Design-only conceptual design report: Plutonium Immobilization Plant

Technical Report · Mon May 01 04:00:00 EDT 2000

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/757034· OSTI ID:757034

DiSabatino, A A ^[1]

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1. LLNL

This design-only conceptual design report was prepared to support a funding request by the Department of Energy Office of Fissile Materials Disposition for engineering and design of the Plutonium Immobilization Plant, which will be used to immobilize up to 50 tonnes of surplus plutonium. The Plutonium Immobilization Plant will be located at the Savannah River Site pursuant to the Surplus Plutonium Disposition Final Environmental Impact Statement Record of Decision, January 4, 2000. This document reflects a new facility using the ceramic immobilization technology and the can-in-canister approach. The Plutonium Immobilization Plant accepts plutonium oxide from pit conversion and plutonium and plutonium oxide from non-pit sources and, through a ceramic immobilization process, converts the plutonium into mineral-like forms that are subsequently encapsulated within a large canister of high-level waste glass. The final immobilized product must make the plutonium as inherently unattractive and inaccessible for use in nuclear weapons as the plutonium in spent fuel from commercial reactors; it must also be suitable for geologic disposal. Plutonium immobilization at the Savannah River Site uses a new building, the Plutonium Immobilization Plant, which will receive and store feed materials, convert non-pit surplus plutonium to an oxide form suitable for the immobilization process, immobilize the plutonium oxide in a titanate-based ceramic form, place cans of the plutonium-ceramic forms into magazines, and load the magazines into a canister. The existing Defense Waste Processing Facility is used for the pouring of high-level waste glass into the canisters. The Plutonium Immobilization Plant uses existing Savannah River Site infrastructure for analytical laboratory services, waste handling, fire protection, training, and other support utilities and services. This design-only conceptual design report also provides the cost for a Plutonium Immobilization Plant which would process and immobilize 17 tonnes of plutonium in ten years. The project schedule for either case is shown in a table.

• Research Organization: Lawrence Livermore National Lab., CA (US)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Defense Programs (DP) (US)
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-48
• OSTI ID: 757034
• Report Number(s): UCRL-ID-131617-Rev.2; GA0102011; GA0102011
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES
CERAMIC MELTERS
COST ESTIMATION
DESIGN
NUCLEAR WEAPONS DISMANTLEMENT
PLUTONIUM
RADIOACTIVE WASTE FACILITIES
RADIOACTIVE WASTE PROCESSING
SAVANNAH RIVER PLANT
WASTE FORMS