Evaluation and verification of a structural safety analysis for a type B transport package for a radioactive waste drum

Abstract

We conducted and verified the structural safety analyses for a type B transport package for a radioactive waste drum. The type B package is used to transport one high-level radioactive waste drum from a waste facility to a temporary site in a nuclear power plant. It is important that the structural integrity of a type B transport package should be maintained under normal transport conditions such as the free drop test, the stacking test and the penetration test, and accident conditions of transport such as the 9 m height free drop test and the puncture test. Based on the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, Section III, Division 3 we evaluated the structural safety integrity of the type B package for a radioactive waste drum using finite element analysis. For the stacking test condition the maximum stress is a very low value when compared with the stress limits. The impact of the penetration bar on the overpack does not affect the containment part. For the free drop test condition and the puncture test condition the local stresses appear at the impact part and the containment part connected with the inner structure. The maximum stresses for all of the conditions are lower than the stress limits, so the structural integrity of the type B package for a radioactive waste drum was maintained. Also, the structural safety analyses were verified by using the data acquired from the 9 m drop and the puncture tests of the real model. The analytic accelerations of the 9 m drop test are similar to the test results. For the puncture test condition the analytic result is conservative when compared to the test. The analysis for the structural safety of the type B package reveals conservative results and it is proved that its structural integrity is maintained under normal and accident conditions of transport.