The general aim of this study was to examine the underwater cutting of thick steel plates and the cutting of radioactive parts from dismantling operations. The three tools tested in the Pegase facility of the nuclear center of Cadarache were the plasma torch (1000 A), the consumable electrode which is a tool in which a wire is continuously unwound from a coil into the kerf and an arc is ignited by a short circuit between the wire and the workpiece and the Contact Arc Metal Cutting (CAMC) which is a technique in which an electrode of graphite and the workpiece are connected in short circuit with a high current Ten experiments were carried out (seven non radioactive plates and three radioactive plates were cut) in a 7.7 m{sup}3 tank located in a 32 m{sup}3 cell. For each experiment, a lot of measurements about secondary wastes were done: 1) the balance of the solid (sedimented dross, suspended particles, attached slag, aerosols) and gaseous (NO, NO{sub}x, CO, O{sub}3, H{sub}2) emissions, 2) the characterization of the aerosols (particle size distribution, chemical analyses), of the suspended particles (particle size distribution, concentration in different water levels, chemical analyses) and of the sedimented dross (particle size distribution), 3) the balance of the radioactive distributions, 4) the water quality (pH, turbidity, conductivity).
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