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The 4th Unit of the Chernobyl NPP: Its Present State and Problems Related to its Transformation into an Ecologically Safe System

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 September 2012

E. B. Anderson ,
A. A. Borovoy  and
E. M. Pazukhin
E. B. Anderson
Affiliation:
V. G. Khlopin Radium Institute, St. Petersburg, Russia
A. A. Borovoy
Affiliation:
I. V. Kurchatov Institute of Atomic Energy, Moscow, Russia
E. M. Pazukhin
Affiliation:
V. G. Khlopin Radium Institute, St. Petersburg, Russia
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Abstract

The following problems related to the destroyed 4th Unit of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) are considered.

Monitoring of the unit's current state, including:

  1. 1) Monitoring of the atmospheric release of radioactive elements in the form of aerosols. In this case the problem is the unqualified area of cracks and holes that have formed in the “Sarcophagus” (the “Shelter”) since 1986. In addition, the method used to evaluate the release, in which an uncontrolled escape of radioactive contamination is possible, raises objections;

  2. 2) Monitoring of the aquatic medium both inside the “Shelter” and on the industrial site. At present, the quantity of water in the 4th Unit is about 3000 m, which in fact is low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste. This quantity is not constant and essentially varies depending on the season, amount of atmospheric precipitation, the intensity of dust suppression, etc. In this case the problem is that the paths of water migration inside the unit are not known, so that an uncontrolled penetration of water into the ground, via the damaged foundation slab or the unit's walls, is quite possible;

  3. 3) Monitoring of the state of lava-like fuel-containing masses (LFCM) and the fuel. The problem is that the exact location of the fuel in the 4th Unit, the amount of fuel in major aggregates of LFCM, and the nuclear safety of these aggregates are all unknown to date.

The arrangements for the stabilization of the 4th Unit first of all include the reinforcement of the structural construction.

The transformation of the “Shelter” into an ecologically safe system is subject to many questions still unresolved. In particular:

  • Whether to create a common “Shelter-2” for the 3r and 4th Units or to merely encase the destroyed 4th Unit in concrete (the project “Cube”);

  • Whether to peace a plant for conditioning and reprocessing of radioactive waste under the roof of the “Shelter-2”, or to build this plant separately;

  • Where to create a temporary repository for containers of radioactive waste from the ChNPP 4th Unit;

  • How to solve the problem of radioactive waste permanent storage in the territory of the Ukraine with proper observation of all nuclear and radiation safety requirements

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 465: Symposium II – Scienfific Basis for Nuclear Waste Management XX , 1996 , 1289
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1997

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References

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