Applications of Current Technology for Continuous Monitoring of Spent Fuel

Advancements in technology have opened many opportunities to improve upon the current infrastructure surrounding the nuclear fuel cycle. Embedded devices, very small sensors, and wireless technology can be applied to security, safety, and nonproliferation of spent nuclear fuel. Security, separate of current video monitoring systems, can be improved by integrating current wireless technology with a variety of sensors including motion detectors, altimeters, accelerometers, and a tagging system. By continually monitoring these sensors, thresholds can be set to sense deviations from nominal values. Alarms or notifications can then be activated as needed. Safety can be improved in several ways. First, human exposure to ionizing radiation can be reduced by using a wireless sensor package on each spent fuel cask to monitor radiation, temperature, humidity, etc. Since the sensor data is monitored remotely operator stay-time is decreased and distance from the spent fuel increased, so the overall radiation exposure is reduced as compared to visual inspections. The second improvement is the ability to monitor continuously rather than periodically. If changes occur to the material, alarm thresholds could be set and notifications made to provide advanced notice of negative data trends. These sensor packages could also record data to be used for scientific evaluation and studies to improve transportation and storage safety. Nonproliferation can be improved for spent fuel transportation and storage by designing an integrated tag that uses current infrastructure for reporting and in an event; tracking can be accomplished using the Iridium satellite system. This technology is similar to GPS but with higher signal strength and penetration power, but lower accuracy. A sensor package can integrate all or some of the above depending on the transportation and storage requirements and regulations. A sensor package can be developed using off the shelf technology and applying it to each specific need. There are products on the market for smart meters, industrial lighting control and home automation that can be applied to the Back End Fuel Cycle. With a little integration and innovation a cost effective solution is achievable.