Waste Retrieval and Inspection Operations in Hanford Tank 241-AY-102 - 18234
- Washington River Protection Solutions, LLC (United States)
In August 2012, a periodic annulus inspection of tank 241-AY-102 (AY-102) identified a leak from the primary tank into the secondary containment. A pumping plan was developed in 2013 to provide a path forward for recommended remediation actions to be implemented as part of the AY-102 Recovery Project. On March 21, 2014, the Washington State Department of Ecology issued an Administrative Order requiring Washington River Protection Solutions and the United States Department of Energy to conduct actions related to and including the removal of waste from AY-102. The parties agreed to resolve the appeal of the Administrative Order through a Settlement Agreement which addressed the remaining requirements and implemented enforceable milestone dates, including completion of waste removal operations, and performance of an inspection aimed at determining the cause of the leak. The AY-102 Recovery Project was developed to address the Settlement Agreement requirements. While retrieval of waste from Single-Shell Tanks has been performed at Hanford for decades, retrieval from Double-Shell Tank AY-102 required adaptation of the existing technologies to a new environment on a larger scale than previously encountered. Despite countless challenges and obstacles encountered throughout, the project successfully completed system design, fabrication, installation, testing, and retrieval operations within a highly compressed, aggressive schedule. Waste removal activities in AY-102 completed in February 2017. Subsequent inspection activities were completed as part of a multi-step process aimed at determining the likely cause of failure and assessing the feasibility of repair. A variety of input data were used in evaluating the likely failure mechanism, such as video examinations that revealed numerous through-floor penetrations and significant degradation across the visible surface area. Based on the operational history of the tank, corrosion testing and analysis, and the visual appearance of the confirmed leak sites, service-induced pitting corrosion due to the historic waste composition and operating conditions appears to be the primary degradation mechanism leading to failure of the tank. The inspection data has demonstrated that repairing and returning AY-102 to service would likely introduce substantial technical, logistical, and financial challenges due to the extent of bottom-plate damage. As a result, tank AY-102 will ultimately be closed. (authors)
- Research Organization:
- WM Symposia, Inc., PO Box 27646, 85285-7646 Tempe, AZ (United States)
- OSTI ID:
- 22975399
- Report Number(s):
- INIS-US-20-WM-18234; TRN: US21V0213015441
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: WM2018: 44. Annual Waste Management Conference, Phoenix, AZ (United States), 18-22 Mar 2018; Other Information: Country of input: France; 7 refs.; Available online at: https://www.xcdsystem.com/wmsym/2018/index.html
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Discovery of the First Leaking Double-Shell Tank - Hanford Tank 241-AY-102
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Related Subjects
DECONTAMINATION
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
FRACTURES
HANFORD ENGINEERING DEVELOPMENT LABORATORY
LEAKS
ON-SITE INSPECTION
PITTING CORROSION
PROGRAM MANAGEMENT
PUMPING
RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL
REMEDIAL ACTION
SURFACE CONTAMINATION
TANKS
WASHINGTON
WASTE RETRIEVAL