skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Robotics subsurface mapping demonstration technology test plan

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:5330860

The Subsurface Disposal Area (SDA) at the Radioactive Waste Management Complex (RWMC) contains an estimated 2 million cubic feet of contaminated, hazardous, radioactive buried waste. The waste was received in cardboard boxes, steel drums plywood boxes, and as loose material. Possible leaching of the buried waste may have created mixed hazardous fill dirt, with an estimated volume of 6 million cubic feet. The Department of Energy has committed to clean up the SDA. Cleanup efforts will include characterizing and removing the waste. Waste characterization provides information on what, where, and how much waste is buried. This information will be used to determine how the waste will be removed and treated. Limited historical data of the waste buried within the SDA exist, but have not been verified and are believed to be incorrect or incomplete in many cases. There are two objectives to the Robotics Subsurface Mapping Demonstration. The first is to demonstrate the feasibility of using a remotely operated platform to perform characterization operations. In the demonstration, the Soldier Robot Interface Project (SRIP) platform will be equipped with multiple sensors to provide data for buried waste characterization and will be remotely controlled and tracked by the Ultrasonic Ranging and Data System (USRADS). The second objective of the demonstration is to characterize the waste in locations within the SDA, as specified by the Buried Waste Integrated Demonstration (BWID) Project.

Research Organization:
EG and G Idaho, Inc., Idaho Falls, ID (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE; USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
DOE Contract Number:
AC07-76ID01570
OSTI ID:
5330860
Report Number(s):
EGG-WTD-9765; ON: DE91018786
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English