Ferrocyanide tank waste stability
Ferrocyanide wastes were generated at the Hanford Site during the mid to late 1950s as a result of efforts to create more tank space for the storage of high-level nuclear waste. The ferrocyanide process was developed to remove [sup 137]CS from existing waste and newly generated waste that resulted from the recovery of valuable uranium in Hanford Site waste tanks. During the course of research associated with the ferrocyanide process, it was recognized that ferrocyanide materials, when mixed with sodium nitrate and/or sodium nitrite, were capable of violent exothermic reaction. This chemical reactivity became an issue in the 1980s, when safety issues associated with the storage of ferrocyanide wastes in Hanford Site tanks became prominent. These safety issues heightened in the late 1980s and led to the current scrutiny of the safety issues associated with these wastes, as well as current research and waste management programs. Testing to provide information on the nature of possible tank reactions is ongoing. This document supplements the information presented in Summary of Single-Shell Tank Waste Stability, WHC-EP-0347, March 1991 (Borsheim and Kirch 1991), which evaluated several issues. This supplement only considers information particular to ferrocyanide wastes.
- Research Organization:
- Westinghouse Hanford Co., Richland, WA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- DOE; USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC06-87RL10930
- OSTI ID:
- 7092428
- Report Number(s):
- WHC-EP-0347-Suppl.2; ON: DE93008156
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
A summary of available information on ferrocyanide tank wastes
Resolution of the ferrocyanide safety issue for the Hanford site high-level
Related Subjects
054000 -- Nuclear Fuels-- Health & Safety
11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES
ACTINIDES
ALKALI METAL ISOTOPES
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
CESIUM 137
CESIUM ISOTOPES
COMPLEXES
CONTAINERS
ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION
ELEMENTS
ENERGY TRANSFER
EXPLOSIONS
FERROCYANIDES
FLUIDS
GAMMA RADIATION
GASES
HANFORD RESERVATION
HEAT TRANSFER
HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
INTERMEDIATE MASS NUCLEI
INVENTORIES
IONIZING RADIATIONS
IRON COMPLEXES
ISOTOPES
MANAGEMENT
MATERIALS
METALS
MOISTURE
MONITORING
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NITRATES
NITRITES
NITROGEN COMPOUNDS
NUCLEI
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
RADIATIONS
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
RADIOISOTOPES
SAFETY
SAMPLING
TANKS
TEMPERATURE MONITORING
THERMODYNAMICS
TRANSITION ELEMENT COMPLEXES
URANIUM
US DOE
US ERDA
US ORGANIZATIONS
VAPORS
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTES
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES