Russell Walke delivered an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) supported training course in post-closure safety assessment and the use of AMBER at the end of June/beginning of July to the Comissão Nacional de Energia Nuclear (CNEN) in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. CNEN is evaluating the IAEA’s generic borehole disposal concept (BDC) for the long-term safe management of disused radioactive sources in Brazil.
The training course included components on the safety case and safety assessment for radioactive waste disposal, as well as development of post-closure safety assessments based on the methodology that was developed within the IAEA’s Improvement of Safety Assessment Methodologies for Near Surface Disposal Facilities (ISAM) project. The main focus of training was on the use of Quintessa’s compartment modelling software AMBER for post-closure safety assessment. Participants gained familiarity with the code through demonstrations, tutorials, exercises and through adapting generic models for the BDC to the inventory and context in Brazil.
The training included participation from staff and post-graduate students from CNEN and its subsidiary, the Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares (IPEN), that will have a role in implementing and regulating the disposal of the disused radiation sources. Assessments undertaken during the week helped to confirm the viability of the BDC for the inventory of disused sources in Brazil, though some adaptation will be required to manage the volume of material to be managed by CNEN.