Glass melter off-gas system pluggages: Cause, significance, and remediation
Liquid high-level nuclear waste will be immobilized at the Savannah River Site (SRS) by vitrification in borosilicate glass. The glass will be produced in the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) where the glass will be poured into stainless steel canisters for eventual disposal in a geologic repository. Experimental glass melters used to develop the vitrification process for immobilization of the waste have experienced problems with pluggage of the off-gas line with solid deposits. Off-gas deposits from the DWPF 1/2 Scale Glass Melter (SGM) and the 1/10th scale Integrated DWPF Melter System (IDMS) were determined to be mixtures of alkali rich chlorides, sulfates, borates, and fluorides with entrained Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3}, spinel, and frit particles. The distribution and location of the alkali deposits throughout the off-gas system indicate that the deposits form by vapor-phase transport and condensation. Condensation of the alkali-rich phases cement the entrained particulates causing off-gas system pluggages. The identification of vapor phase transport as the operational mechanism causing off-gas system pluggage indicates that deposition can be effectively eliminated by increasing the off-gas velocity. Scale glass melter operating experience indicates that a velocity of >50 fps is necessary in order to transport the volatile species to the quencher to prevent having condensation occur in the off-gas line. Hotter off-gas line temperatures would retain the alkali compounds as vapors so that they would remain volatile until they reach the quencher. However, hotter off-gas temperatures can only be achieved by using less air/steam flow at the off-gas entrance, e.g. at the off-gas film cooler (OGFC). This would result in lower off-gas velocities. Maintaining a high velocity is, therefore, considered to be a more important criterion for controlling off-gas pluggage than temperature control. 40 refs., 16 figs., 5 tabs.
- Research Organization:
- Savannah River Site (SRS), Aiken, SC (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE; USDOE, Washington, DC (USA)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC09-89SR18035
- OSTI ID:
- 5802787
- Report Number(s):
- WSRC-TR-90-205; ON: DE91010918; TRN: 91-014961
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
CERAMIC MELTERS
OFF-GAS SYSTEMS
HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
VITRIFICATION
PLUGGING
AIR CLEANING SYSTEMS
BORATES
BOROSILICATE GLASS
CESIUM 137
CHLORIDES
CONTAINERS
FLOW RATE
FLUORIDES
GAS FLOW
GEOLOGIC FORMATIONS
IRON OXIDES
LIQUID WASTES
PARTICULATES
RUTHENIUM 107
SAVANNAH RIVER PLANT
SOLUBILITY
SPINELS
STAINLESS STEELS
SULFATES
TEMPERATURE CONTROL
US DOD
VELOCITY
VOLATILE MATTER
ALKALI METAL ISOTOPES
ALKALINE EARTH METAL COMPOUNDS
ALLOYS
ALUMINIUM COMPOUNDS
ALUMINIUM OXIDES
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BORON COMPOUNDS
CESIUM ISOTOPES
CHALCOGENIDES
CHLORINE COMPOUNDS
CONTROL
ELECTRIC FURNACES
ENGINEERED SAFETY SYSTEMS
EVEN-ODD NUCLEI
FLUID FLOW
FLUORINE COMPOUNDS
FURNACES
GLASS
HALIDES
HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
HIGH ALLOY STEELS
INTERMEDIATE MASS NUCLEI
IRON ALLOYS
IRON BASE ALLOYS
IRON COMPOUNDS
ISOTOPES
MAGNESIUM COMPOUNDS
MAGNESIUM OXIDES
MATERIALS
MATTER
MINERALS
MINUTES LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NUCLEI
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
OXIDE MINERALS
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PARTICLES
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
RADIOISOTOPES
RUTHENIUM ISOTOPES
STEELS
SULFUR COMPOUNDS
TRANSITION ELEMENT COMPOUNDS
US AEC
US DOE
US ERDA
US ORGANIZATIONS
WASTES
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
052001* - Nuclear Fuels- Waste Processing