Download or read book Tanks Focus Area Annual Report FY2000 written by and published by . This book was released on 2000 with total page 26 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) continues to face a major radioactive waste tank remediation effort with tanks containing hazardous and radioactive waste resulting from the production of nuclear materials. With some 90 million gallons of waste in the form of solid, sludge, liquid, and gas stored in 287 tanks across the DOE complex, containing approximately 650 million curies, radioactive waste storage tank remediation is the nation's highest cleanup priority. Differing waste types and unique technical issues require specialized science and technology to achieve tank cleanup in an environmentally acceptable manner. Some of the waste has been stored for over 50 years in tanks that have exceeded their design lives. The challenge is to characterize and maintain these contents in a safe condition and continue to remediate and close each tank to minimize the risks of waste migration and exposure to workers, the public, and the environment. In 1994, the DOE's Office of Environmental Management (EM) created a group of integrated, multiorganizational teams focusing on specific areas of the EM cleanup mission. These teams have evolved into five focus areas managed within EM's Office of Science and Technology (OST): Tanks Focus Area (TFA); Deactivation and Decommissioning Focus Area; Nuclear Materials Focus Area; Subsurface Contaminants Focus Area; and Transuranic and Mixed Waste Focus Area.
Download or read book An End State Methodology for Identifying Technology Needs for Environmental Management with an Example from the Hanford Site Tanks written by Committee on Technologies for Cleanup of High-Level Waste in Tanks in the DOE Weapons Complex and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 1999-03-30 with total page 105 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A major issue in the cleanup of this country's nuclear weapons complex is how to dispose of the radioactive waste resulting primarily from the chemical processing operations for the recovery of plutonium and other defense strategic nuclear materials. The wastes are stored in hundreds of large underground tanks at four U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) sites throughout the United States. The tanks contain hundreds of thousands of cubic meters of radioactive and hazardous waste. Most of it is high-level waste (HLW), some of it is transuranic (TRU) or low- level waste (LLW), and essentially all containing significant amounts of chemicals deemed hazardous. Of the 278 tanks involved, about 70 are known or assumed to have leaked some of their contents to the environment. The remediation of the tanks and their contents requires the development of new technologies to enable cleanup and minimize costs while meeting various health, safety, and environmental objectives. While DOE has a process based on stakeholder participation for screening and formulating technology needs, it lacks transparency (in terms of being apparent to all concerned decision makers and other interested parties) and a systematic basis (in terms of identifying end states for the contaminants and developing pathways to these states from the present conditions). An End State Methodology for Identifying Technology Needs for Environmental Management, with an Example from the Hanford Site Tanks describes an approach for identifying technology development needs that is both systematic and transparent to enhance the cleanup and remediation of the tank contents and their sites. The authoring committee believes that the recommended end state based approach can be applied to DOE waste management in general, not just to waste in tanks. The approach is illustrated through an example based on the tanks at the DOE Hanford Site in southeastern Washington state, the location of some 60 percent by volume of the tank waste residues.
Download or read book Overview of the Tank Focus Area HLW Tank Retrieval Activities Remote Operations written by and published by . This book was released on 2001 with total page 19 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Several U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) sites are currently retrieving or preparing to retrieve radioactive waste from underground storage tanks with technical assistance from the Tanks Focus Area. The Tanks Focus Area is a national program that provides information and technologies to safely and effectively remediate radioactive waste stored in DOE's underground tanks. Funding for the Tanks Focus Area is provided by the DOE Offices of Science and Technology, Environmental Restoration, and Waste Management. This paper provides an overview of recent remote waste retrieval activities as well as recent successes sponsored by the Tanks Focus Area.
Download or read book Tanks Focus Area Annual Report written by and published by . This book was released on 1997 with total page 26 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management is tasked with a major remediation project to treat and dispose of radioactive waste in hundreds of underground storage tanks. These tanks contain about 90,000,000 gallons of high-level and transuranic wastes. We have 68 known or assumed leaking tanks, that have allowed waste to migrate into the soil surrounding the tank. In some cases, the tank contents have reacted to form flammable gases, introducing additional safety risks. These tanks must be maintained in the safest possible condition until their eventual remediation to reduce the risk of waste migration and exposure to workers, the public, and the environment. Science and technology development for safer, more efficient, and cost-effective waste treatment methods will speed up progress toward the final remediation of these tanks. The DOE Office of Environmental Management established the Tanks Focus Area to serve as the DOE-EM's technology development program for radioactive waste tank remediation in partnership with the Offices of Waste Management and Environmental Restoration. The Tanks Focus Area is responsible for leading, coordinating, and facilitating science and technology development to support remediation at DOE's four major tank sites: the Hanford Site in Washington State, Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory in Idaho, Oak Ridge Reservation in Tennessee, and the Savannah River Site in South Carolina. The technical scope covers the major functions that comprise a complete tank remediation system: waste retrieval, waste pretreatment, waste immobilization, tank closure, and characterization of both the waste and tank. Safety is integrated across all the functions and is a key component of the Tanks Focus Area program.
Download or read book Science and Technology for Disposal of Radioactive Tank Wastes written by Wallace W. Shulz and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-11-11 with total page 513 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Radioactive wastes resulting from over 40 years of production of nuclear weapons in the U. S. are currently stored in 273 underground tanks at the U. S. Department of Energy Hanford site, Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory, Oak Ridge Reservation, and Savannah River site. Combined, tanks at these sjtes contain approximately 94,000,000 gallons of waste in a variety of forms including liquid, concrete-like salt cake, and various sludges. More than 730,000,000 curies of several radioactive isotopes are present in the underground tanks. Certainly, one of the greatest challenges facing the U. S. Department of Energy is how to characterize, retrieve, treat, and immobilize the great variety of tank wastes in a safe, timely, and cost-effective manner. For several years now, the U. S. Department of Energy has initiated and sponsored scientific and engineering studies, tests, and demonstrations to develop the myriad of technologies required to dispose of the radioactive tank wastes. In recent times, much of the Department of Energy R&D activities concerning tank wastes have been closely coordinated and organized through the Tanks Focus Area (IF A); responsibility for technical operations of the TF A has been assigned to the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.
Download or read book Topographical Mapping System Tanks Focus Area OST Reference 130 written by and published by . This book was released on 1999 with total page 32 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Radioactive waste storage tanks in use at many of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) sites are beyond the intended design life. The waste in these tanks must be remediated and the tanks closed. Before these activities are performed, the physical condition of tank interiors must be determined along with detailed information regarding any obstructions and potential problems that may be encountered during installation of retrieval systems. This task is difficult because the tanks are underground and have limited access. The only way to see the physical contents of the tank is to install tools through the tank's openings, or risers. The Topographical Mapping System (TMS), a three-dimensional (3-D) mapping system that can safely operate in hazardous and radiological environments, has been developed to meet this need. This system provides an accurate 3-D view of the tank interior and gathers data on volume and contents inside storage tanks. How It Works: TMS is self-contained and reconfigurable system capable of providing rapid, variable-resolution mapping information in poorly characterized workspaces with a minimum of operator intervention. TMS uses structured light to create maps of waste topography and tank structures, determine surface features and deviations, model the tank environment, and determine residual tank waste volume. The system gathers and analyzes data to generate 3-D maps. The data can be used on a stand-alone basis or integrated with other modeling software to generate "world models" of tanks or other work environments. Figure 1 is a time-lapse photograph of the contour lines that result when the laser planes intersect with the mapped surface. The simulated waste surface in the photograph contains sand, simulated saltcake (white rock), and two black vertical pipes.
Download or read book Tank Focus Area Pretreatment Program FY 1995 Program Management Plan written by and published by . This book was released on 1995 with total page 52 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This program management plan (PMP) describes the FY 1995 project plans for the Pretreatment Program of the Tank Focus Area. The Tank Focus Area is one of five areas of environmental concerns originally identified by the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Technology Development (EM-50). Projects in the Tank Focus Area relate to the remediation of liquid waste stored in underground storage tanks at various US Department of Energy sites. The Pretreatment Program is an organizational unit performing work within the Tank Focus Area. The function of the Pretreatment Program is to develop, test, evaluate, and demonstrate new technologies, with emphasis on separations. The 11 Pretreatment Program projects for FY 1995 are (1) Cesium Extraction Testing, (2) Comprehensive Supernate Treatment, (3) Hot Cell Studies, (4) Cesium Removal Demonstration, (5) Out-of-Tank Evaporator Demonstration, (6) Crossflow Filtration, (7) Technical Interchange with CEA, (8) TRUEX Applications, (9) NAC/NAG Process Studies (conducted at Oak Ridge National Laboratory), (10) NAC/NAG Process and Waste Form Studies (conducted at Florida International University), and (11) Program Management. Section 2 of this PMP contains a separate subsection for each FY 1995 project. A brief description of the project, a schedule of major milestones, and a breakdown of costs are provided for each project. The PMP also contains sections that describe the project controls that are in place. Quality assurance, document control, the project management system, and the management organization are described in these sections.
Download or read book Tanks Focus Area Multiyear Program Plan FY96 FY98 written by and published by . This book was released on 1995 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Stabilization of In tank Residual Wastes and External tank Soil Contamination for the Tank Focus Area Hanford Tank Initiative written by and published by . This book was released on 1998 with total page 54 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A combined engineering and geochemistry approach is recommended for the stabilization of waste in decommissioned tanks and contaminated soils at the AX Tank Farm, Hanford, WA. A two-part strategy of desiccation and gettering is proposed for treatment of the in-tank residual wastes. Dry portland cement and/or fly ash are suggested as an effective and low-cost desiccant for wicking excess moisture from the upper waste layer. Getters work by either ion exchange or phase precipitation to reduce radionuclide concentrations in solution. The authors recommend the use of specific natural and man-made compounds, appropriately proportioned to the unique inventory of each tank. A filler design consisting of multilayered cementitous grout with interlayered sealant horizons should serve to maintain tank integrity and minimize fluid transport to the residual waste form. External tank soil contamination is best mitigated by placement of grouted skirts under and around each tank, together with installation of a cone-shaped permeable reactive barrier beneath the entire tank farm. Actinide release rates are calculated from four tank closure scenarios ranging from no action to a comprehensive stabilization treatment plan (desiccant/getters/grouting/RCRA cap). Although preliminary, these calculations indicate significant reductions in the potential for actinide transport as compared to the no-treatment option.
Download or read book Tanks Focus Area Site Needs Assessment FY 1997 written by and published by . This book was released on 1997 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Tanks Focus Area's (TFA's) mission is to manage an integrated technology development program that results in the application of technology to safely and efficiently accomplish tank waste remediation across the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) complex. The TFA uses a systematic process for developing its annual program that draws from the tanks technology development needs expressed by four DOE tank waste sites - Hanford Site, Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL), Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR), and Savannah River Site (SRS). The process is iterative and involves six steps: (1) Site needs identification and documentation, (2) Site communication of priority needs, (3) Technical response development, (4) Review technical responses, (5) Develop program planning documents, and (6) Review planning documents. This document describes the outcomes of the first two steps: site needs identification and documentation, and site communication of priority needs. It also describes the initial phases of the third and fourth steps: technical response development and review technical responses. Each site's Site Technology Coordination Group (STCG) was responsible for developing and delivering priority tank waste needs. This was accomplished using a standardized needs template developed by the National STCG. The standard template helped improve the needs submission process this year. The TFA received the site needs during December 1996 and January 1997.
Download or read book Tanks Focus Area written by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (U.S.) and published by . This book was released on 1996 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Tanks Focus Area Site Needs Assessment FY 2001 written by and published by . This book was released on 2001 with total page 5 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The TFA uses a systematic process for developing its annual program that draws from the tanks science and technology development needs expressed by the five DOE tank waste sites. TFA's annual program development process is iterative and involves the following steps: Collection of site needs; Needs analysis; Development of technical responses and initial prioritization; Refinement of the program for the next fiscal year; Formulation of the Corporate Review Budget (CRB); Preparation of Program Execution Guidance (PEG) for the next FY Revision of the Multiyear Program Plan (MYPP). This document describes the outcomes of the first phase of this process, from collection of site needs to the initial prioritization of technical activities. The TFA received site needs in October - December 2000. A total of 170 site needs were received, an increase of 30 over the previous year. The needs were analyzed and integrated, where appropriate. Sixty-six distinct technical responses were drafted and prioritized. In addition, seven strategic tasks were approved to compete for available funding in FY 2002 and FY 2003. Draft technical responses were prepared and provided to the TFA Site Representatives and the TFA User Steering Group (USG) for their review and comment. These responses were discussed at a March 15, 2001, meeting where the TFA Management Team established the priority listing in preparation for input to the DOE Office of Science and Technology (OST) budget process. At the time of publication of this document, the TFA continues to finalize technical responses as directed by the TFA Management Team and clarify the intended work scopes for FY 2002 and FY 2003.
Download or read book Tank Waste Retrieval Processing and On site Disposal at Three Department of Energy Sites written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2006-09-12 with total page 214 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: DOE Tank Waste: How clean is clean enough? The U.S. Congress asked the National Academies to evaluate the Department of Energy's (DOE's) plans for cleaning up defense-related radioactive wastes stored in underground tanks at three sites: the Hanford Site in Washington State, the Savannah River Site in South Carolina, and the Idaho National Laboratory. DOE plans to remove the waste from the tanks, separate out high-level radioactive waste to be shipped to an off-site geological repository, and dispose of the remaining lower-activity waste onsite. The report concludes that DOE's overall plan is workable, but some important challenges must be overcomeâ€"including the removal of residual waste from some tanks, especially at Hanford and Savannah River. The report recommends that DOE pursue a more risk-informed, consistent, participatory, and transparent for making decisions about how much waste to retrieve from tanks and how much to dispose of onsite. The report offers several other detailed recommendations to improve the technical soundness of DOE's tank cleanup plans.
Download or read book Tanks Focus Area Midyear Review Report FY00 written by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (U.S.) and published by . This book was released on 2000 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Tanks Focus Area written by Michael W. Rinker and published by . This book was released on 1996 with total page 31 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Tanks Focus Area FY98 Midyear Technical Review written by and published by . This book was released on 1998 with total page 100 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Tanks Focus Area (TFA) serves as the DOE's Office of Environmental Management's national technology and solution development program for radioactive waste tank remediation. Its technical scope covers the major functions that comprise a complete tank remediation system: waste retrieval, waste pretreatment, waste immobilization, tank closure, and characterization of both the waste and tank with safety integrated into all the functions. In total, 17 technologies and technical solutions were selected for review. The purpose of each review was to understand the state of development of each technology selected for review and to identify issues to be resolved before the technology or technical solution progressed to the next level of maturity. The reviewers provided detailed technical and programmatic recommendations and comments. The disposition of these recommendations and comments and their impact on the program is documented in this report.
Download or read book DOE this Month written by and published by . This book was released on 1996 with total page 238 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
