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Title: Inspection of contaminated hot cell ductwork

Abstract

Radiation Sterilization, Incorporated (RSI), of Dekalb County, Georgia, has used Cesium-137 radiation sources for sterilization of medical instruments and other commercial items. The cesium is contained in welded stainless steel capsules. One of these capsules has leaked, allowing the cesium to escape and to contaminate the internals of the sterilization cells including the cell ventilation ductwork penetrating the thick concrete cell roof. This ductwork requires decontamination prior to release of the facility to resume sterilization activities. Due to the small size (20-in. {times} 24-in. cross section) and the long runs embedded in the cell roof, it was determined that remote visual inspection and preliminary radiation mapping of this ductwork was necessary. This report covers the inspection effort and evaluation of the results. 23 figs., 3 tabs.

Authors:
; ;
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (USA)
Sponsoring Org.:
DOE/ER
OSTI Identifier:
5792813
Report Number(s):
ORNL/TM-11318
ON: DE90001360
DOE Contract Number:
AC05-84OR21400
Resource Type:
Technical Report
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
42 ENGINEERING; 99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS//MATHEMATICS, COMPUTING, AND INFORMATION SCIENCE; CESIUM 137; RADIATION ACCIDENTS; DUCTS; DECONTAMINATION; ROBOTS; INSPECTION; BUILDINGS; CALIBRATION; CONTAMINATION; HOT CELLS; RADIATION ABSORPTION ANALYSIS; RADIATION DETECTORS; REMOTE VIEWING EQUIPMENT; ROOFS; TELEVISION; VENTILATION SYSTEMS; ACCIDENTS; ALKALI METAL ISOTOPES; BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES; BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES; CESIUM ISOTOPES; CHEMICAL ANALYSIS; CLEANING; EQUIPMENT; INTERMEDIATE MASS NUCLEI; ISOTOPES; LABORATORY EQUIPMENT; MEASURING INSTRUMENTS; NONDESTRUCTIVE ANALYSIS; NUCLEI; ODD-EVEN NUCLEI; RADIOISOTOPES; YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES; 420203* - Engineering- Handling Equipment & Procedures; 990210 - Supercomputers- (1987-1989)

Citation Formats

Muller, R.C., Herndon, J.N., and Dagenhart, W.K. Inspection of contaminated hot cell ductwork. United States: N. p., 1989. Web. doi:10.2172/5792813.
Muller, R.C., Herndon, J.N., & Dagenhart, W.K. Inspection of contaminated hot cell ductwork. United States. doi:10.2172/5792813.
Muller, R.C., Herndon, J.N., and Dagenhart, W.K. Tue . "Inspection of contaminated hot cell ductwork". United States. doi:10.2172/5792813. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/5792813.
@article{osti_5792813,
title = {Inspection of contaminated hot cell ductwork},
author = {Muller, R.C. and Herndon, J.N. and Dagenhart, W.K.},
abstractNote = {Radiation Sterilization, Incorporated (RSI), of Dekalb County, Georgia, has used Cesium-137 radiation sources for sterilization of medical instruments and other commercial items. The cesium is contained in welded stainless steel capsules. One of these capsules has leaked, allowing the cesium to escape and to contaminate the internals of the sterilization cells including the cell ventilation ductwork penetrating the thick concrete cell roof. This ductwork requires decontamination prior to release of the facility to resume sterilization activities. Due to the small size (20-in. {times} 24-in. cross section) and the long runs embedded in the cell roof, it was determined that remote visual inspection and preliminary radiation mapping of this ductwork was necessary. This report covers the inspection effort and evaluation of the results. 23 figs., 3 tabs.},
doi = {10.2172/5792813},
journal = {},
number = ,
volume = ,
place = {United States},
year = {Tue Aug 01 00:00:00 EDT 1989},
month = {Tue Aug 01 00:00:00 EDT 1989}
}

Technical Report:

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  • Radiation Sterilization Incorporated of Dekalb County, Georgia, has used {sup 137}Cs radiation sources for the sterilization of medical instruments and other commercial items. The cesium is in the form of a salt (CsCl) contained in welded Type 316 stainless steel capsules. One of these capsules has leaked allowing the cesium to escape and to contaminate the internals of the sterilization cell, including the cell ventilation duct, which penetrates the thick concrete cell roof. The embedded cell ductwork required decontamination prior to releasing the facility to resume sterilization activities. Due to the small size (20- {times} 24-in. cross section) and themore » long duct runs embedded in the cell roof, it was decided to conduct remote visual inspection and preliminary radiation mapping of the ducts to determine the best method of decontamination. An activity was led by Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) personnel to identify a commercially available remote inspection vehicle and to equip it with the attachments necessary to perform the required inspection. This paper covers these inspection efforts and the evaluation of the results.« less
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  • In the 1950s, the Savannah River Site built an open, unlined retention basin to temporarily store potentially radionuclide contaminated cooling water from a chemical separations process and storm water drainage from a nearby waste management facility that stored large quantities of nuclear fission byproducts in carbon steel tanks. The retention basin was retired from service in 1972 when a new, lined basin was completed. In 1978, the old retention basin was excavated, backfilled with uncontaminated dirt, and covered with grass. At the same time, much of the underground process pipeline leading to the basin was abandoned. Since the closure ofmore » the retention basin, new environmental regulations require that the basin undergo further assessment to determine whether additional remediation is required. A visual and radiological inspection of the pipeline was necessary to aid in the remediation decision making process for the retention basin system. A teleoperated pipe crawler inspection system was developed to survey the abandoned sections of underground pipelines leading to the retired retention basin. This paper will describe the background to this project, the scope of the investigation, the equipment requirements, and the results of the pipeline inspection.« less