Download or read book Technetium Incorporation in Glass for the Hanford Tank Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant written by and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A priority of the United States Department of Energy (U.S. DOE) is to dispose of nuclear wastes accumulated in 177 underground tanks at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation in eastern Washington State. These nuclear wastes date from the Manhattan Project of World War II and from plutonium production during the Cold War. The DOE plans to separate high-level radioactive wastes from low activity wastes and to treat each of the waste streams by vitrification (immobilization of the nuclides in glass) for disposal. The immobilized low-activity waste will be disposed of here at Hanford and the immobilized high-level waste at the national geologic repository. Included in the inventory of highly radioactive wastes is large volumes of 99Tc (~9 × 10E2 TBq or ~2.5 × 104 Ci or ~1500 kg). A problem facing safe disposal of Tc-bearing wastes is the processing of waste feed into in a chemically durable waste form. Technetium incorporates poorly into silicate glass in traditional glass melting. It readily evaporates during melting of glass feeds and out of the molten glass, leading to a spectrum of high-to-low retention (ca. 20 to 80%) in the cooled glass product. DOE-ORP currently has a program at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Rutgers University and in the School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering at Washington State University that seeks to understand aspects of Tc retention by means of studying Tc partitioning, molten salt formation, volatilization pathways, and cold cap chemistry. Another problem involves the stability of Tc in glass in both the national geologic repository and on-site disposal after it has been immobilized. The major environmental concern with 99Tc is its high mobility in addition to a long half-life (2.1×105 yrs). The pertechnetate ion (TcO4- ) is highly soluble in water and does not adsorb well onto the surface of minerals and so migrates nearly at the same velocity as groundwater. Long-term corrosion of glass waste forms is an area of current interest to the DOE, but attention to the release of Tc from glass has been little explored. It is expected that the release of Tc from glass should be highly dependent on the local glass structure as well as the chemistry of the surrounding environment, including groundwater pH. Though the speciation of Tc in glass has been previously studied, and the Tc species present in waste glass have been previously reported, environmental Tc release mechanisms are poorly understood. The recent advances in Tc chemistry that have given rise to an understanding of incorporation in the glass giving rise to significantly higher single-pass retention during vitrification are presented. Additionally, possible changes to the baseline flowsheet that allow for relatively minor volumes of Tc reporting to secondary waste treatment will be discussed.
Download or read book Technetium Immobilization Forms Literature Survey written by and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Of the many radionuclides and contaminants in the tank wastes stored at the Hanford site, technetium-99 (99Tc) is one of the most challenging to effectively immobilize in a waste form for ultimate disposal. Within the Hanford Tank Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP), the Tc will partition between both the high-level waste (HLW) and low-activity waste (LAW) fractions of the tank waste. The HLW fraction will be converted to a glass waste form in the HLW vitrification facility and the LAW fraction will be converted to another glass waste form in the LAW vitrification facility. In both vitrification facilities, the Tc is incorporated into the glass waste form but a significant fraction of the Tc volatilizes at the high glass-melting temperatures and is captured in the off-gas treatment systems at both facilities. The aqueous off-gas condensate solution containing the volatilized Tc is recycled and is added to the LAW glass melter feed. This recycle process is effective in increasing the loading of Tc in the LAW glass but it also disproportionally increases the sulfur and halides in the LAW melter feed which increases both the amount of LAW glass and either the duration of the LAW vitrification mission or the required supplemental LAW treatment capacity.
Download or read book Options for the Separation and Immobilization of Technetium written by and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Among radioactive constituents present in the Hanford tank waste, technetium-99 (Tc) presents a unique challenge in that it is significantly radiotoxic, exists predominantly in the liquid low-activity waste (LAW), and has proven difficult to effectively stabilize in a waste form for ultimate disposal (see Figure S-1). Within the Hanford Tank Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, the LAW fraction will be converted to a glass waste form in the LAW vitrification facility but a significant fraction of Tc volatilizes at the high glass-melting temperatures and is captured in the off-gas treatment system. This necessitates recycle of the off-gas condensate solution to the LAW glass melter feed. The recycle process is effective in increasing the loading of Tc in the immobilized LAW (ILAW), but it also disproportionately increases the sulfur and halides in the LAW melter feed, which have limited solubility in the LAW glass and thus significantly reduce the amount of LAW (glass waste loading) that can be vitrified and still maintain good waste form properties. This increases both the amount of LAW glass and either the duration of the LAW vitrification mission or requires the need for supplemental LAW treatment capacity.
Download or read book GLASS FORMULATION FOR THE HANFORD TANK WASTE TREATMENT AND IMMOBILIZATION PLANT WTP written by and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A computational method for formulating Hanford HLW glasses was developed that is based on empirical glass composition-property models, accounts for all associated uncertainties, and can be solved in Excel{sup R} in minutes. Calculations for all waste form processing and compliance requirements included. Limited experimental validation performed.
Download or read book Enhanced LAW Glass Correlation Phase 1 written by and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page 199 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: About 50 million gallons of high-level mixed waste is currently stored in underground tanks at the United States Department of Energy's (DOE's) Hanford site in the State of Washington. The Hanford Tank Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) will provide DOE's Office of River Protection (ORP) with a means of treating this waste by vitrification for subsequent disposal. The tank waste will be separated into low- and high-activity waste fractions, which will then be vitrified respectively into Immobilized Low Activity Waste (ILAW) and Immobilized High Level Waste (IHLW) products. The ILAW product will be disposed in an engineered facility on the Hanford site while the IHLW product is designed for acceptance into a national deep geological disposal facility for high-level nuclear waste. The ILAW and IHLW products must meet a variety of requirements with respect to protection of the environment before they can be accepted for disposal. Acceptable glass formulations for vitrification of Hanford low activity waste (LAW) must meet a variety of product quality, processability, and waste loading requirements. To this end, The Vitreous State Laboratory (VSL) at The Catholic University of America (CUA) developed and tested a number of glass formulations during Part A, Part B1 and Part B2 of the WTP development program. The testing resulted in the selection of target glass compositions for the processing of eight of the Phase I LAW tanks. The selected glass compositions were tested at the crucible scale to confirm their compliance with ILAW performance requirements. Duramelter 100 (DM100) and LAW Pilot Melter tests were then conducted to demonstrate the viability of these glass compositions for LAW vitrification at high processing rates.
Download or read book TECHNETIUM RETENTION IN WTP LAW GLASS WITH RECYCLE FLOW SHEET DM10 MELTER TESTING VSL 12R2640 1 REV 0 written by and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 735 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Melter tests were conducted to determine the retention of technetium and other volatiles in glass while processing simulated Low Activity Waste (LAW) streams through a DM10 melter equipped with a prototypical off-gas system that concentrates and recycles fluid effiuents back to the melter feed. To support these tests, an existing DM10 system installed at Vitreous State Laboratory (VSL) was modified to add the required recycle loop. Based on the Hanford Tank Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) LAW off-gas system design, suitably scaled versions of the Submerged Bed Scrubber (SBS), Wet Electrostatic Precipitator (WESP), and TLP vacuum evaporator were designed, built, and installed into the DM10 system. Process modeling was used to support this design effort and to ensure that issues associated with the short half life of the {sup 99m}Tc radioisotope that was used in this work were properly addressed and that the system would be capable of meeting the test objectives. In particular, this required that the overall time constant for the system was sufficiently short that a reasonable approach to steady state could be achieved before the {sup 99m}Tc activity dropped below the analytical limits of detection. The conceptual design, detailed design, flow sheet development, process model development, Piping and Instrumentation Diagram (P & ID) development, control system design, software design and development, system fabrication, installation, procedure development, operator training, and Test Plan development for the new system were all conducted during this project. The new system was commissioned and subjected to a series of shake-down tests before embarking on the planned test program. Various system performance issues that arose during testing were addressed through a series of modifications in order to improve the performance and reliability of the system. The resulting system provided a robust and reliable platform to address the test objectives.
Download or read book Glass as a Waste Form and Vitrification Technology written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 1997-03-02 with total page 172 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Glass Fabrication and Analysis Literature Review and Method Selection for WTP Waste Feed Qualification written by and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The waste feed qualification program is being developed to protect the Hanford Tank Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) safety basis, technical basis, and design by assuring waste acceptance requirements are met for each staged waste feed Campaign prior to transfer from the Hanford Tank Farm to the WTP.
Download or read book The Incorporation of Technetium Into a Representative Low activity Waste Glass written by and published by . This book was released on 1997 with total page 11 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A glass that has been tested to understand the corrosion behavior of waste glasses with high soda contents for immobilizing Hanford incidental wastes has been made by melting crushed glass with either TcO2 or NaTcO4 at 1,100--1,300 C. Incorporation of technetium in the glass was affected by solubility or kinetic effects. Metallic technetium inclusions formed in all the TcO2-doped glasses. Inclusions also formed in glasses with added NaTcO4 that were melted at 1,100 C, but a glass melted at 1,200 C did not contain detectable inclusions. The presence of Tc-bearing inclusions complicates the interpretation of results from dissolution tests because of the simultaneous release of technetium from more than one phase, the unknown surface areas of each phase, and the possible incorporation of technetium that is released from one phase into another phase. A glass containing about 0.15 mass % Tc dissolved in the glass is being used in dissolution tests to study the release behavior of technetium.
Download or read book Advances in Glass Formulations for Hanford High Alumimum High Iron and Enhanced Sulphate Management in HLW Streams 13000 written by and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page 19 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The current estimates and glass formulation efforts have been conservative in terms of achievable waste loadings. These formulations have been specified to ensure that the glasses are homogenous, contain essentially no crystalline phases, are processable in joule-heated, ceramic-lined melters and meet Hanford Tank Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) Contract terms. The WTP?s overall mission will require the immobilization of tank waste compositions that are dominated by mixtures of aluminum (Al), chromium (Cr), bismuth (Bi), iron (Fe), phosphorous (P), zirconium (Zr), and sulphur (S) compounds as waste-limiting components. Glass compositions for these waste mixtures have been developed based upon previous experience and current glass property models. Recently, DOE has initiated a testing program to develop and characterize HLW glasses with higher waste loadings and higher throughput efficiencies. Results of this work have demonstrated the feasibility of increases in waste loading from about 25 wt% to 33-50 wt% (based on oxide loading) in the glass depending on the waste stream. In view of the importance of aluminum limited waste streams at Hanford (and also Savannah River), the ability to achieve high waste loadings without adversely impacting melt rates has the potential for enormous cost savings from reductions in canister count and the potential for schedule acceleration. Consequently, the potential return on the investment made in the development of these enhancements is extremely favorable. Glass composition development for one of the latest Hanford HLW projected compositions with sulphate concentrations high enough to limit waste loading have been successfully tested and show tolerance for previously unreported tolerance for sulphate. Though a significant increase in waste loading for high-iron wastes has been achieved, the magnitude of the increase is not as substantial as those achieved for high-aluminum, high-chromium, high-bismuth or sulphur. Waste processing rate increases for high-iron streams as a combined effect of higher waste loadings and higher melt rates resulting from new formulations have been achieved.
Download or read book Tank Closure and Waste Management for the Hanford Site written by and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 1098 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Processing Constraints on High level Nuclear Waste Glasses for Hanford Waste Vitrification Plant written by and published by . This book was released on 1993 with total page 7 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The work presented in this paper is a part of a major technology program supported by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) in preparation for the planned operation of the Hanford Waste Vitrification Plant (HWVP). Because composition of Hanford waste varies greatly, processability is a major concern for successful vitrification. This paper briefly surveys general aspects of waste glass processability and then discusses their ramifications for specific examples of Hanford waste streams.
Download or read book Glass Formulation Requirements for Hanford Coupled Operations Using Crystalline Silicotitanates CST written by and published by . This book was released on 1997 with total page 6 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) through the Richland Operations Office has requested proposals from the private sector for the treatment of waste from the Hanford Waste Tanks. Phase I of this privatization initiative may include a demonstration for treatment and immobilization of both low activity and high-level waste. If the demonstration includes high-level waste, then the Cs-137 waste stream most likely will be combined with the high-level waste sludge to produce a coupled feed for immobilization (most likely vitrification using a borosilicate glass). It appears that pretreatment will involve the removal of cesium (and perhaps strontium and some transuranic radionuclides) from the supernate using an ion exchange material such as crystalline silicotitanate (CST). The ion exchange sorbent (or the eluted Cs-137) can then be combined with the sludge and vitrified in a coupled operation similar to the DWPF process. Alternatively, the cesium-loaded ion exchange sorbent can be vitrified directly to produce a separate glass waste form. SRTC has been involved in an Office of Science and Technology (EM-50) funded project to determine if Cs-137 loaded CST can be successfully incorporated into glass at significant levels. 1 For a waste form which would include only Cs-137 loaded CST, concentrations up to 60 wt% of CST in glass have been achieved. 2 The glass produced from this demonstration is both processable and durable. This CST-only waste form could be used at Hanford if the cesium-loaded CST is vitrified in a separate melter. For coupled feed operations, the CST would be mixed with high-level radioactive sludge from the Hanford tanks. This report provides the basis and the path forward for SRTC's efforts at developing a glass frit formulation which will incorporate both Hanford sludge and cesium-loaded CST for a coupled flowsheet. The goal of this work is to demonstrate the feasibility of vitrification as a method for immobilization of coupled feed (specifically, Cs-137-loaded CST). (Abstract Truncated).
Download or read book Glass Optimization for Vitrification of Hanford Site Low level Tank Waste written by and published by . This book was released on 1996 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Research Program to Investigate the Fundamental Chemistry of Technetium written by Ian Pegg and published by . This book was released on 2004 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Tc and Re glasses were prepared using waste surrogates and glass additives for the Low Activity Waste (LAW) fractions from the Hanford Waste tanks AN-107 and AN-105. The AN 107 waste has a higher organic content than the AN-105 waste and should, therefore, provide more reducing environments during glass synthesis. Tc K-edge and Re LII-edge XANES spectra were measured for this series of glasses that were each prepared under slightly different conditions.
Download or read book Energy Research Abstracts written by and published by . This book was released on 1993 with total page 900 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Incorporation of Savannah River Plant Radioactive Waste Into Glass written by and published by . This book was released on 1975 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
