Evaluation of technologies for volume reduction of plutonium-contaminated soils from the Nevada Test Site
Nuclear testing at and around the Nevada Test Site (NTS) resulted in plutonium (Pu) contamination of the soil over an area of several thousands of acres. The objective of this project was to evaluate the potential of five different processes to reduce the volume of Pu-contaminated soil from three different areas, namely Areas 11, 13, and 52. Volume reduction was to be accomplished by concentrating the Pu into a small but highly contaminated soil fraction, thereby greatly reducing the volume of soil requiring disposal. The processes tested were proposed by Paramag Corp. (PARAMAG), Advanced Processing Technologies Inc. (APT), Lockheed Environmental Systems and Technologies (LESAT), Nuclear Remediation Technologies (NRT), and Scientific Ecology Group (SEG). Because of time and budgetary restraints, the NRT and SEG processes were tested with soil from Area 11 only. These processes typically included a preliminary soil conditioning step (e.g., attrition scrubbing, wet sieving), followed by a more advanced process designed to separate Pu from the soil, based on physiochemical properties of Pu compounds (e.g., magnetic susceptibility, specific gravity). Analysis of the soil indicates that a substantial fraction of the total Pu contamination is typically confined in a relatively narrow and small particle size range. Processes which were able to separate this highly contaminated soil fraction (using physical methods, e.g., attrition scrubbing, wet sieving), from the rest of the soil achieved volume (mass) reductions on the order of 70%. The advanced, more complex processes tested did not enhance volume reduction. The primary reason why processes that rely on the dependence of settling velocity on density differences failed was the very fine grain size of the Pu-rich particles.
- Research Organization:
- University and Community Coll. System of Nevada, Reno, NV (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC08-90NV10845
- OSTI ID:
- 269022
- Report Number(s):
- DOE/NV/10845--57; ON: DE96006273; IN: DRI/WRC 45139
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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