Dry consolidation of spent fuel rods at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory

A spent fuel rod consolidation project is described in which 48 Westinghouse PWR 15 /times/ 15 spent fuel assemblies were consolidated into 24 canisters with outside dimensions the same as the fuel assemblies. The Department of Energy project was performed in a hot cell facility at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory. The fuel assemblies that were consolidated, the equipment that was developed for the project, and the most significant observations and lessons learned are described. The radiological characterizations of the process and of the debris and fuel assembly components are provided. Recommendations applicable to future dry consolidation activities are presented. 8 figs.