INTERPRETATION OF TRANSMUTATION RATES OF MINOR ACTINIDES IN THERMAL AND FAST-REACTORS

The commonly used transmutation rate of minor actinides in nuclear rea ctors is decomposed into four components, overall fission rate, Pu pro duction rate, MA production rate, and element production rate. The phy sical meanings of these factors are described. The transmutation rates of minor actinides in two types of highly-moderated PWRs, a MOX fuele d Na cooled fast reactor, and a metal fueled Pb cooled fast reactor ar e interpreted using the four components. The metal fueled Pb cooled fa st reactor can incinerate minor actinides most (79 kg GW(th). year(-1) ), and this amount is about four times larger than the thermal reactor s. The thermal reactors have large relative overall fission rates for Am-241 and have a potential for the incineration of Am-241. (C) 1998 E lsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.