EM’s Used Fuel Storage Efforts Support Advanced Reactor Research in Idaho

Advanced Test Reactor used nuclear fuel casks are shipped to the Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center, surveyed and loaded into a containment structure where operators can remotely place the fuel into dry storage.

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho — Idaho Cleanup Project (ICP) crews have received all 10 used nuclear fuel shipments for the current fiscal year from the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Site.

This work is part of a long-standing effort by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management to ensure safe long-term storage of the fuel and support the INL’s research mission.

ATR fuel has been sent to the Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center (INTEC) for storage since the reactor became operational in 1967. For most of the last 59 years, the fuel was placed in INTEC’s large storage pool. However, starting in 2019, ATR fuel casks have been received, dried and placed into dry storage at INTEC’s Irradiated Fuel Storage Facility (IFSF), in compliance with the 1995 Idaho Settlement Agreement.

IFSF maintains unique infrastructure, including large cranes and containment structures, allowing crews to safely move the casks and remotely place the fuel into storage.

By receiving these shipments, the ICP not only ensures the safe long-term management of used nuclear fuel but supports the INL by ensuring critical operational space is available at the ATR and its cooling canal.

-Contributor: Carter Harrison