Transmutation of nuclear wastes using photonuclear reactions triggered by Compton backscattering photons at the Shanghai laser electron gamma source

Based on the facility of the Shanghai Laser Electron Gamma Source (SLEGS), the transmutation for nuclear wastes such as Cs-137 and I-129 is investigated. It is found that nuclear waste can be transmuted efficiently via photonuclear reaction triggered by gamma photons generated from Compton backscattering between CO2 laser photons and 3.5 GeV electrons. The nuclear activities of Cs-137 and I-129 are evaluated and compared with the results of transmutation triggered by bremsstrahlung gamma photons driven by ultra intense laser. Due to the better character of gamma photon spectrum as well as the high brightness of gamma photons, the transmutation rate of Compton backscattering method is much higher than that of the bremsstrahlung method.