Publication Laka-library:
Eurochemic. Activity Report 1981 (1982)
| Author | Eurochemic |
| Date | July 1982 |
| Classification | 2.03.8.15/05 (BELGIUM - MOL - REPROCESSING PLANT (EUROCHEMIC)) |
| Front | 
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From the publication:
Foreword The European Company for the Chemical Processing of Irradiated Fuels (Eurochemic) is a joint undertaking of the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA). The Company, which has its seat in Mol, Belgium, takes the form of a joint stock company. lt was established by thirteen NEA member countries according to the Statutes annexed to the Convention on the Constitution of Eurochemic which was signed on December 20, 1957 and came into force on July 27, 1959. At the end of 1981, Governments, public institutions or enterprises of the following eleven countries were shareholders of Eurochemic: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, the Federal Republic of Germany, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland. The Governments of the Netherlands and of Turkey withdrew from the Company in 1975 and 1980 respectively. Between 1966 and 1974, Eurochemic operated a reprocessing plant which treated a great variety of irradiated fuel elements coming from the member countries' power and research reactors, amounting to a total of some 220 tons. These activities were accompanied by an extensive research programme and the training of specialists in the field of reprocessing. At the end of 1974, the reprocessing plant was shut down for economical reasons. Since then, the Company carries out a waste management programme for the conditioning and interim storage of the radioactive wastes resulting from the operation and decontamination of the plant. The latter is held in stand-by, awaiting a decision of the Belgian Authorities on wether or not reprocessing in Belgium will be resumed. On October 30, 1978, a Convention with the Belgian Govennment entered into force which provides for the transfer of Eurochemic's industrial site to a Belgian company or body and determines the Company's obligations towards the host country (see section 3 of the first chapter). The main technical activities, which the Company executed in 1981 according to the Convention and which are described in this report, are the following: - The active operation of the bituminization facility continued; a total of 1,414.4 m3 of medium-level waste was incorporated into bitumen, and 7,908 drums were stored in the Euro-storage facility. In December, 1981, an exothermic chemical reaction provoked the combustion of the content of four drums being filled with bituminized waste; the consequences of this incident remained, however, limited. - The operation of the Eurowatt facility was completed. After having treated about 20m3 of spent solvent, the installation was cleaned and shut down. - The programme related to the conditioning of plutonium-contaminated solid wastes progressed considerably: The wastes were preconditioned and the cold tests of the acid digestion (wet combustion) unit were started, while the construction of the plutonium recovery unit was almost completed. - The conceptual study of the storage of Eurochemic's high-level vitrified wastes was finished.
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