Status of recycling nuclear wastes generated during power generation in India

Closed nuclear fuel cycle is being followed in India treating spent nuclear fuel as a material of resource instead of nuclear waste.

The closed fuel cycle aims at recovery and recycle of fuel elements, separation of useful isotopes such as Cs (Caesium) and Sr (Strontium) for use in health care and industry.

The spent fuel is reprocessed to recover the fuel elements like
Uranium and Plutonium for recycling back in the reactor for generation of
power in second stage of Indian nuclear power programme.

This finally leads to a very small percentage of residual material present in spent nuclear fuel requiring their management as radioactive waste.

Radioactive waste contains various useful radio-isotopes like Cs-137, Sr-90, Ru-106
(Ruthenium) etc having different societal applications.

An in-house developed technology has been established and deployed for separating Cs-
137, one of the prominent fission product, from waste and converting in to
non-dispersive Cs glass pencil to be used for blood irradiators.

Research and development has been carried out for reprocessing spent nuclear fuel
and recycling back to reactors as fuel. Fast Breeder Test Reactor (FBTR),
utilizing reprocessed spent fuel, is under operation since many decades.

Question: LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.5514, ANSWERED ON 28.03.2018

Subject: RECYCLING NUCLEAR WASTE FOR POWER GENERATION

Member: SHRI DUSHYANT CHAUTALA

Department: DEPARTMENT OF ATOMIC ENERGY

Answered By: THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES &
PENSIONS AND PRIME MINISTER’S OFFICE (Dr. JITENDRA SINGH)