Transmutation of all German Transuranium under Nuclear Phase Out Conditions – Is this Feasible from Neutronic Point of View?

The German government has decided for the nuclear phase out, but a decision on a strategy for the management of the highly radioactive waste is not defined yet. Partitioning and Transmutation (P&T) could be considered as a technological option for the management of highly radioactive waste, therefore a wide study has been conducted. In this group objectives for P&T and the boundary conditions of the phase out have been discussed. The fulfillment of the given objectives is analyzed using simulations of molten salt reactors with fast neutron spectrum. It is shown that the efficient transmutation of all existing transuranium isotopes would be possible in a time frame of about 60 years using three reactors and a twofold life cycle consisting of a transmuter operation and a deep burn phase. A basic insight for the optimization of the time duration of the deep burn phase is given. Further on a detailed balance of different isotopic inventories is given to allow a deeper understanding of the processes during transmutation and the effect of modelling and simulation is investigated based on three different modelling strategies and two different code versions.