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U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Rheology of Savannah River Site Tank 51 HLW radioactive sludge

Conference ·
OSTI ID:6690196

Savannah River Site (SRS) Tank 51 HLW radioactive sludge represents a major portion of the first batch of sludge to be vitrified in the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) at SRS. The rheological properties of Tank 51 sludge will determine if the waste sludge can be pumped by the current DWPF process cell pump design and the homogeneity of melter feed slurries. The rheological properties of Tank 51 sludge and sludge/frit slurries at various solids concentrations were measured remotely in the Shielded Cells Operations (SCO) at the Savannah River Technology Center (SRTC) using a modified Haake Rotovisco viscometer system. Rheological properties of Tank 51 radioactive sludge/Frit 202 slurries increased drastically when the solids content was above 41 wt %. The yield stresses of Tank 51 sludge and sludge/frit slurries fall within the limits of the DWPF equipment design basis. The apparent viscosities also fall within the DWPF design basis for sludge consistency. All the results indicate that Tank 51 waste sludge and sludge/frit slurries are pumpable throughout the DWPF processes based on the current process cell pump design, and should produce homogeneous melter feed slurries.

Research Organization:
Westinghouse Savannah River Co., Aiken, SC (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
DOE; USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
DOE Contract Number:
AC09-89SR18035
OSTI ID:
6690196
Report Number(s):
WSRC-MS-92-410-Rev.1; CONF-930205--16-Rev.1; ON: DE93008076
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English