Publication Laka-library:
Nuclear Waste Disposal in Space: A Long Term Solution
| Author | Iranzo-Greus, Gogdet |
 |
6-01-5-59-06.pdf |
| Date | April 2007 |
| Classification | 6.01.5.59/06 (WASTE - OTHER "SOLUTIONS") |
| Front | 
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From the publication:
7th International Symposium on Launcher Technology
Session : Missions
NUCLEAR WASTE DISPOSAL IN SPACE:
A LONG TERM SOLUTION
David IRANZO-GREUS - Olivier GOGDET
ASTRIUM-ST, Les Mureaux, France
Guy RAMUSAT
ESA-HQ, Paris, France
Nikolai SLYUNYAYEV
YUZHNOYE SDO, Dniepropetrovsk, Ukraine
As a consequence of the steady increase in energy demand and the economical and
environmental problematic associated to the greenhouse gas-emitting fuel burning, there is a
worldwide increasing energy dependence on nuclear power sources, resulting in large quantity of
radioactive waste to deal with.
Even if effective methods to improve the efficiency of the nuclear reactors and to reduce the
amount of radioactive waste generated are currently investigated, the problem of disposing of the
already existing waste remains. According to the forecast of experts, the problem must be
effectively solved during the next ten years otherwise the nuclear energy growth will slow down
and production decrease influencing negatively the economy of many countries.
The way the wastes are disposed today at great depth under unpopulated areas have drawbacks
such as the fact that during the long term storage (hundreds or even thousands of years), the
integrity of the containers with the high-level activity and «long half-life» radioactive waste is
threatened by the tectonic dislocations, by destructions during earthquakes as well as by material
corrosion.
The cost of highly reliable burial sites and the cost to support an accurate continuous monitoring
of these depositaries to protect them for hundreds of years will probably exceed the cost which is
necessary to remove the radioactive waste a