A Non-Contact, Wireless Sensor System for Remote and Long-Term Monitoring of Internal Conditions of Spent Nuclear Fuel Dry-Storage Canisters

A major concern with nuclear energy is the safe storage of the spent nuclear fuel before final disposal. A monitoring sensor located inside a storage canister to provide direct measurements of internal conditions is of particular interest to DOE. Conventional wireless sensors have inherent limitations because the stainless steel canister shields the RF signals from wireless sensors inside the canister to communicate with outside devices. In this proposal, X-wave Innovations, Inc. proposes a non-contact, wireless sensor system (NCWSS) capable of monitoring the internal conditions of stainless steel nuclear waste dry-storage canisters by placing a set of wireless sensors inside the canister and acquiring the measurement signals outside through the thick steel wall without any cable running through. The proposed NCWSS approach is based on XII-developed wireless power and signal transfer technologies. In the Phase II program, we will extend our Phase I success and develop a fully-functional NCWSS prototype and demonstrate the abilities of the proposed technique for long-term monitoring of internal conditions (e.g., temperature, pressure, gas species) inside a sealed stainless-steel canister and wirelessly interrogating data through the thick steel wall without direct connection. The proposed non-contact, wireless sensor system provides an in-situ, reliable, accurate, and low-cost sensor technology for remote, and long-term monitoring of the internal conditions of a spent nuclear fuel dry-storage canister. This sensor technology can also be used to monitor internal conditions and prevent catastrophic failure of pressure vessels of nuclear reactors, mission-critical components in aerospace vehicles, chemistry and oil refinement industry to improve the reliability, reduce maintenance costs, and extend the service life of those systems while maintaining their safety and reliability. Many other industries and government agencies dealing with structural condition/health monitoring will directly benefit from this sensor technology.