Dismantling and disassembly techniques in nuclear facility decommissioning

Because of the complexity of demolishing nuclear facilities, the components to be treated require specific measures. One important aspect in nuclear p lant decommissioning is the partial or complete disassembly of specific pla nt structures, especially with a view to minimizing the volume of materials to be moved into final storage. In this connection, both decontamination and disassembly and decomposition techniques and their combinations with handling systems are presented. Decontamination procedures must be adapted to the materials to be treated. Disassembly techniques may be of a mechanical, electro-mechanical, thermal or chemical type, and may be associated with the use of handling systems, s uch as central mast manipulators or, e.g., master - slave manipulators. Fle xible systems lend themselves to many uses also because of their economic a dvantages. Some selected areas of research in disassembly techniques, manual cutting t echniques, and the demolition of graphite structures are discussed in great er detail.