Treatment of Legacy waste

The treatment of legacy waste is an issue facing the nuclear industry. Current methods of disposal and decontamination are both costly and inefficient. The use of incineration, compaction and cementation all hold relative merits and drawbacks. Whilst incineration is useful in reducing the volume of low-level nuclear waste it does release gases that require further treatment before they can be released into the atmosphere. The ash produced from incineration is likely to contain a significant amount of nucleoids and thus will be required to be treated before containment. Compaction is an important technique to reduce the overall volume of waste before immobilisation. Despite the ability to reduce the volume of waste by a factor of 3 to 10, the quantity of energy needed to compact the waste is a factor that should be considered. By forming a sludge or a precipitate from nuclear waste allows for the immobilisation of the waste. After selecting a suitable matrix material that allows for safe storage over period of time, by placing the container in a monolithic concrete block the waste is ready for storage.
Whilst allowing for the safe storage of legacy waste, this is only a temporary solution as this process will need to be repeated once the decay of the storage block has occurred. This leads to the necessity to find a process that allows for further reduction of the volume of nuclear waste produced.
Electrochemical methods to reduce nuclear waste vary in approach. There has been research into the viability of processing spent oxide fuels by "pyroprocessing" (Choi and Jeong, 2015). This involves the reduction of the fuel to metallic form using a closed fuel cycle in conjunction with a metal fuel fast reactor. Results gained from this were positive and allowed for future development to an industrial scale.
The Electrochemical treatment of low-level nuclear waste (Bockris and Kim, 1996) is a useful paper when analysing the level of research conducted in the area of interest. The paper focuses on the reduction of waste which led to the removal of ruthenium, a precious metal that helps with the economic viability of the project, as well as removing mercury and chromate, both that have adverse effects on the environment. This was achieved through the use of multiple packed bed electrodes as well as a plate electrode. The arrangement of these plates and beds allows for separation of the previously mentioned metals as well as the transformation of nitrates and nitrites into gaseous nitrogen and ammonia - preventing damage to the surrounding environment.
The literature indicates that there is a good grounding of results and techniques already in place that would help the initial stages of my research and allow for development ideas in the future.
I have preciously undertaken research in the recovery of precious metals from end of life fuel cell membranes. Whilst not directly related to this project I feel the necessary skills I have gained from the project will give me a good grounding. The knowledge of electrochemical techniques that can be used to separate metals could prove useful when dealing with heterogeneous mixtures of nuclear waste. The process of leaching and recovery is one that I have a good base of knowledge and feel that it could be successfully applied to this project. The ability to effectively research papers and translate the necessary techniques from paper to the lab is a skill that I have effectively developed. This could be essential given the specific nature of the project.
I believe having previous research experience would prove to be an asset given the length and nature of the project. The planning and necessary foresight needed to effectively complete tasks within a project are skills that I have developed by undertaking a Masters by Research. By meeting self-set deadlines, I have been able to keep track of the overall progress made over the course of my master's research project. I feel that by applying

In GREEN we envisage there are potentially Impacts in several domains: the nuclear Sector; the wider Clean Growth Agenda; Government Policy & Strategy; and the Wider Public.

The two major outputs from Green will be Human Capital and Knowledge:

Human Capital: The GREEN CDT will deliver a pipeline of approximately 90 highly skilled entrants to the nuclear sector, with a broad understanding of wider sector challenges (formed through the training element of the programme) and deep subject matter expertise (developed through their research project). As evidenced by our letters of support, our CDT graduates are in high demand by the sector. Indeed, our technical and skills development programme has been co-created with key sector employers, to ensure that it delivers graduates who will meet their future requirements, with the creativity, ambition, and relational skills to think critically & independently and grow as subject matter experts. Our graduates are therefore a primary conduit to delivering impact via outcomes of research projects (generally co-created and co-produced with end users); as intelligent and effective agents of change, through employment in the sector; and strong professional networks.

Knowledge: The research outcomes from GREEN will be disseminated by students as open access peer reviewed publications in appropriate quality titles (with a target of 2 per student, 180 in total) and at respected conferences. Data & codes will be managed & archived for open access in accordance with institutional policies, consistent with UKRI guidelines. We will collaborate with our counterpart CDTs in fission and fusion to deliver a national student conference as a focus for dissemination of research, professional networking, and development of wider peer networks.

There are three major areas where GREEN will provide impact: the nuclear sector; clean growth; Policy and Strategy and Outreach.

the nuclear sector: One of our most significant impacts will be to create the next generation of nuclear research leaders. We will achieve this by carefully matching student experience with user needs.

clean growth - The proposed GREEN CDT, as a provider of highly skilled entrants to the profession, is therefore a critical enabler in supporting delivery of both the Clean Growth agenda, Nuclear Industry Strategy, and Nuclear Sector Deal, as evidenced by the employment rate of our graduates (85% into the sector industry) and the attached letters of support.

Policy and Strategy: The GREEN leadership and supervisory team provide input and expert advice across all UK Governments, and also to the key actors in the nuclear industry (see Track Records, Sections 3.3 & 5.1, CfS). Thus, we are well positioned to inculcate an understanding of the rapidly changing nuclear strategy and policy landscape which will shape their future careers.

Outreach to the wider public: Building on our track record of high quality, and acclaimed activities, delivered in NGN, GREEN will deliver an active programme of public engagement which we will coordinate with activities of other nuclear CDTs. Our training programme provides skills based training in public and media communication, enabling our students to act as effective and authoritative communicators and ambassadors. Examples of such activities delivered during NGN include: The Big Bang Fair, Birmingham 2014 - 2017; British Science Week, 2013 - 2017; ScienceX, Manchester; 2016 - 2018; and The Infinity Festival, Cumbria, 2017.