 wt% at 60 MWD/kg. Ultimately the beryllium credit was found to be greater than that of the uranium credit. As the BeO-UO2 nuclear fuel has a long cycle and a high burn-up rate, the raw material credit of BeO-UO2 nuclear fuel should be considered in assessing the cost of the nuclear fuel cycle. In other...