Seismoacoustic process monitoring of a nuclear pyro-processing element chopper

With the projected increase in world nuclear power capacity comes the need to process spent nuclear fuel. One method is pyro-processing, a non-aqueous process utilizing high temperatures and electrochemical steps to separate usable actinides from fission product waste components. This process occurs in a hot cell limiting direct vibration and acoustic emission process monitoring of equipment. Seismoacoustic monitoring outside the hot cell would avoid challenges such as high temperatures, high radiation levels, and difficult to access equipment. The goal of this work was to investigate the feasibility of seismoacoustic monitoring as a means of informing operators, utilizing a pyro-processing element chopper, of failures. Seismic and infrasound sensors were deployed in a pyro-processing facility, chopping events were compared by sensor type and location, and details regarding chopper operation and failure were measured. Operator logs were collected to find operation times and identify deviations from typical operations. Seismic sensors were able to clearly measure chopping compared to infrasound which was not deemed practical. Results indicated the ability to monitor an erroneous fuel backwards scenario while no clear indicators were found preceding fuse issues. Overall, seismic monitoring directly outside a hot cell can monitor a pyro-processing element chopper to inform operators of typical operation and identify deviations.