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Title: Welding the AT-400A Containment Vessel

Technical Report ·
DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/2052· OSTI ID:2052

Early in 1994, the Department of Energy assigned Sandia National Laboratories the responsibility for designing and providing the welding system for the girth weld for the AT-400A containment vessel. (The AT-400A container is employed for the shipment and long-term storage of the nuclear weapon pits being returned from the nation's nuclear arsenal.) Mason Hanger Corporation's Pantex Plant was chosen to be the production facility. The project was successfully completed by providing and implementing a turnkey welding system and qualified welding procedure at the Pantex Plant. The welding system was transferred to Pantex and a pilot lot of 20 AT-400A containers with W48 pits was welded in August 1997. This document is intended to bring together the AT-400A welding system and product (girth weld) requirements and the activities conducted to meet those requirements. This document alone is not a complete compilation of the welding development activities but is meant to be a summary to be used with the applicable references.

Research Organization:
Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), Albuquerque, NM, and Livermore, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
DOE Contract Number:
AC04-94AL85000
OSTI ID:
2052
Report Number(s):
SAND98-2446; ON: DE00002052
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English