Waste Treatment and Disposal Progress Report for June and July 1961

Technical Report · Tue Oct 24 00:00:00 EDT 1961

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/4828933· OSTI ID:4828933

Blanco, R. E.; Struxness, E. G.

7 7 6 4 : 9 8 9 6 5 : 9 aluminum nitrate waste was calcined in the close-coupled continuous evaporator-pot calciner unit. Waste oxides from TBP-25 waste were incorporated into glassy materials after the addition of phosphate and borate fluxing agents. Melts formed at 850 to 950 deg C were glassy solids when cooled and had densities from 2.41 to 2.47 g/ml. Waste volurne reduction factors were from 7.6 to 9.3. Low-Level Waste Treatment. A demonstration run was completed in the 60 liters/hr scavenging-ion exchange pilot plant on ORNL low-activity waste. Decontamination factors were satisfactory after 1500 resin bed voluumes of waste had been treated, i. e, Sr> 1000, TRE 100, Cs> 100, and sufficiently high for other activities that the waste activity was reduced to <10% of MPC. The physical properties of vermiculite, clinoptilolite, and rock phosphate were found to be suitable for second-stage treatment of process waste. Engineering, Econommc, and Hazards Evaluation. A cost study of the conversion of high-level solutions to solids by pot calcimation was completed. Aging had a negligible effect on costs for processing in a given vessel size. The lowest cost was 0.87 x 10/sup-2/ mill/kwh/sub 3/ for processing acidic Purex and Thorex wastes in 24-in.-dia. vessels, and the highest was 5.0 x 10/sup -2/ mill/kwh/sub e/ for processing reacidifled Purex and Thorex wastes im 6-in.-dia. vessels. Disposal ion Deep Wells. Test drilling at the site of the second fracturing experiment is nearly completed. The upper grout sheet extends out from the injection well some 500 ft to the east and northeast, but only- short distances out in other directions. The lower grout sheet extends largely to the north and northwest, but its outer limits are still undefimed. Disposal in Natural Salt Formations. Stress measurements in the pillars of the Hutchimson mine have shown the absence of horizontal stresses and the presence of vertical stress varyimg from 1300 to 1600 psi. Comparison of the data from the field cavities and theoretical calculations of temperature rises aroumd spheres indicates that the thermal conductivity of the salt surrounding the experimental cavities is 2.6 Btu hr/sup -1/ ft/sup 10/ F/sup -1/ and the diffusivity is 0.099 ft/sup 2/hr. A computer code was designed for the solution of temperature rise in a heat-generating layer of infinite horizontal dimensions and in the salt surrounding the layer, as a function of time for wastes of variable age. The use of this code showed that the storage of waste decayed less than one year is wasteful of mine space and that the thickness of the slab from 1 to 10 ft has little effect on the temperature rise in the slab. Studies on radiolytic gas production of wastes in salt showed that gas production can be eliminated by pressurizing the cavity or by maintaining an atmosphere of hydrogen over the waste. Clinch River Studies. A continuous water-sampling system was imstalled at Centers Ferry on the Clinch River. The imstruments were so designed that the rate of sampling is proportional to the velocity of flow in the river. Results of sorption tests on membrane filters indicate that essentially no strontium, cobalt, or ruthenium is sorbed as river water samples are filtered. A small percentage of cesium, 4%, is sorbed by the filters. Various types of bottom sediment core samplers were tested and evaluated for compaction and retention characteristics. Results of a recent silt range survey showed that additional cross section sampling sections, intermediate to the standard silt ranges, do not significantiy change estimates of sediment volume. Fundamental Studies of Minerals. Sodium-vermiculite showed three distinct sorption-of-strontium responses in the pH ramge 2 to 11. Up to pH 4.5 the response depends on the displacement of aluminuna from octahedral layers of the mineral. Thus, sorption was <10% at pH 2 and only 59% at pH 4.0; in both

• Research Organization: Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-26
• NSA Number: NSA-16-002808
• OSTI ID: 4828933
• Report Number(s): ORNL-TM-15
• Resource Relation: Other Information: Orig. Receipt Date: 31-DEC-62
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

WASTE DISPOSAL AND PROCESSING
ACIDITY
ADSORPTION
ALUMINUM
ATMOSPHERE
CALCINATION
CESIUM
COBALT
COMPUTERS
CONVERSION
DECONTAMINATION
DEPOSITS
DIFFUSION
DISTRIBUTION
ECONOMICS
FILTERS
GASES
HYDROGEN
INSTRUMENTS
ION EXCHANGE
ION EXCHANGE MATERIALS
LIQUID FLOW
MEASURED VALUES
MEMBRANES
MINERALS
MINING
PHOSPHATES
PRESSURE
PRODUCTION
RADIOISOTOPES
RESINS
ROCKS
RUTHENIUM
SALTS
SAMPLING
SEA
SOLIDS
STRESSES
STRONTIUM
TEMPERATURE
TENNESSEE
TESTING
THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY
VELOCITY
VESSELS
WASTE DISPOSAL
WASTE PROCESSING
WASTE SOLUTIONS
WATER