The different types of radioactive waste Radioactive wastes are radioactive substances for which no subsequent use is planned or envisaged. They must thus be managed in a disposal route* compatible with their harmfulness. Time needed for the radioactivity to decay to a threshold with no further risk for human health and the environment. It depends on the radioactive half-life. 1. Given the very low activity level, the time criterion is not a factor in the classification of this waste category. Radioactivity is a natural phenomenon to which all humans are permanently exposed. Artificial radioactivity is produced by human activities (medicine, industry, research, regulated discharges from nuclear facilities, etc.). Radioactive wastes are also as diverse as the activities that produce them. Depending on their origin, their harmfulness varies, as does the time for which they are dangerous. In France, there are six categories of radioactive waste, based on two criteria: • the radioactive activity (the number of radioactive nucleus decays occurring each second and which therefore emit radiation); • the lifetime (the period of time during which this radiation is emitted). The six categories of radioactive waste VERY SHORT-LIVED Radioactive waste with a half-life* of less than 100 days. A large proportion of this comes from medical applications of radioactivity (diagnostic or therapeutic). Up to about 3 years VSL HIGH-LEVEL WASTE This is produced by the reprocessing of nuclear fuels. It gives off heat. It must be left to cool in pools for years before final disposal. In France, high level waste is calcined and then incorporated into a molten glass paste. It is then poured into a stainless-steel package. Up to several hundred thousand years HLW LLW/ ILW-SL LOW- AND INTERMEDIATE- LEVEL SHORT-LIVED WASTE This is primarily waste from the maintenance and operation of nuclear installations (clothing, tools, gloves, filters, etc.). This waste also comes from research laboratories, hospitals, universities, etc. It can be incinerated, melted, encapsulated in a matrix (cement for example), or compacted. Up to about 300 years VERY LOW-LEVEL This comes from the nuclear industry, in particular installation decommissioning operations. It is primary parts obtained by cutting up equipment, and rubble with very low levels of contamination. Non-determinant (1) VLL INTERMEDIATE-LEVEL LONG-LIVED WASTE This primarily consists of hulls and end-pieces from the reprocessing* of nuclear fuels, and waste from the operation and maintenance of nuclear power plants. Up to several hundred thousand years ILW-LL LOW-LEVEL LONG-LIVED WASTE This primarily concerns: • waste contaminated by radium for example used in the past by the watchmaking industry; • graphite waste from the decommissioning of first-generation nuclear reactors; • waste from the processing of minerals such as rare earths used in electronics. Up to several hundred thousand years LLW-LL * See glossary page 34 8 • Les cahiers de l’ASN • May 2024 WHAT WASTE ARE WE TALKING ABOUT?
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NjQ0NzU=