Large-scale leaching of low-level radioactive wastes: Environmental Sciences Division publication No. 2737

Technical Report · Mon Dec 01 04:00:00 EST 1986

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/6928520· OSTI ID:6928520

Francis, C. W.

The large-scale leaching of low-level radioactive wastes was conducted using 208- and 314-L drums containing radioactive wastes generated at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion Plant. Ten 208-L drums containing low-level transuranic (TRU) wastes and four 314-L overpack drums containing compacted drums from a Westinghouse-Hittman drum compaction demonstration were leached with potable drinking water, using a unique design to simulate the flooded conditions of a shallow-land burial site. The TRU drums selected were those that contained less than 3.7 kBq/G (100 nCi/g) of transuranics and less than 5 mR/h gamma radiation at the surface of the drum. Only one of the ten drums generated a leachate that contained detectable levels of alpha activity over a 27-d leaching period, with concentrations ranging from approximately 200 to 1200 Bq/L. Concentrations of inorganic and organic constituents were also monitored in the drum leachates. Maximum concentrations of organic compounds phenol, phthalates, bromodichloromethane, chlorodibromomethane, chloroform, chlorinated ethanes, and ethenes were quite low, usually on the order of 0.05 to 0.5 mg/L, indicating that the shallow-land disposal of these materials probably would not contaminate groundwater supplies with hazardous organic chemicals. Only one of the overpack drums generated leachates containing detectable concentrations of /sup 137/Cs, /sup 60/Co, and /sup 90/Sr over 20 d of leaching. Another showed detectable levels of /sup 90/Sr and another, detectable levels of alpha activity in their leachates. Concentrations of volatile organic compounds decreased rapidly on continued leaching, indicating that disposing of these low-level radioactive wastes in a shallow-land burial site probably would not contaminate the groundwater. A waste model was used to demonstrate how concentrations of leachable constituents from a waste can be estimated. 8 refs., 9 figs., 22 tabs.

• Research Organization: Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (USA)
• DOE Contract Number: AC05-84OR21400
• OSTI ID: 6928520
• Report Number(s): ORNL/TM-10078; ON: DE87004058
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

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54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
ALKALI METAL ISOTOPES
ALKALINE EARTH ISOTOPES
ALPHA-BEARING WASTES
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
CESIUM 134
CESIUM 137
CESIUM ISOTOPES
COBALT 60
COBALT ISOTOPES
DATA
DAYS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
DISPERSIONS
DISSOLUTION
DRINKING WATER
ELECTRON CAPTURE RADIOISOTOPES
ELEMENTS
EVEN-EVEN NUCLEI
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
GASEOUS DIFFUSION PLANTS
HOURS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
INDUSTRIAL PLANTS
INFORMATION
INTERMEDIATE MASS NUCLEI
INTERNAL CONVERSION RADIOISOTOPES
ISOMERIC TRANSITION ISOTOPES
ISOTOPE SEPARATION PLANTS
ISOTOPES
LEACHATES
LEACHING
LOW-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
MANGANESE 54
MANGANESE ISOTOPES
MATERIALS
METALS
MINUTES LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
MIXTURES
MONITORING
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NUCLEAR FACILITIES
NUCLEI
NUMERICAL DATA
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
ODD-ODD NUCLEI
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGDP
ORNL
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
RADIATION MONITORING
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
RADIOISOTOPES
SEPARATION PROCESSES
SOLUTIONS
STRONTIUM 90
STRONTIUM ISOTOPES
TOXICITY
US AEC
US DOE
US ERDA
US ORGANIZATIONS
WASTES
WATER
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES