Polyethylene encapsulation of single shell tank low-level wastes

Conference · Fri Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1993

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/10132661· OSTI ID:6811711

Kalb, P D; Fuhrmann, M; Colombo, P

Polyethylene encapsulation is being explored for potential use in treating nitrate salts and sludges at US Department of Energy (US DOE) underground storage tank facilities. Some of these wastes contain high concentrations of fission products and are expected to maintain equilibrium temperatures of 50--70[degrees]C for many years. The potential effects of elevated temperature and high radiation conditions on key waste form properties (e.g., mechanical integrity, leachability) are examined. After 6 months of thermal conditioning, waste form tests specimens show no degradation in mechanical integrity. Leaching at elevated temperature resulted in a small increase in leach rate (a factor of less than two), while diffusion remained the dominant mechanism of release. Full-scale polyethylene waste forms containing 50--70 wt % nitrate salt can be expected to leach a total of 5--17% of the original contaminant source term after 300 years of leaching under worst-case conditions (fully saturated at 70[degrees]C).

• Research Organization: Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: DOE; USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: AC02-76CH00016
• OSTI ID: 6811711
• Report Number(s): BNL-48607; CONF-930205--56; ON: DE93010868
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

052002* -- Nuclear Fuels-- Waste Disposal & Storage
12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES
ALKALI METAL ISOTOPES
ALKALINE EARTH ISOTOPES
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BUILDING MATERIALS
CEMENTS
CESIUM 137
CESIUM ISOTOPES
DIFFUSION
DISSOLUTION
ENCAPSULATION
EVEN-EVEN NUCLEI
FISSION PRODUCTS
GROUTING
HANFORD RESERVATION
INTERMEDIATE MASS NUCLEI
ISOTOPES
LEACHING
LOW-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
MATERIALS
MECHANICAL PROPERTIES
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NITRATES
NITROGEN COMPOUNDS
NUCLEI
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC POLYMERS
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PETROCHEMICALS
PETROLEUM PRODUCTS
PLASTICS
POLYETHYLENES
POLYMERS
POLYOLEFINS
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
RADIOISOTOPES
REMEDIAL ACTION
SALTS
SAMPLING
SEPARATION PROCESSES
STRONTIUM 90
STRONTIUM ISOTOPES
SYNTHETIC MATERIALS
US DOE
US ERDA
US ORGANIZATIONS
WASTE FORMS
WASTES
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES