A shielded storage and processing facility for radioisotope thermoelectric generator heat source production

Conference · Fri Jan 15 00:00:00 EST 1993 · AIP Conference Proceedings (American Institute of Physics); (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.43198· OSTI ID:6800487

Sherrell, D L ^[1]

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1. Westinghouse Hanford Company, P.O. Box 1970, Mail Stop N1-42, Richland, Washington 99352 (United States)

A shielded storage rack has been installed as part of the Radioisotope Power Systems Facility (RPSF) at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Hanford Site in Washington State. The RPSF is designed to replace an existing facility at DOE's Mound Site near Dayton, Ohio, where General Purpose Heat Source (GPHS) modules are currently assembled and installed into Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generators (RTG). The overall design goal of the RPSF is to increase annual production throughput, while at the same time reducing annual radiation exposure to personnel. The shield rack design successfully achieved this goal for the Module Reduction and Monitoring Facility (MRMF), which processes and stores assembled GPHS modules, prior to their installation into RTGs. The shield rack design is simple and effective, with the result that background radiation levels within Hanford's MRMF room are calculated at just over three percent of those typically experienced during operation of the existing MRMF at Mound, despite the fact that Hanford's calculations assume five times the GPHS inventory of that assumed for Mound.

• DOE Contract Number: AC06-87RL10930
• OSTI ID: 6800487
• Report Number(s): CONF-930103-; CODEN: APCPCS
• Journal Information: AIP Conference Proceedings (American Institute of Physics); (United States), Vol. 271:2; Conference: 10. symposium on space nuclear power and propulsion, Albuquerque, NM (United States), 10-14 Jan 1993; ISSN 0094-243X
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS
42 ENGINEERING
38 RADIATION CHEMISTRY, RADIOCHEMISTRY, AND NUCLEAR CHEMISTRY
ISOTOPE PRODUCTION
STORAGE FACILITIES
NUCLEAR FACILITIES
DESIGN
INSPECTION
MANUFACTURING
RADIATION PROTECTION
RADIOISOTOPE HEAT SOURCES
SHIELDING
TESTING
THERMOELECTRIC GENERATORS
DIRECT ENERGY CONVERTERS
HEAT SOURCES
NESDPS Office of Nuclear Energy Space and Defense Power Systems
220600* - Nuclear Reactor Technology- Research
Test & Experimental Reactors
420203 - Engineering- Handling Equipment & Procedures
400703 - Radiochemistry & Nuclear Chemistry- Radioisotope Production