The white enclosures of the Tank-Side Cesium Removal (TSCR) system are visible adjacent to the Hanford Site’s AP Tank Farm. In the background is the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, where waste pre-treated by TSCR will be heated to 2,100 degrees Fahrenheit, mixed with glass-forming materials, and poured into stainless steel containers for disposal.
RICHLAND, Wash. – Workers recently moved three enclosures that make up a system that will pretreat Hanford Site tank waste for processing to their permanent home onsite.
“This is a major accomplishment,” Janet Diediker, federal projects manager at EM’s Office of River Protection, said of the delivery of the Tank-Side Cesium Removal system. “It keeps construction of this vital part of the waste feed delivery system on schedule for commissioning by early next year.”
The pretreatment system will remove radioactive cesium and solids from tank waste and is critical to the site’s Direct-Feed Low-Activity Waste approach, which will send pretreated waste directly from the tank farms to the Low-Activity Waste Facility at the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant for vitrification.
Workers built the system and conducted factory acceptance testing at the AVANTech facility in Richland, located just south of the 580-square-mile site. EM Hanford tank operations contractor Washington River Protection Solutions worked with Lampson Crane to move the process, auxiliary, and control enclosures by flatbed trailer about 25 miles onto the site and lifted them into place on a concrete pad next to the AP Farm tanks.
From left, auxiliary, control, and process enclosures for the Tank-Side Cesium Removal system, critical to the Direct-Feed Low-Activity Waste approach at the Hanford Site, have been anchored to a concrete pad next to large underground waste tanks in the AP Tank Farm.
At the heart of the pretreatment system are three ion exchange columns that will remove cesium from the waste stream. They will be moved from AVANTech when preparations for operational acceptance testing begin later this year. Workers will deliver the equipment using a custom-designed trailer that allows offloading and placement of the 24,000-pound columns into a process enclosure.
During pretreatment operations, tank waste will flow through the ion exchange columns at about five gallons per minute. Pretreated waste will be stored in a double-shell tank in AP Farm until it is sent through underground piping to the Low-Activity Waste Facility, where it will be heated to 2,100 degrees Fahrenheit, mixed with glass-forming materials, and poured into stainless steel containers for disposal.
Workers Complete Final Demolition Project at Oak Ridge ETTP
OAK RIDGE, Tenn. – The final unneeded structure at the East Tennessee Technology Park (ETTP) has been torn down, bringing an end to demolition activities that have removed more than 13 million square feet of facilities. By completing this last teardown, Oak Ridge becomes the first site in the world to remove an entire uranium enrichment complex.
Building K-1600 was a recognizable facility due to its height and location, sitting in the middle of the footprint of Building K-25, a former uranium enrichment facility that was once the world’s largest building. K-1600 was used as a former test and demonstration facility for uranium enrichment centrifuges. Centrus Energy Corp. leased the government-owned facility from 2002 until 2019. The company no longer needed the lease after consolidating its centrifuge testing and demonstration activities into another location in Oak Ridge.
ETTP, formerly known as the Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion Plant, had contained K-25 and four other large uranium enrichment buildings, and hundreds of support facilities. The site dates back to the Manhattan Project and continued to expand its operations during the Cold War. Those operations ended in the mid-1980s, and the site was permanently closed in 1987.
“While this wasn’t one of our largest demolition projects, it was certainly one of the most meaningful,” Jay Mullis, manager of DOE’s Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management (OREM), said of K-1600. “Its removal brings an end to a massive cleanup effort by our amazing workforce who have safely removed more than 500 facilities.”
A view of Oak Ridge’s Building K-1600 before demolition began earlier this year.
A view of the K-1600 area following completion of demolition. The project marked the last teardown at the East Tennessee Technology Park and concluded an effort that has removed 500 structures at Oak Ridge.
OREM and cleanup contractor UCOR have cleaned up ETTP and transformed it into a multi-use industrial park, national park, and conservation area. To date, OREM has transferred more than 1,200 acres of land for economic development, and placed more than 3,000 acres in a conservation easement for community recreational use.
“Completing removal of this final unneeded structure advanced a successful cleanup effort that has reduced risks while helping facilitate the site’s transition to an economic and recreational area,” said Ken Whittle, UCOR project manager. “UCOR is proud to have been part of this historic achievement.”
More than 100 acres at the site will be used for historic preservation efforts. The K-25 footprint area, where K-1600 was located, is part of the Manhattan Project National Historical Park. Removing K-1600 helps increase accessibility and facilitate future plans for the area, which will include construction of a replica K-25 equipment building to complement the K-25 History Center.
An event is scheduled next week to celebrate the historic ETTP cleanup completion milestone, which will be featured in the Oct. 13 EM Update newsletter.
-Contributor: Wayne McKinney
Oak Ridge Clears Stored Waste in Advance of ETTP Cleanup Completion
OAK RIDGE, Tenn. – Just as Oak Ridge crews have removed unneeded buildings at the East Tennessee Technology Park (ETTP), they also have disposed of wastes stored there, a critical step to completing cleanup at the site.
Wastes generated and handled at ETTP, the former Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion Plant, have been managed under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) — laws that address the proper management of hazardous and polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) wastes.
Those wastes at ETTP, generated from site operations or brought to Oak Ridge’s TSCA Incinerator for processing, were stored at various permitted locations across the site prior to treatment and disposal.
Previously, wastes were treated onsite at the TSCA Incinerator and offsite at commercial treatment facilities, depending on the type of waste. After the incinerator closed in 2009, all treatment took place at off-site facilities.
Oak Ridge crews have removed all wastes stored at this facility and 78 others at the East Tennessee Technology Park.
In a testament to cleanup progress at ETTP, workers have removed wastes that could fill 110,000 55-gallon drums from 79 RCRA-permitted storage facilities at the site. Storage sites ranged from trailers and liquid waste oil storage tanks to large warehouse facilities.
“Waste removal has been an ongoing process for many years, and completion is a key milestone in completing ETTP cleanup,” said James Daffron, ETTP’s portfolio federal project director. “This essential portion of cleanup, while not as visible as demolition projects, is critical to achieving our planned end state for ETTP.”
Removal, treatment, and disposal of these wastes, as well as closure of the storage sites, lowers risk and reduces the need for surveillance and maintenance of those sites. It is another major step toward achieving Vision 2020, EM’s milestone for completing site cleanup this year.
Through environmental cleanup and land and infrastructure transfers, EM is transforming ETTP from a former enrichment complex into a multi-use industrial park, national park, and conservation area. All unneeded facilities at the site have been demolished, and almost 1,300 acres have been transferred for new industrial development. More than 20 private businesses are now operating at the site.
-Contributor: Wayne McKinney
Idaho Site Tests Technologies to Retrieve Calcine Waste
Chris Graham, calcine retrieval project lead design engineer for EM contractor Fluor Idaho, operates a riser positioning tool with a joy stick at the Idaho National Laboratory Site. IDAHO FALLS, Idaho – EM and Idaho National Laboratory Site cleanup contractor Fluor Idaho are testing technologies that will enable the retrieval and transfer of a granulated high-level radioactive waste called calcine that’s been in storage for decades. Fabricators and engineers for the calcine retrieval project have developed one-of-a-kind remotely operated equipment needed to retrieve 220 cubic meters of calcine from a set of ring-shaped bins in an underground storage vault known as the calcine solids storage facility 1 (CSSF1) and transfer the material to the nearby semi-underground CSSF6 containing tall, cylindrical tanks. The original CSSF would then be cleaned and closed under federal regulations. Calcine was created through a thermal process that converted a liquid waste generated from spent nuclear fuel reprocessing to a more stable, granular solid. It was transferred to stainless steel storage vessels contained within six CSSFs. The EM team has been testing their new technologies on a mock-up of the CSSF1. “Each technology has a specific role with the goal of removing as much calcine as possible,” Fluor Idaho Calcine Retrieval Project Manager Howard Forsythe said. “In addition to testing the technologies, we’re refining our retrieval procedures.” The team has been testing a surface cleaning tool and arc welding tool to affix a pipe to the top of the bins of the CSSF1 that will provide the pathway for all equipment to enter. Also being tested is equipment designed to keep the calcine in motion in the bins and control the rate of retrieval and transfer by adjusting the depth and air flow rate through a fluidizing nozzle inside the bin. Another tool being developed has a high flow-rate directional nozzle to move the calcine toward a vacuum line. Engineers believe this tool would aid in the removal of the bulk of calcine in the CSSF. An articulating arm named DAR-1, specifically designed to reach around the ring-shaped bins of CSSF1, would be inserted into the bin. The arm has an end nozzle that directs residual calcine toward the vacuum. The team has also been testing a crawler that would attach itself to the bin walls through vacuum pads. It will identify the last residual amounts of calcine and aid in its removal. A full-scale calcine retrieval and transfer system has been installed with the CSSF1 mock-up and is also being tested by project engineers. The system represents the actual length of piping that will be needed to retrieve calcine from CSSF1 and transfer it to CSSF6. The long-term plan, however, is to use this system for emptying all six CSSFs. In accordance with a 1995 agreement with the state of Idaho, EM is required to have all 4,400 cubic meters of calcine contained within the six CSSFs ready to leave the state by 2035. -Contributor: Erik Simpson |
Moab Project Ships Largest Trainloads to Date, Expands Disposal Cell |
One of three articulated railcars recently added to the Moab Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action Project. Each railcar can hold four intermodal containers.
MOAB, Utah – EM’s Moab Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action (UMTRA) Project is now transporting more residual radioactive material per shipment for disposal than ever before.
The project recently incorporated three additional railcars, making it possible to increase the number of intermodal containers on each train shipment.
The train transports mill tailings and other contaminated materials from the Moab Site to the Crescent Junction disposal cell four times a week. EM and Moab Site contractor North Wind Portage recently teamed up with Union Pacific Railroad to reevaluate railcar positioning in the loading and unloading areas at both sites. The team determined that additional railcars could be added to each shipment.
Earlier this year, the project was shipping up to 576 containers each week. With the added railcars, the project is now capable of shipping an additional 24 containers with approximately 815 additional tons of waste.
“It’s imperative that we recalibrate our thinking around innovation and creativity to continuously examine how we do business and strive to noticeably reduce the amount of tailings at Moab. By increasing the train’s load, we can now move more mill tailings for nearly the same cost, making each shipment even more impactful,” Federal Cleanup Director Russell McCallister said.
Scrapers excavate a new portion of the disposal cell at Crescent Junction, Utah. In the distance, crews unload containers from the Moab Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action Project train.
Mill tailings are a sand-like material that remain from processing uranium ore. The tailings are
excavated
and shipped to the Crescent Junction disposal cell about 30 miles
north, where they are placed and capped with a multi-layered cover
composed of native soils and rock.
Since the project began, the cell has been excavated in phases. Work on the most recent phase began in September and is anticipated to wrap up by the end of the year. Workers will eventually excavate 1 million cubic yards of material to complete the third phase of cell construction.
The excavated material will be repurposed and used to continue construction of an embankment known as the “wedge.” The wedge, which lies between the repository and cliffs north of the disposal site, helps divert surface water runoff from precipitation. The excavated material will be added to build up the existing wedge.
-Contributor: Honora Thompson
Completed Cleanup Sites Featured in New EM Interactive Map
Savannah River Site Closes Soil Cleanup System, Saving $264,000 Annually
From left, Savannah River Nuclear Solutions mechanic Todd Cockrell, engineer John Bradley, and project manager Joao Cardoso-Neto plan the removal and dismantlement of a high-vacuum soil vapor extraction unit at the Savannah River Site.
AIKEN, S.C. – A 12-year cleanup campaign conducted by EM at the Savannah River Site (SRS) has ended successfully, removing more than 5,000 pounds of chemical solvents from soil and leading to an annual cost savings of $264,000.
Remediation of the M-Area Inactive Process Sewer Line Operable Unit was completed following a review of recent comprehensive soil sampling results under an agreement with the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control.
“I was pleasantly surprised when we reviewed the latest soil sampling data and pleased to see the solvent levels were much lower than I had expected, far below regulatory requirements,” said John Bradley, an engineer with the environmental compliance and area completion projects division at Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS), the site’s management and operations contractor.
Bradley said the majority of the solvents were removed through the first phase of the project using a high-vacuum soil vapor extraction system requiring large electric pumps, support facilities, and monitoring equipment. With discontinued system operation and maintenance, SRS will realize an annual savings of $264,000.
“We met all of our cleanup requirements for this highly successful project, another important step towards remediating the environment at SRS,” said Bradley.
The solvents were used during the Cold War to degrease manufactured metal components, including nuclear reactor fuel.
For decades, workers at several buildings within a portion of SRS known as M Area disposed used solvents into an underground process pipeline that led to a pond-like storage basin. Eventually, these pipes began to leak where they joined four manhole access points.
This waste disposal system was used in the 1950s at what was then known as the Savannah River Plant. The site was operated by E. I. Du Pont de Nemours under the management of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, and later, DOE.
“It met their needs at the time and served its purpose. Unfortunately, time and nature prevailed, and the drainage system began to degrade,” said Joao Cardoso-Neto, a project manager at SRNS. “We’ve dedicated an extensive array of resources over the years to help return this section of SRS to natural conditions. That’s an important part of our mission here that we take seriously.”
-Contributor: DT Townsend
Lab Waste-Handling Changes to Further Improve Worker Safety at SRS
EM and Savannah River Remediation have installed a remote operating station that controls waste-handling components in an adjacent cell at the Defense Waste Processing Facility at the Savannah River Site. The forklift carries a shielded transport container with a drum inside that will hold bagged waste.
AIKEN, S.C. – EM and its liquid waste contractor at the Savannah River Site (SRS) have developed a system that improves protection for workers who handle and dispose of contaminated laboratory waste created at the site’s Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) during the vitrification process.
Historically, the handling and transporting of the lab waste at DWPF was performed by hand, with workers wearing protective clothing. Installation of the new system eliminates the hands-on work performed in the past and greatly reduces the potential for worker exposure to higher levels of radiation. The modifications come as the Salt Waste Processing Facility came online Oct. 5. The facility will process radioactive materials at a rate eight times faster than recent waste treatment operations at SRS.
To create the new worker protections, staff from contractor Savannah River Remediation (SRR) installed remote-control equipment at the DWPF lab and made other renovations that will improve the lab’s waste handling and transporting systems.
SRR operates DWPF, where high-level radioactive waste is being turned into glass for safe, long-term disposal through the vitrification process.
The waste comes from the lab’s sampling and analytical cells, where technicians prepare samples for testing.
Sam Travaglini, an SRR system engineer, said the new system further demonstrates SRR’s dedication to its core values of safety and continuous improvement.
“This system incorporates engineered controls to enable workers to move higher dose rate items from a distance using remote manipulator arms,” Travaglini said. “With increased shielding and remote handling, we improve the level of protection for our workers.”
The waste is remotely placed into bags first and then scanned for radiation levels. A robotic arm will place the contaminated waste into a modified 55-gallon drum and, finally, into a larger container that can hold three drums. The container is then transported to an approved on-site disposal area.
Jim Folk, EM’s assistant manager for waste disposition at SRS, said the installation of remote-controlled equipment is another way that systems are being improved to increase safety.
“Protecting the health of our workers, the public, and the environment is always our top priority,” Folk said. “Making these changes will help keep workers even safer.”
-Contributor: Jim Beasley
‘Bubblers’ Provide Decade of Improved DWPF Operations, Preparation for SWPF
AIKEN, S.C. – Innovative equipment known as “bubblers” have been improving liquid waste operations at EM’s Savannah River Site (SRS) for the last decade and will aid in the future operations of the Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF) — an EM 2020 priority.
Bubblers are used in the melter, the key equipment at the center of the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF), the site’s vitrification plant operated by EM and SRS liquid waste contractor Savannah River Remediation (SRR). The bubblers improve the heating and melting steps of the vitrification process.
A mixture of high-level sludge waste, glass frit, and water is sent to the melter and heated to 2,100 degrees Fahrenheit in a continuous feeding and pouring operation. The molten-waste mixture is poured into stainless-steel canisters where it hardens, creating a glass waste form — the end product of vitrification.
In September 2010, EM and SRR retrofitted the DWPF melter to accommodate the installation of four melter agitation bubblers. The bubblers were installed to achieve faster waste processing throughout the SRS liquid waste facilities, a significant preparation for SWPF, EM’s facility to process the majority of the remaining radioactive liquid waste at SRS.
SRR subcontractor Atkins developed, designed, and fabricated the melter bubbler technology.
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Innovative equipment known as bubblers are used to improve the vitrification process at the Savannah River Site’s Defense Waste Processing Facility |
The bubblers agitate the molten glass pool by deploying bubbles near the bottom of the melter using argon gas. The rising bubbles effectively agitate the melt pool. This agitation creates more convection and mixing within the melt pool, increasing the heat transfer to the melt pool cold cap. The cold cap is the layer of unmelted feed floating on top of the melt pool, similar to ice floating on top of water. This rise in heat transfer increases melter throughput, allowing it to pour more canisters of vitrified waste more frequently.
SRR Chief Operating Officer and Deputy Project Manager Mark Schmitz said the bubbler technology has proven to be a positive development for efficient melter operation at DWPF.
“The liquid waste facilities work as an integrated system, and this system will soon include a new major player, the Salt Waste Processing Facility,” Schmitz said. “When one facility is operating efficiently, such as the Defense Waste Processing Facility, the whole system runs well. This reliable integration will be key in ensuring efficient Salt Waste Processing Facility operations.”
-Contributor: Colleen Hart
Landmark Signs Show Progress at the Hanford Site
From left, Hanford Site carpenters Carl McLaughlin, Rick Russert, Mike Finney, and Doug MacDonald pause for a photo after installing one of 15 landmark signs commemorating cleanup projects across the 580-square-mile site that produced approximately two-thirds of the plutonium for the national security mission from the Manhattan Project through the late 1980s.
RICHLAND, Wash. – The posts are up, the paint is dry, and the signs showing Hanford Site cleanup successes are available for viewing.
EM Richland Operations Office contractor Mission Support Alliance (MSA) recently finished installing temporary landmark signs at several locations on the 580-square-mile site. The 15 double-sided signs are 8 feet tall and 12 feet wide and includes key information about the facility or area.
“Often times when you drive by areas that have been cleaned up, it looks like nothing was ever there, and we forget how much effort was put into progressing the cleanup mission,” said Rich Buel, deputy director of the Hanford Office of Communications. “These signs help workers and visitors visualize how far we’ve come in cleanup.”
John Doty, sign painter for EM Richland Operations Office contractor Mission Support Alliance, stands in front of a landmark sign commemorating the cleanup of 135 waste sites, removal of 2.5 million tons of contaminated material and “cocooning” of the DR and D reactors. Remediation of the vast infrastructure required to support the national security mission has been the focus of the Hanford Site cleanup over the last 30 years.
The sign project was a collaborative effort by employees of multiple Hanford contractors. Workers built and installed the signs at several of the former plutonium production reactors along the Columbia River; the 200 West Pump and Treat facility; the former site of the Plutonium Finishing Plant, where nearly two-thirds of the nation’s plutonium stockpile was produced; and the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant.
-Contributor: Patrick Conrad
West Valley Encapsulates Slab, Protecting Employees and Environment
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