Remote maintenance experience in the Transuranium Processing Plant at ORNL
From joint meeting of the American Nuclear Society and the Atomic Industrial Forum and Nuclear Energy Exhibition; San Francisco, California, USA (11 Nov 1973). Special features to permit remote maintenance and replacement of equipment were incorporated into the Transuranium Processing Plant during initial design in 1962. However, these features were not required initially and were first tested during the summer of 1972. Until then, radiation levels were sufficiently low to permit most maintenance operations to be performed directly by men wearing air suits. Radiation levels increased during 1971 and 1972 due to a processing program for the recovery of large quantities of curium and californium from targets that had been very highly irradiated. These increased levels of both gamma and neutron radiation backgrounds dictated the shielding of equipment in tank pits by- water flooding and required that maintenance be done from above through a shield as a routine procedure in most of the plant. Of eight tools developed for remote maintenance, four were demonstrated during the actual maintenance program to be completely adequate; three required slight modification or were rebuilt to make them more versatile or to make them stronger. One tool required complete redesign to fulfill needs demonstrated during the maintenance work. Experience during 1972 showed that the original design concept of ten years ago has resulted in a very successful operating facility from the standpoint of flexibility and maintainability. A short period of maintenance activities during 1973 demonstrated the adequacy of the tools that were developed for remote maintenance. (auth)
- Research Organization:
- Oak Ridge National Lab., Tenn. (USA)
- NSA Number:
- NSA-29-001052
- OSTI ID:
- 4392125
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-731101-13
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: Joint meeting of the American Nuclear Society and the Atomic Industrial Forum and Nuclear Energy Exhibition, San Francisco, California, USA, 11 Nov 1973; Other Information: Orig. Receipt Date: 30-JUN-74
- Country of Publication:
- Country unknown/Code not available
- Language:
- English
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