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Nuclear Energy pp 241–250Cite as

Radioactive Waste Management: Storage, Transport, and Disposal

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  • First Online:
  • Originally published in
  • R. A. Meyers (ed.), Encyclopedia of Sustainability Science and Technology, © Springer Science+Business Media New York 2016

Glossary

Fission:

Process by which a nucleus splits into two smaller nuclei, emitting two or three neutrons and energy

Half-life:

The time required for half of the nuclei in a sample of a radioactive isotope to emit radiation and be transformed to another isotope

High-level radioactive waste (HLW):

Used nuclear fuel or the highly radioactive materials that are generated when used nuclear fuel is reprocessed

Low-level radioactive waste (LLW):

Radioactive waste that is not high-level radioactive waste, used nuclear fuel, or mill tailings

Transuranic waste (TRU):

Wastes that are not classified as high-level waste and contain more than 100 nCi/g of alpha-emitting transuranic isotopes (Z > 92) with half-lives of more than 20 years

Used nuclear fuel or spent nuclear fuel (SNF):

Terms used to designate nuclear fuel that has been irradiated in a reactor to produce power

Definition of the Subject

Radioactive materials are widely used in our society, and when they are, radioactive wastes can be...

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Bibliography

Primary Literature

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Books and Reviews

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  • Waste Isolation Pilot Plant Website (2010). http://www.wipp.energy.gov/index.htm. Accessed Mar 2010

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Nuclear Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, 47907, USA

    Audeen W. Fentiman

Authors
  1. Audeen W. Fentiman
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Correspondence to Audeen W. Fentiman .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Nevada-Reno, Reno, Nevada, USA

    Nicholas Tsoulfanidis

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Fentiman, A.W. (2018). Radioactive Waste Management: Storage, Transport, and Disposal. In: Tsoulfanidis, N. (eds) Nuclear Energy. Encyclopedia of Sustainability Science and Technology Series. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-6618-9_29

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