AgInCd Control Rod Sectioning for Material Recovery
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Solution Overview
Problem
The recycling of absorber bar material from used control rods in nuclear reactors is not feasible due to the high radioactivity and material activation, which makes it difficult to recover the valuable components like silver, indium, and cadmium, leading to increased operational costs for manufacturing new control rods.
Innovation Solution
Sectioning the absorber bar into a highly radioactive lower section and a lower radioactivity upper section, allowing the upper section to be recycled and reused or processed for other applications, thereby reducing manufacturing costs and extending the life cycle of the materials.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of substance
If the entire absorber bar is recycled, then material recovery is maximized, but the high radioactivity of the bottom section makes recycling infeasible and increases handling complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The absorber bar is divided into two distinct sections: a bottom section with high radioactivity that is discarded, and a top section with lower radioactivity that is recycled. This segmentation allows the system to recover valuable materials from the recyclable portion while isolating the hazardous portion, thereby resolving the contradiction between maximizing material recovery and managing radioactivity.
2Loss of substance
If the absorber bar is sectioned into two parts, then recyclable material is recovered, but the cutting process adds operational complexity and time
Solution Approach 1:
The control rod cluster assembly itself provides the cutting function through its normal insertion and withdrawal operations. The spider mechanism that moves the control rods automatically sections the absorber bar by withdrawing it from the fuel assembly, eliminating the need for separate cutting equipment and reducing operational complexity.
3Reliability
If the bottom highly radioactive section is discarded, then recycling safety is improved, but valuable material is lost
Solution Approach 1:
Different sections of the absorber bar are treated differently based on their local properties: the bottom section with high radioactivity is discarded for safety, while the top section with lower radioactivity is recycled for economic benefit. This local quality approach optimizes both safety and material recovery by applying different disposal strategies to different parts of the same component.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for recycling AgInCd control rod absorber bar material from a used control rod from a nuclear power plant includes sectioning AgInCd absorber bar from a used control rod into a first section and a second section, the first section having a higher radioactivity than the second section; and recycling the material of the second section of the AgInCd absorber bar.