Treatment Deployment Evaluation Tool

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is responsible for the final disposition of legacy spent nuclear fuel (SNF). As a response, DOE's National Spent Nuclear Fuel Program (NSNFP) has been given the responsibility for the disposition of DOE -owned SNF. Many treatment technologies have been identified to treat some forms of SNF so that the resulting treated product is acceptable by the disposition site. One of these promising treatment processes is the electrometallurgical treatment (EMT) currently in development; a second is an Acid Wash Decladding process. The NSNFP has been tasked with identifying possible strategies for the deployment of these treatment processes in the event that the treatment path is deemed necessary. To support the siting studies of these strategies, economic evaluations are being performed to identify the least-cost deployment path. This model (tool) was developed to consider the full scope of costs, technical feasibility, process material disposition, and schedule attributes over the life of each deployment alternative. Using standard personal computer (PC) software, the model was developed as a comprehensive technology economic assessment tool using a Life-Cycle Cost (LCC) analysis methodology. Model development was planned as a systematic, iterative process of identifying and bounding the required activities to dispose of SNF. To support the evaluation process, activities are decomposed into lower level, easier to estimate activities. Sensitivity studies can then be performed on these activities, defining cost issues and testing results against the originally stated problem