Engineering-scale test 4: In situ vitrification of toxic metals and volatile organics buried in INEL soils

Technical Report · Sat Jun 01 00:00:00 EDT 1991

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/5585244· OSTI ID:5585244

Shade, J W; Tixier, J S ^[1]; Farnsworth, R K ^[2]; Charboneau, B L ^[3]

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1. Pacific Northwest Lab., Richland, WA (USA)
2. EG and G Idaho, Inc., Idaho Falls, ID (USA)
3. Wastren, Inc., Idaho Falls, ID (USA)

An engineering-scale in situ vitrification (ISV) test was conducted on soils containing a mixture of buried waste materials expected to be present at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) subsurface disposal area (SDA). The test was part of a Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) program to assist INEL in treatability studies of the potential application of ISV to mixed transuranic wastes at the INEL SDA. The purpose of this test was to determine the feasibility of using ISV to vitrify soils containing a mixture of buried hazardous heavy metals (Ag, As, Ba, Cd, Cr, Hg, Pb, Se), with stainless and carbon steels, nonhazardous combustibles, and organics in the form of cemented sludge/grease mixtures. Specific objectives included determining the destruction and removal efficiency of hazardous volatile organics, determining the distribution of hazardous heavy metals between vitrified components, soils, and the ISV off-gas system, determining the leachability of the vitrified product, and evaluating electrode coatings. Actual site soil from INEL was used in the test and a basalt block was placed at a depth of 66 cm (26 in.) below the soil surface. The basalt was included to simulate basalt layers below the SDA and to evaluate bonding of the glass to basalt and possible contaminant transport into the basalt. 5 refs., 11 figs., 13 tabs.

• Research Organization: Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE; USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: AC06-76RL01830
• OSTI ID: 5585244
• Report Number(s): PNL-7611; ON: DE91015486
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES
HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
UNDERGROUND DISPOSAL
NONRADIOACTIVE WASTES
VITRIFICATION
ALPHA-BEARING WASTES
ARSENIC
BARIUM
BASALT
CADMIUM
CHROMIUM
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
GLASS
LEACHING
LEAD
MERCURY
ORGANIC MATTER
PAPER
SELENIUM
SILVER
SOILS
STEELS
VOLATILE MATTER
WASTE PROCESSING
WOOD
ALKALINE EARTH METALS
ALLOYS
DISSOLUTION
ELEMENTS
IGNEOUS ROCKS
IRON ALLOYS
IRON BASE ALLOYS
MANAGEMENT
MASS TRANSFER
MATERIALS
MATTER
METALS
PROCESSING
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
ROCKS
SEMIMETALS
SEPARATION PROCESSES
TRANSITION ELEMENTS
VOLCANIC ROCKS
WASTE DISPOSAL
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTES
052001* - Nuclear Fuels- Waste Processing