skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Alternative Chemical Cleaning Methods for High Level Waste Tanks: Simulant Studies

Abstract

Solubility testing with simulated High Level Waste tank heel solids has been conducted in order to evaluate two alternative chemical cleaning technologies for the dissolution of sludge residuals remaining in the tanks after the exhaustion of mechanical cleaning and sludge washing efforts. Tests were conducted with non-radioactive pure phase metal reagents, binary mixtures of reagents, and a Savannah River Site PUREX heel simulant to determine the effectiveness of an optimized, dilute oxalic/nitric acid cleaning reagent and pure, dilute nitric acid toward dissolving the bulk non-radioactive waste components. A focus of this testing was on minimization of oxalic acid additions during tank cleaning. For comparison purposes, separate samples were also contacted with pure, concentrated oxalic acid which is the current baseline chemical cleaning reagent. In a separate study, solubility tests were conducted with radioactive tank heel simulants using acidic and caustic permanganate-based methods focused on the “targeted” dissolution of actinide species known to be drivers for Savannah River Site tank closure Performance Assessments. Permanganate-based cleaning methods were evaluated prior to and after oxalic acid contact.

Authors:
 [1];  [1];  [1];  [1]
  1. Savannah River Site (SRS), Aiken, SC (United States). Savannah River National Lab. (SRNL)
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Savannah River Site (SRS), Aiken, SC (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE
OSTI Identifier:
1233732
Report Number(s):
SRNL-STI-2015-00517
TRN: US1600207
DOE Contract Number:  
AC09-08SR22470
Resource Type:
Technical Report
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES; CLEANING; OXALIC ACID; HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES; TANKS; NITRIC ACID; SAVANNAH RIVER PLANT; PERMANGANATES; REAGENTS; BINARY MIXTURES; COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS; NONRADIOACTIVE WASTES; DISSOLUTION; MINIMIZATION; SLUDGES; SOLUBILITY; TESTING; PERFORMANCE; SIMULATION; SOLIDS

Citation Formats

Rudisill, T., King, W., Hay, M., and Jones, D. Alternative Chemical Cleaning Methods for High Level Waste Tanks: Simulant Studies. United States: N. p., 2015. Web. doi:10.2172/1233732.
Rudisill, T., King, W., Hay, M., & Jones, D. Alternative Chemical Cleaning Methods for High Level Waste Tanks: Simulant Studies. United States. https://doi.org/10.2172/1233732
Rudisill, T., King, W., Hay, M., and Jones, D. 2015. "Alternative Chemical Cleaning Methods for High Level Waste Tanks: Simulant Studies". United States. https://doi.org/10.2172/1233732. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1233732.
@article{osti_1233732,
title = {Alternative Chemical Cleaning Methods for High Level Waste Tanks: Simulant Studies},
author = {Rudisill, T. and King, W. and Hay, M. and Jones, D.},
abstractNote = {Solubility testing with simulated High Level Waste tank heel solids has been conducted in order to evaluate two alternative chemical cleaning technologies for the dissolution of sludge residuals remaining in the tanks after the exhaustion of mechanical cleaning and sludge washing efforts. Tests were conducted with non-radioactive pure phase metal reagents, binary mixtures of reagents, and a Savannah River Site PUREX heel simulant to determine the effectiveness of an optimized, dilute oxalic/nitric acid cleaning reagent and pure, dilute nitric acid toward dissolving the bulk non-radioactive waste components. A focus of this testing was on minimization of oxalic acid additions during tank cleaning. For comparison purposes, separate samples were also contacted with pure, concentrated oxalic acid which is the current baseline chemical cleaning reagent. In a separate study, solubility tests were conducted with radioactive tank heel simulants using acidic and caustic permanganate-based methods focused on the “targeted” dissolution of actinide species known to be drivers for Savannah River Site tank closure Performance Assessments. Permanganate-based cleaning methods were evaluated prior to and after oxalic acid contact.},
doi = {10.2172/1233732},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1233732}, journal = {},
number = ,
volume = ,
place = {United States},
year = {Thu Nov 19 00:00:00 EST 2015},
month = {Thu Nov 19 00:00:00 EST 2015}
}