Abstract
Radioactive materials are widely used in our society, and when they are, radioactive wastes can be produced. In addition to being used to generate about 20% of the electricity used in the USA and 17% of the electricity used worldwide, radioactive materials are important in medicine, industry, and research. For example, radioactive materials are used to help diagnose and treat disease, as thickness gages in manufacturing, as components of some smoke detectors, to kill bacteria in food, to trace the movement of nutrients through plants, and to power spacecraft leaving the solar system. Just as there are many uses of radioactive materials, there are many types of radioactive waste, each of which must be stored for a time, treated (prepared either for disposal or recycling), transported, and ultimately disposed of in a licensed facility. Some radioactive materials are utilized in weapons production, an activity which also results in generation of radioactive wastes, although this chapter shall focus on civilian uses of radioactive materials. Proper management of radioactive wastes is essential to ensure that society continues to realize the benefits of radioactive materials without undue risk to human health or the environment, and all aspects of radioactive waste management are highly regulated.
This chapter was originally published as part of the Encyclopedia of Sustainability Science and Technology edited by Robert A. Meyers. DOI:10.1007/978-1-4419-0851-3
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Abbreviations
- Fission:
-
Process by which a nucleus splits into two smaller nuclei, emitting two or three neutrons and energy.
- Half-life:
-
The time required for half of the nuclei in a sample of a radioactive isotope to emit radiation and be transformed to another isotope.
- High-level radioactive waste (HLW):
-
Used nuclear fuel or the highly radioactive materials that are generated when used nuclear fuel is reprocessed.
- Low-level radioactive waste (LLW):
-
Radioactive waste that is not high-level radioactive waste, used nuclear fuel, or mill tailings.
- Transuranic waste (TRU):
-
Wastes that are not classified as high-level waste and contain more than 100 nCi/g of alpha-emitting transuranic isotopes (Z > 92) with half-lives of more than 20 years.
- Used nuclear fuel or spent nuclear fuel (SNF):
-
Terms used to designate nuclear fuel that has been irradiated in a reactor to produce power.
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Fentiman, A.W. (2013). Radioactive Waste Management: Storage, Transport, Disposal. In: Tsoulfanidis, N. (eds) Nuclear Energy. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-5716-9_10
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