Particle Size-Based Decontamination of Radioactively Contaminated Soil: Techno-economic Feasibility

In the coming decades, the remediation of nuclear legacy sites will pose significant technical and financial challenges (e.g. for Belgoprocess). Among these, the management of radioactively contaminated soils stands out due to the sheer volume involved which is orders of magnitude greater than the quantities of construction materials typically generated during nuclear decommissioning activities. This scale necessitates the exploration of innovative, cost-effective decontamination and disposal strategies. 

Particle size separation, a physicochemical technique, presents a promising avenue, particularly for sandy soils as can be found at the legacy sites in the Belgian Kempen. Both wet and dry separation processes have been proven successful in the remediation of soils contaminated with non-radioactive pollutants such as PFAS and heavy metals. The method aims to isolate fine-grained fractions, which are hypothesized to retain the bulk of radioactive contaminants, while coarser fractions may be eligible for unconditional or conditional release following thorough radiological characterization. 

This project will conduct comprehensive physical, radiological, and physicochemical analyses to evaluate the efficiency of particle size separation and the distribution of radionuclides across soil fractions. The findings will contribute to the development of sustainable and economically viable remediation strategies for low-level radioactively contaminated soils. 
 

The minimum diploma level of the candidate needs to be

• Master of sciences in engineering

The candidate needs to have a background in

• Chemistry

Estimated duration

Integrated in the BNEN programme.