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Title: MCO closure welding process parameter development and qualification

Technical Report ·
DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/810636· OSTI ID:810636

One of the key elements in the SNF process is final closure of the MCO by welding. Fuel is loaded into the MCO (approximately 2 ft. in diameter and 13 ft. long) and a heavy shield plug is inserted into the top, creating a mechanical seal. The plug contains several process ports for various operations, including vacuum drying and inert-gas backfilling of the packaged fuel. When fully processed, the Canister Cover Assembly (CCA) is placed over the shield plug and final closure made by welding. The following reports the effort between the Amer Industrial Technology (AIT) and Fluor Hanford (FH) to develop and qualify the welding process for making the final closure--with primary emphasis on developing a set of robust parameters for deposition of the root pass. Work was carried out in three phases: (1) Initial welding process and equipment selection with subsequent field demonstration testing; (2) Development and qualification of a specific process technique and parameters; and (3) Validation of the process and parameters at the CSB under mock production conditions. This work establishes the process technique and parameters that provide a high level of confidence that acceptable MCO closure welds will be made on a consistent and repeatable basis.

Research Organization:
Fluor Hanford, Richland, WA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Environmental Management (EM) (US)
DOE Contract Number:
AC06-96RL13200
OSTI ID:
810636
Report Number(s):
SNF-14910, Rev.0; HNF-EDC-03-14911; TRN: US0302953
Resource Relation:
Other Information: PBD: 10 Mar 2003
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English