Use of low-cost, disposable components in a remote, hostile environment

Conference · Tue Nov 01 04:00:00 EST 1988

OSTI ID:6511838

Kalk, J J

The Interim Examination and Maintenance (IEM) Cell is a radioactive (hot) cell located inside the containment building at the Fast Flux Test Facility (FFTF) in Richland, Washington. The IEM Cell, where spent fuel from the FFTF is processed, is an extremely hostile environment. Equipment for the cell must withstand not only radiation exposure, but also the effects of the cell's extremely dry argon atmosphere and the fairly rough treatment that can occur during remote-handling operations. Such equipment is generally expensive to develop and maintain because it must be custom built. Although most of the original IEM Cell components were custom built, much of the equipment used in the cell over the past 5 yr has been off-the-shelf with only slight modification. These components, considered disposable, have been reliable and less expensive than their custom-made counterparts. 5 figs.

• Research Organization: Westinghouse Hanford Co., Richland, WA (USA)
• DOE Contract Number: AC06-87RL10930
• OSTI ID: 6511838
• Report Number(s): WHC-SA-0330; CONF-890304-33; ON: DE89004904
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

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