Waste+(Nuclear+waste)

Nuclear waste or radioactive waste can be divided into **High-level waste** and **Low-level waste**.

- **High-level waste** refers to objects that have high radioactivity and the isotopes have a generally longer half-life. These include spent fuel rods and the reprocessing of these fuel rods

- **Low-level waste** usually includes items such as rubber gloves and protective clothing that are used where radioactive materals are handled. These items have low radioactivity and their half-lives are generally shorter than those of High-level waste.

Both types of waste require different methods of disposal.

=Storage and disposal of nuclear waste=

High-level waste
During the reprocessing of spent fuel, 96% of the uranium is recovered for reuse. 1% is plutonium and the remaining 3% is high-level liquid waste. One method to treat this is **vitrification:** The liquid waste is dried in a furnance and is then fed into a melting pot with glass making materials. The molten material is then poured into stainless steel tubes, where it solidifies. Air flows around the containers to keep them cool.

Due to the high radioactivity and half-lives that can last hundreds if not thousands of years, they have to be stored away safely. The best solution now would be to encase it with concrete and burying it in a stable and remote location. Storage areas are the tunnels that come out of the main tunnel are used to store High-level nuclear waste until they can be discharged or disposed of safely.

Low-level waste
Decay produces heat and so Low-level waste is stored in tanks of cool water called ponds where it can lose much of its radioactivity before being discharged. (Nuclear Energy Institute (2010). Low-level Radioactive Waste Retrieved from: [])

Another method would be to place these wastes into steel containers and store them inside concrete-lined vaults.

Go to http://h2rubyenvironchem.wikispaces.com/Refrences for refrences.