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Status of the Pit Disassembly and Conversion Facility

Conference ·
OSTI ID:303969
 [1];  [2]
  1. Los Alamos National Lab., NM (United States)
  2. Dept. of Energy, Washington, DC (United States). Office of Fissile Materials Disposition
A planned new facility, the Pit Disassembly and Conversion Facility (PDCF) will be used to disassemble the nation`s inventory of surplus nuclear weapons pits and convert the plutonium recovered from those pits into a form suitable for storage, international inspection, and final disposition. Sized to handle 35 metric tons of plutonium from pits and other sources over its 10-year operating life, the PDCF will apply the Advanced Recovery and Integrated Extraction System (ARIES) technology. ARIES process technology has been developed at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) and an integrated system is being demonstrated LANL. Four sites were considered for locating the PDCF: Pantex Plant, Savannah River Site (SRS), Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL), and Hanford Site. Each site offers a different opportunity for constructing the PDCF, ranging from a new building at Pantex Plant to using an existing building at Hanford Site or INEEL. The Surplus Plutonium Disposition Environmental Impact Statement was prepared by the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Fissile Materials Disposition (OFMD) to aid in site selection. This paper describes the initial scoping activities, preconceptual and conceptual design work, and the status of the PDCF.
Research Organization:
Los Alamos National Lab., NM (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
DOE Contract Number:
W-7405-ENG-36
OSTI ID:
303969
Report Number(s):
LA-UR--98-2503; CONF-980906--; ON: DE99001362
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English