Contingency plan for deployment of the void fraction instrument in Tank 241-AY-102
High-heat producing sludge from tank 241-C-106 will be sluiced and transferred to tank 241-AY-102 beginning in October 1998. Safety analyses have postulated that after retrieval, the waste in 241-AY-102 may generate and retain unsafe levels of flammable gases (Noorani 1998, Pasamebmetoglu etal. 1997). Unsafe levels of retained gas are not expected, but cannot be ruled out because of the large uncertainty in the gas generation and retention rates. The Tank Waste Remediation System Basis for Interim Operation (Noorani 1998) identifies the need for a contingency plan to add void fraction monitoring to tank 241-AY-102 within 2 weeks of the identification of flammable gas buildup that would warrant monitoring. The Tank 241-C-106 Waste Retrieval Sluicing System Process Control Plan (Carothers et al. 1998) committed to providing a contingency plan for deployment of the void fraction instrument (VFI) in tank 241-AY-102. The VFI determines the local void fraction of the waste by compressing a waste sample captured in a gas-tight test chamber. The sample chamber is mounted on the end of a 76-cm (2.5-ft) arm that can be rotated from vertical to horizontal when the instrument is deployed. Once in the waste, the arm can be positioned horizontally and rotated to sample in different areas below the riser. The VFI is deployed using a crane. The VFI has been deployed previously in 241-AW, 241-AN, and 241-SY tank farms, most recently in tank 241-SY-101 in June and July 1998. An additional test in tank 241-SY-101 is planned in September 1998. Operating instructions for the VFI are included in the Void Fraction Instrument Operation and Maintenance Manual (Pearce 1994).
- Research Organization:
- Hanford Site (HNF), Richland, WA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- US DOE Office of Environmental Management (US)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC06-96RL13200
- OSTI ID:
- 781547
- Report Number(s):
- HNF-3254-REV0; EW3120074; EW3120074; TRN: US0111169
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: PBD: 24 Feb 1999
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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