Surface radiological investigations at the proposed SWSA 7 Site, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee
A surface radiological investigation was conducted intermittently from June 1994 to June 1995 at the proposed site for Solid Waste Storage Area (SWSA) 7. The stimulus for this survey was the observation in June 1992 of a man`s trousers became contaminated with {sup 9O}Sr while he was reviewing work on top of the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) cooling tower. Radiation surveys identified {sup 9O}Sr on the roofs of older buildings at the HFIR site. Since no {sup 9O}Sr was found on buildings built between 1988 and 1990, the {sup 9O}Sr was thought to have been deposited prior to 1988. Later in 1992, beta particles were identified on a bulldozer that had been used in a wooded area southwest of the Health Physics Research Reactor (HPRR) Access Road. More recently in April 1995, {sup 9O}Sr particles were identified on the top side of ceiling tiles in the overhead area of a building in the HFIR Complex. Considering that the proposed SWSA 7 site was located between the HFIR complex and the HPRR Access Road, it was deemed prudent to investigate the possibility that beta particles might also be present at the SWSA 7 site. A possible explanation for the presence of these particles has been provided by long-time ORNL employees and retirees. Strontium-90 as the titanate was developed in the early 1960s as part of the Systems for Nuclear Auxiliary Power (SNAP) Program. Strontium titanate ({sup 90}SrTiO{sub 3}) was produced at the Fission Product Development Laboratory (Building 3517) in the ORNL main plant area. Waste from the process was loaded into a 1-in. lead-lined dumpster, which was transferred to SWSA 5 where it was dumped into a trench. Dumping allowed some articles to become airborne.
- Research Organization:
- Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC05-84OR21400
- OSTI ID:
- 108195
- Report Number(s):
- ORNL/TM-13039; ON: DE95017311
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: PBD: Aug 1995
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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