METHOD FOR INCINERATING TRANSURANIAN CHEMICAL ELEMENTS AND NUCLEAR REACTOR USING SAME

摘要

The invention concerns a method for incinerating transuranian chemical elements, such as long lasting radioactive waste and plutonium which consists in using a nuclear reactor whereof the core (12) operates at low-level criticality. Said level is selected substantially equal to the difference beta S between a desired fraction beta T of delayed neutrons in the core and the real fraction beta . An external source spallation reaction neutrons comprises a proton accelerator (22) the power of which is adjusted, in real time, on the neutron flux measured in the core (12), thereby enabling to inject into the reactor core a supplementary fraction of delayed neutrons equal to the difference beta S. The reactor is operates and is monitored like a standard reactor.