Implementation of the continuous-flow hydrothermal technology of the treatment of concentrated liquid radioactive wastesat nuclear power plants

In this work, consideration is given to the feasibility of using hydrothermal oxidation for the destruction of organic 60Co complexes during the course of the treatment of medium-level liquid radioactive wastes with a high salt content—evaporator concentrate in the reactor water cleanup system—formed at nuclear power plants (NPPs). It has been shown that hydrothermal oxidation makes it possible to effectively solve the problem of the selective extraction of the radionuclides of transition metals (60Co, 54Mn) with a minimum volume of solid radioactive wastes being formed. The results of laboratory experiments and pilot tests of the hydrothermal oxidation installation at the Novovoronezhskaya and the Kurskaya NPPs are presented. The general scheme of the hydrothermal technology of processing the evaporator concentrate at nuclear power plants is proposed.