The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Integrated Waste Management has sponsored development of the Next Generation Systems Analysis Model (NGSAM), an agent-based simulation software tool, to support system analysts and decision-makers in evaluating integrated waste management system architectures and scenarios, including spent nuclear fuel (SNF) transportation features. For this work, a series of six (6) SNF transportation scenarios were modeled using NGSAM to evaluate the effects of the application’s methods and parameters on scenario output (i.e., transportation cost and schedule). The development of scenarios, and analysis of NGSAM output, focused on transportation of SNF shipments using intermodal modes of transport originating from the 31 commercial nuclear power plant sites that based on current conditions may not have direct rail access. In such cases, SNF shipments initially would be transported in casks using heavy haul trucks, barges, or both to a rail transload facility where the casks would be transloaded onto railcars for follow-on transport. This work is significant because NGSAM capabilities are still maturing and current functionality has been primarily focused on the use of rail assets. Moreover, while SNF transport by rail is estimated to represent roughly 80% of all operational costs (fleet-wide scenario), almost half of all nuclear power plant sites (31 of 75) may need to rely on intermodal resources. For such sites, intermodal transport must be cost efficient and effectively integrated into the overall campaign plan. In summary, this recent modeling effort has identified limitations associated with intermodal transport modeling with the current NGSAM tool as well as potential application enhancements that should result in improved SNF transport planning.
Year
2020
Abstract