An analysis of spent nuclear fuel storage facilities upon catastrohpic aircraft crash event

Spent nuclear fuel is kept for intermediate storage in dry storage casks that allow for the short term decay of highly radioactive material until transport to long term storage is feasible. These dry storage casks are generally located on site at a nuclear power facility and are arranged in a configuration of twenty to thirty casks in one area. The orientation of the casks can be either horizontal or vertical and causes different factors to be considered in the maintenance of operations. This paper investigates the effects that can occur upon the impact of an aircraft directly into the dry storage casks. These effects can be generated by the energy that the aircraft imparts into the casks, the movement of the casks that can cause damage to the shielding material, the exposure of the casks to jet fuel from the aircrafts that may ignite, and the resulting exposure of the surrounding environment to the radioactive material housed in these casks. Three main types of aircrafts are investigated in this report, including the most common passenger aircraft. This allows for a worst-case scenario to be built and the most damaging effects to be investigated. The information generated by this investigation can be further used to determine the extent of damage that can be caused in accidental or purposeful impact events on nuclear energy infrastructure.