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Title: DOUBLE TRACKS Test Site interim corrective action plan

Technical Report ·
DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/629406· OSTI ID:629406

The DOUBLE TRACKS site is located on Range 71 north of the Nellis Air Force Range, northwest of the Nevada Test Site (NTS). DOUBLE TRACKS was the first of four experiments that constituted Operation ROLLER COASTER. On May 15, 1963, weapons-grade plutonium and depleted uranium were dispersed using 54 kilograms of trinitrotoluene (TNT) explosive. The explosion occurred in the open, 0.3 m above the steel plate. No fission yield was detected from the test, and the total amount of plutonium deposited on the ground surface was estimated to be between 980 and 1,600 grams. The test device was composed primarily of uranium-238 and plutonium-239. The mass ratio of uranium to plutonium was 4.35. The objective of the corrective action is to reduce the potential risk to human health and the environment and to demonstrate technically viable and cost-effective excavation, transportation, and disposal. To achieve these objectives, Bechtel Nevada (BN) will remove soil with a total transuranic activity greater then 200 pCI/g, containerize the soil in ``supersacks,`` transport the filled ``supersacks`` to the NTS, and dispose of them in the Area 3 Radioactive Waste Management Site. During this interim corrective action, BN will also conduct a limited demonstration of an alternative method for excavation of radioactive near-surface soil contamination.

Research Organization:
Bechtel Nevada, Las Vegas, NV (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, Washington, DC (United States)
DOE Contract Number:
AC08-96NV11718
OSTI ID:
629406
Report Number(s):
DOE/NV/11718-112; ON: DE98052972; TRN: AHC29812%%69
Resource Relation:
Other Information: PBD: Jun 1996
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English