Equipment for Sampling Vitrified High-Level Waste

Year of manufacture: 2021

Customer: Mayak PA

Sosny R&D Company designed and fabricated the equipment for core sampling from the cans with vitrified HLW, placing the core samples into tight ampoules and loading the full ampoules into a ТUК-19 transport cask for shipment to the research study. 

This equipment includes:

• a sampling facility with the local control system,
• ampoules for sample transportation in a TUK-19 cask,
• an ampule clamping system,
• a basket for the ampule clamping system / HLW can,
• a grapple for empty ampule transfer with a hoisting equipment,
• a cooling water supply, collection and filtration system,
• a transfer cask for ampule transportation between the hot cell and a TUK-19 cask, and for loading the core sampler into the ampule,
• a shielded plug for placing a transfer cask above the airlock in the hot cell ceiling,
• a canister grapple for transportation of the canister with its lid cut off from the hot cell to the solid waste handling area,
• a facility for vacuum drying of the can with vitrified HLW before it is sent back to the storage facility,
• a basket for ampules with samples to be arranged inside TUK-19 cask,
• equipment for handling TUK-19 cask (a service platform, a guide plate, a support for ТUК-19 cask lid, a leak test facility).

The sampling facility is for the operations in the hot cell. Before using a core drill, it shall be fixed onto the rotating support that can move the core drill away from the in-cell rotary vise for loading and removal of the equipment and a can with vitrified HLW, and enables core sampling in the boundary areas of the HLW can.

The core drill has a rod with the diamond core bit at its bottom. Three load cells monitor the longitudinal load on the core bit. The core drill is for drilling a hole in glass at the depth up to 900 mm, taking a core sample, breaking it off and loading the core sample into an ampule. Also, the core drill can make a hole in the upper part of the HLW can body.

After drilling, the core sample remains fixed in the sampler by a clamping device. The transfer cask serves to put the full core sampler in and take it out of the ampule.

The sampling facility is controlled remotely from a control panel in the operator’s room.

Specifications of the sampling facility:

Views count: 322