Markets worth as much as £100billion in the long term could be opened up by cutting edge research involving the University of Sheffield’s Nuclear Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre.
The Nuclear AMRC is working with waste technology specialist Deep Isolation to develop corrosion-resistant canisters for the safe underground disposal of spent nuclear fuel assemblies.
Deep Isolation is developing a range of technologies to safely encapsulate and dispose of radioactive spent fuel within deep boreholes up to three kilometres underground.
The new collaborative project is funded by the Energy Entrepreneurs Fund, part of the UK government’s Net Zero Innovation Portfolio, and aims to develop Deep Isolation’s disposal canister designs to meet UK regulatory requirements.
Chris Parker, MD of Deep Isolation EMEA, says: “This canister provides an option for disposal in a deep borehole that brings greater flexibility and potential cost savings for disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level waste. By giving the UK choice and flexibility in disposal, it helps ensure new nuclear as a vital component of the UK’s 2050 net zero strategy.
“An added benefit is that the UK’s advanced manufacturing capabilities provide us with an ideal supply chain with which to service the growing international demand for deep borehole disposal.”
The Nuclear AMRC will make prototype containers which will be taken to America for testing in a borehole demonstrator, with the aim of incorporating any modifications into a second prototype .
The Nuclear AMRC will also review the UK supply chain’s readiness for producing the canisters in bulk, identifying any potential gaps in capabilities or capacity. The project will give UK manufacturers an early mover advantage in the global borehole disposal market, which could be worth more than £100 billion in the coming decades.
The work will be completed by late 2024, and will be guided by a board of industry leaders including Alan Woods, strategy director at Rolls-Royce SMR, who says: “The innovation they are bringing to market – small, modular disposal of radioactive waste in deep boreholes – will be an important enabler of the international SMR market, and a great export opportunity for UK manufacturers.”
