Influence of the type of furnace on behavior of radioactive cesium in municipal solid waste thermal treatment

[Display omitted] •Furnace type affects the distribution of radiocesium (r-Cs) in thermal residues.•Shaft-type gasification melting furnace can selectively distribute r-Cs to fly ash.•Leachability of r-Cs from fly ash was independent of type of furnace.•Baghouse systems can remove r-Cs highly efficiently because of no gaseous r-Cs. Municipal solid waste (MSW) contaminated by radioactive cesium (r-Cs) has been incinerated since the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident. Eight thermal treatment plants with four different types of furnaces were comprehensively investigated to provide fundamental data to improve our understanding of the behavior of r-Cs in various types of MSW thermal treatment facilities. R-Cs tended to distribute to the fly ash (FA) more than to the residue from the bottom of the furnace (bottom ash, incombustibles or slag). The r-Cs concentrations in the FA depended on the type of furnace and followed the order; fluidized-bed incinerator