ABOUT

Thermal treatment for radioactive waste minimisation and hazard reduction

The aim of the THERAMIN project is to provide improved safe long-term storage and disposal of intermediate and low level radioactive waste streams (ILW and LLW), suitable for thermal processing. The work programme provides a vehicle for coordinated EU-wide research and technology demonstration designed to provide improved understanding and optimisation of the application of thermal treatment in radioactive waste management programmes across Europe, improving the technology readiness level to accelerate industrial implementation.

The consortium assembles a European-wide community of experts on thermal treatment technologies and radioactive waste management and disposal, who will work together with the aim of identifying efficiencies in national waste management and decommissioning programmes across Europe. 

The THERAMIN project will:

• Provide an EU-wide strategic review and assessment of the value of thermal technologies applicable to a broad range of waste streams (ion exchange media, soft operational wastes, sludge, organics and liquids).
   
• Compile an EU-wide database of thermally treatable wastes, will document the strategic benefits of thermal treatment, and will identify the opportunities, synergies, challenges, timescales and cost implications to improve radioactive waste management.
   
• Evaluate the applicability and achievable volume reduction of the technologies through ‘first-of-a-kind’ active and non-active full-scale demonstration tests, and will assess the disposability of residues.

The project benefits from the large investments made by partners in thermal treatment R&D facilities, which will be used to maximise the benefit across member states.

THERAMIN will benefit from close engagement with an End User Group (EUG) (waste producers and waste management organisations). The partners will encourage the mobility and training of staff for the development of the next generation of engineers and scientists, and the proposal includes a technical training workshop, a scientific conference, and use of other dissemination tools.

THERAMIN will establish a pan-European network of expertise on thermal treatment, will provide for cross-European technology transfer, and will identify prospects for sharing of facilities between countries facing similar problems.

PROJECT STRUCTURE

THERAMIN is divided into five distinct work packages. Each of the work packages (WPs) will be led by a partner with the necessary expertise and ability in the relevant field. The main aims of each work package are summarised below and described in detail in the following tables.

The flow of information between WPs is shown in the figure below.

Grant Agreement:	755480
EC Budget contribution:	3,899,939 EUR
Participants:	12 organisations, from 7 European countries
Duration:	01 June 2017 − 31 May 2020
Coordinator:	Dr. Matti Nieminen, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd
Topic:	THERAMIN contributes to addressing topic NFRP-7 - Research and innovation on the overall management of radioactive waste other than geological disposal.
Type of action:	Research and Innovation

WORK PLAN >>