Nuclear power plays a key role in maintaining current worldwide energy growth while minimising the greenhouse gas emissions. A disposition path for used nuclear fuel (UNF) must be found for this technology to achieve its promise. One likely option is to recycle UNF and immobilize the high-level waste (HLW) by vitrification. Vitrification is the technology of choice for immobilizing HLW from defense and commercial fuel reprocessing around the world. Recent advances in both recycling technology and vitrification show great promise in closing the US nuclear fuel cycle in an efficient fashion. This article summarises recent trends, developments and future options in waste vitrification for both defense waste cleanup and closing the nuclear fuel cycle in the US.
