Proliferation Resistance of Advanced Nuclear Fuel Cycles

This paper proposes a baseline position for the proliferation resistance of advanced fuel cycles (primarily closed fuel cycles), with the objective of initiating a technical debate among the opponents and proponents of closed fuel cycles. The emphasis is on reprocessing and recycling technologies needed to implement the closed fuel cycles. A brief review of proliferation resistance concepts is presented. For implementation of advanced fuel cycles, a technology development and demonstration approach is proposed. The approach aimed at demonstrating a “world standard” in recycling technologies is based on 1) advanced instrumentation development and testing, 2) a “safeguards by design” approach for advanced recycling plants, and 3) development and demonstration of a “safeguard envelope” concept for advanced monitoring of these plants. The implementation of the proposed approach relies equally on a) laboratory to engineering scale testing and b) advanced modeling and simulation.