Apparatus for storing and/or transporting high level radioactive waste, and method for manufacturing the same
AssigneeHoltec International
InventorKrishna P. Singh
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system for storing and/or transporting high level radioactive waste, and a method of manufacturing the same. In one aspect, the invention is a ventilated vertical overpack (“VVO”) having specially designed inlet ducts that refract radiation back into the storage cavity. A clear line-of-sight does not exist through the inlet ducts and, thus, the canister can be supported on the floor of the VVO. Also disclosed is a method of manufacturing a variable height VVO that falls within a regulatory license previously obtained for a shorter and taller version of the VVO.
Claims15
An apparatus for transporting and/or storing high level radioactive waste comprising:
- an overpack body having an outer surface and an inner surface forming an internal cavity about a longitudinal axis;
- a base enclosing a bottom end of the cavity;
- a plurality of inlet ducts in a bottom of the overpack body, each of the inlet ducts extending from an opening in the outer surface of the overpack body to an opening in the inner surface of the overpack body so as to form a passageway from an external atmosphere to a bottom portion of the cavity;
- a columnar structure located within each of the inlet ducts, the columnar structures dividing each of the passageways of the inlet ducts into first and second channels that converge at the openings in the inner and outer surfaces of the overpack body, wherein for each inlet duct a line of sight does not exist between the opening in the inner surface of the overpack body and the opening in the outer surface of the overpack body;
- a lid enclosing a top end of the cavity;
- and
- a plurality of outlet ducts, each of the outlet ducts forming a passageway from a top portion of the cavity to the external atmosphere.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.