A team that includes five Penn State researchers have been given a three-year USD $3 million Integrated Research Project (IRP) award from the Department of Energy (DOE).
The researchers’ project is entitled, “Multi-Sensor Inspection and Robotic Systems for Dry Storage Casks.” The research aims to find methods to assess the potential for environmental degradation of containers of used nuclear fuel kept in dry storage. Arthur Motta, professor and chair of nuclear engineering and also the co-PI, explains, “The monitoring of possible degradation of the metal canister and the concrete overpack is necessary to ensure the continued health of these systems over the longer periods of time that may be needed, given the unavailability of a permanent repository. However, many of the locations inside the storage cask that are of greatest interest for monitoring are difficult to access, making detailed inspection a challenge.”
The team will work on making advanced sensors and robotic delivery devices that will allow inspection of the sensitive regions of the canister for the presence of deposited salts, dust and reaction products by surface sampling, and of cracks and corrosion by non-destructive inspection using advanced ultrasonics.
Motta explained that the devices will first be designed in a laboratory and then field-tested in collaboration with the team’s industry partners from Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, the Electric Power Research Institute and Holtec International.