TASK TECHNICAL AND QUALITY ASSURANCE PLAN FOR OUT-OF-TANK DESTRUCTION OF TETRAPHENYLBORATE VIA WET AIR OXIDATION TECHNOLOGY: PHASE I - BENCH SCALE TESTS
Tank 48H return to service is critical to the processing of high level waste (HLW) at Savannah River Site (SRS). Liquid Waste Disposition (LWD) management has the goal of returning Tank 48H to routine service by January 2010 or as soon as practical. Tank 48H currently holds legacy material containing organic tetraphenylborate (TPB) compounds from the operation of the In-Tank Precipitation process. This material is not compatible with the waste treatment facilities at SRS and must be removed or undergo treatment to destroy the organic compounds before the tank can be returned to Tank Farm service. Tank 48H currently contains {approx}240,000 gallons of alkaline slurry with about 2 wt % potassium and cesium tetraphenylborate (KTPB and CsTPB). The main radioactive component in Tank 48H is {sup 137}Cs. The waste also contains {approx}0.15 wt % Monosodium Titanate (MST) which has adsorbed {sup 90}Sr, U, and Pu isotopes. A System Engineering Evaluation of technologies/ideas for the treatment of TPB identified Wet Air Oxidation (WAO) as a leading alternative technology to the baseline aggregation approach. Over 75 technologies/ideas were evaluated overall. Forty-one technologies/ideas passed the initial screening evaluation. The 41 technologies/ideas were then combined to 16 complete solutions for the disposition of TPB and evaluated in detail. Wet Air Oxidation (WAO) is an aqueous phase process in which soluble or suspended waste components are oxidized using molecular oxygen contained in air. The process operates at elevated temperatures and pressures ranging from 150 to 320 C and 7 to 210 atmospheres, respectively. The products of the reaction are CO{sub 2}, H{sub 2}O, and low molecular weight oxygenated organics (e.g. acetate, oxalate). The basic flow scheme for a typical WAO system is as follows. The waste solution or slurry is pumped through a high-pressure feed pump. An air stream containing sufficient oxygen to meet the oxygen requirements of the waste stream is injected into the pressurized waste stream, and the air/liquid mixture is preheated to the required reactor inlet temperature. The reactor provides sufficient retention time to allow the oxidation to approach the desired level of organic decomposition. Typical reaction time is about 30-120 minutes. Heat exchangers are routinely employed to recover energy contained in the reactor effluent to preheat the waste feed/air entering the reactor. Auxiliary energy, usually steam, is necessary for startup and can provide trim heat if required. Since the oxidation reactions are exothermic, sufficient energy may be released in the reactor to allow the WAO system to operate without any additional heat input. After cooling, the oxidized reactor effluent passes through a pressure control valve where the pressure is reduced. A separator downstream of the pressure control valve allows the depressurized and cooled vapor to separate from the liquid. Typical industrial WAO applications have a feed flow rate of 1 to 220 gallons per minute (gpm) per train, with a chemical oxygen demand (COD) from 10,000 to 150,000 mg/L (higher CODs with dilution). Note that catalysts, such as homogeneous copper and iron, their heterogeneous counterparts, or precious metals can be used to enhance the effectiveness (i.e., to lower temperature, pressure, and residence time as well as increase oxidation efficiencies) of the WAO reaction if deemed necessary.
- Research Organization:
- Savannah River Site (SRS), Aiken, SC (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- DOE Contract Number:
- DE-AC09-96SR18500
- OSTI ID:
- 890215
- Report Number(s):
- WSRC-TR-2006-00114; TRN: US0604624
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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