Control of radioactive waste-glass melters

Conference · Mon Oct 12 00:00:00 EDT 1987

OSTI ID:6122478

Bickford, D F; Smith, P K ^[1]; Hrma, P ^[2]; Bowan, B W ^[3]

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1. Savannah River Lab., Aiken, SC (USA)
2. Case Western Reserve Univ., Cleveland, OH (USA)
3. West Valley Nuclear Services Co., Inc., West Valley, NY (USA)

Radioactive waste-glass melters require physical control limits and redox control of glass to assure continuous operation, and maximize production rates. Typical waste-glass melter operating conditions, and waste-glass chemical reaction paths are discussed. Glass composition, batching and melter temperature control are used to avoid the information of phases which are disruptive to melting or reduce melter life. The necessity and probable limitations of control for electric melters with complex waste feed compositions are discussed. Preliminary control limits, their bases, and alternative control methods are described for use in the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) at the US Department of Energy's Savannah River Plant (SRP), and at the West Valley Demonstration Project (WVDP). Slurries of simulated high level radioactive waste and ground glass frit or glass formers have been isothermally reacted and analyzed to identify the sequence of the major chemical reactions in waste vitrification, and their effect on waste-glass production rates. Relatively high melting rates of waste batches containing mixtures of reducing agents (formic acid, sucrose) and nitrates are attributable to exothermic reactions which occur at critical stages in the vitrification process. The effect of foaming on waste glass production rates is analyzed, and limits defined for existing waste-glass melters, based upon measurable thermophysical properties. Through balancing the high nitrate wastes of the WVDP with reducing agents, the high glass melting rates and sustained melting without foaming required for successful WVDP operations have been demonstrated. 65 refs., 4 figs., 15 tabs.

• Research Organization: Savannah River Lab., Aiken, SC (USA)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE; USDOE, Washington, DC (USA)
• DOE Contract Number: AC09-76SR00001; AC09-89SR18035; AC07-81NE44139
• OSTI ID: 6122478
• Report Number(s): DP-MS-86-217-AI-AII; CONF-870422-15; ON: DE91009339; TRN: 91-009456
• Resource Relation: Conference: 89. annual meeting of the American Ceramic Society, Pittsburgh, PA (USA), 26-30 Apr 1987
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES
36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
FOAMS
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
GLASS
LEACHING
QUANTITATIVE CHEMICAL ANALYSIS
HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
VITRIFICATION
KINETICS
PROCESS CONTROL
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION
ECONOMICS
FORMIC ACID
NITRATES
PARAMETRIC ANALYSIS
QUALITY CONTROL
RADIOACTIVE WASTE FACILITIES
REDOX REACTIONS
SACCHAROSE
SAVANNAH RIVER PLANT
THEORETICAL DATA
WASTE PROCESSING
WEST VALLEY PROCESSING PLANT
CARBOHYDRATES
CARBOXYLIC ACIDS
CHEMICAL ANALYSIS
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
COLLOIDS
CONTROL
DATA
DISACCHARIDES
DISPERSIONS
DISSOLUTION
FUEL REPROCESSING PLANTS
INFORMATION
MANAGEMENT
MATERIALS
MONOCARBOXYLIC ACIDS
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NITROGEN COMPOUNDS
NUCLEAR FACILITIES
NUMERICAL DATA
OLIGOSACCHARIDES
ORGANIC ACIDS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PROCESSING
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
SACCHARIDES
SEPARATION PROCESSES
US AEC
US DOE
US ERDA
US ORGANIZATIONS
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTES
052001* - Nuclear Fuels- Waste Processing
360603 - Materials- Properties