The radiation protection container and lifting equipment essential for the safe operation of the European Spallation Source (ESS) have arrived to Lund. The manufacturing of six additional containers and other supplementary structures continues. This first shipment, thanks to complex engineering work and manufacturer cooperation, marks a significant milestone for the future operation of ESS.
The HUN-REN Center for Energy Research (HUN-REN EK) is responsible for delivering the seven containers and associated lifting equipment to ESS under an In-Kind contract. The review and implementation of the ESS owned design documents, as well as the control of the manufacturing process, were supported by two Hungarian engineering firms, C3D Ltd. and Gk Industries Ltd. These special containers will be used at ESS for the removal and safe transport of 10-60 ton, mostly highly active waste elements.
The container delivered on February 14 will be followed by six more, which will be suitable for safely removing equipment activated during the spallation process in the target building. This is the first of the seven remotely operated devices, which are designed to remove equipment activated by protons and neutrons in the target of the spallation source. After adequate cooling time this casks will serve as tools during maintenance. The large containers, weighing up to 60 tons, are filled with lead and equipped with so-called gamma gates to ensure the safety of transferring radioactive elements. Due to the high activity, the multi-meter, ton-sized elements had to be manufactured with submillimeter accuracy to ensure that no direct, unshielded gamma radiation can escape from the lifted container under any circumstances.
The containers themselves are made of dense materials, such as lead and steel, and provide biological shielding during the transfer process to workers and residents of the surrounding environment. Each container is a complex, custom-designed piece of equipment. The Cask number 3, which was recently delivered, is designed to lift and seal the target shielding blocks with a gamma gate during maintenance periods and in case of potential malfunctions. The hoist and the gamma gate required for unloading were manufactured by the Spanish company Asturfeito, while the container’s steel structure was produced by Andritz Ltd. (Tiszakécske). The containers will be moved via remote control, and the control technology for this process was built by the staff of the HUN-REN EK Reactor Monitoring and Simulator Laboratory.
The removal and hot cell treatment of radioactive elements will be carried out by the Remote Handling team of ESS, while installation and commissioning at the site being closely coordinated with the ESS rigging team.
