Approximately 400 cubic meters of high-level radioactive liquid waste is currently held at the Tokai Reprocessing Plant. At the Tokai Vitrification Facility (TVF), the waste will be melted with glass materials at high temperatures and enclosed into stainless steel containers.
As storage in vitrified packages is recognized as improving safety, the Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) approved the resumption of vitrification operations from the viewpoint of reducing risks.
In 1977, the Tokai Reprocessing Plant started reprocessing tests using spent nuclear fuel. It shifted to actual operations in 1981. By the end of March 2009, it had reprocessed about 1,140 tons of spent fuel, contributing to the establishment of technology for reprocessing spent fuel from light-water reactors.
The TVF, where the high-level radioactive liquid waste separated from spent fuel is being vitrified, produced 247 vitrified packages from 1994 through 2007, and stores them on site.
