THE DISPOSAL OF RADIOACTIVE LIQUID AND GASEOUS WASTE AT OAK RIDGE NATIONAL LABORATORY
Radioactive waste disposal facilities, monitoring procedures, and control operations at ORNL are reviewed. The wide variety of activities results in large volumes of radioactive liquid or gaseous wastes that may contain hazardous quantities of a wide variety of radionuclides. Wastes are classified according to their activity. A cell ventilation system and an off-gas system consisting of stacks, filters, and electrostatic precipitators remove radioactivity from gases. Low-level liquid wastes are treated chemically to remove the greater part of the radioactivity prior to discharge into a streandm and river system. Dilution in the river then reduces the concentration of radioactivity levels well below maximum permissible concentrations. Intermediate- level liquid wastes are discharged into the soil where the radioactivity is separated and retained by sorption. The partially decontaminated seepage eventually reaches the river. A water treatment plant is operated for the decontamination of process-waste water. Only very small quantities of high-level wastes are generated andd these are usually permanently stored. The disposal of these wastes is not discussed. Monitoring systems and equipment are described and illustrated. (C.H.)
- Research Organization:
- Oak Ridge National Lab., Tenn.
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-26
- NSA Number:
- NSA-16-028636
- OSTI ID:
- 4792743
- Report Number(s):
- ORNL-TM-282
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: Orig. Receipt Date: 31-DEC-62
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Reengineering water treatment units for removal of Sr-90, I-129, Tc-99, and uranium from contaminated groundwater at the DOE's Savannah River Site
Review of environmental surveillance data around low-level waste disposal areas at Oak Ridge National Laboratory