Safe nuclear waste storage, new ways of generating and storing hydrogen, and technologies for capturing and reusing greenhouse gases are all potential spinoffs of a new study by University of Guelph researchers.
Published recently in Nature Scientific Reports, the study involved the first-ever use of antimatter to investigate processes connected to potential long-term storage of waste from nuclear reactors, says lead author and chemistry professor Khashayar Ghandi.
The research may ultimately help in designing safer underground vaults for permanent storage of radioactive waste, including waste from Ontario’s nuclear power plants. Those installations produce almost two-thirds of the province’s energy needs.
“Nuclear energy provides a clean source of electricity. However, there is a need to deal with the nuclear waste from reactors that generate electricity,” said Ghandi.
Currently, used nuclear fuel bundles – still highly radioactive — are held in vaults in temporary storage.
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