SAVANNAH RIVER SITE
Waste Solidification Facilities
The Savannah River Site continues to receive and store foreign and domestic research reactor (FRR/DRR) fuel in two underwater storage basins.
Receiving Basin for Offsite Fuel
The Receiving Basin for Offsite Fuels (RBOF) began receiving fuel in the early 1960s. As the RBOF basin neared capacity, L-Basin was modified to become the primary receiving facility in 1997.
The RBOF, a spent fuel storage pool for research reactor fuels, is operational. The mission of the RBOF is to:
- Receive, handle, and store irradiated nuclear fuel elements from offsite power and research reactors, from foreign country reactors, and from onsite reactors.
- Repackage nuclear fuel elements into containers and bundles for extended storage and/or shipment to onsite or offsite reprocessing facilities.
- Handle, separate, and transfer wastes generated from nuclear fuel element storage.
The RBOF supports the SRS mission through the safe interim storage of irradiated nuclear fuel elements from offsite and foreign reactors in support of nonproliferation policy. Plans are underway to de-inventory the RBOF storage basin by shipping fuels currently stored in RBOF to L-Basin by 2007. Transshipment of fuel is currently in progress. Project work is also ongoing to increase the storage capacity of L-Basin by designing and installing additional fuel storage racks. L-Basin has also been recently modified to allow handling of the TN7/2 and LWT casks which previously could only be unloaded in RBOF.
L Basin
In 1996, L Basin equipment was reconfigured to safely handle and store spent nuclear fuel from off-site research reactors. In February 1997, the first off-site fuel was received and stored in L Basin. To avoid the cost of operating multiple facilities, SRS decided in 1998 to consolidate all of the stored spent fuel at SRS into the much larger, recently refurbished L Basin. By October 2003, all the fuel previously stored in K Basin and the Receiving Basin for Offsite Fuels (RBOF) had been moved to chemical separations facilities for processing or L Basin for storage, leaving L Basin as the only remaining SRS fuel receipt and storage facility.
H Canyon and H Canyon Outside Facility
H Canyon is a 403,000 square foot facility used for plutonium separations. Processing of depleted uranium fuel using the PUREX process began in 1955. H Canyon remaining missions include, but are not limited to, the processing of existing SRS reactor and RBOF fuels, the purification of Pu-238, and the processing of stored Np-237 and Pu-239 solutions. The H-Area Outside Facility provides support operations.
DOE has announced plans to use conventional processing, through H Canyon, as the final disposition of all SRS aluminum-clad SNF. H Canyon is planned for shutdown in 2019.
Liquid Waste Handling Facilities (H-Area and F-Area Tank Farms)
These facilities are part of the High Level Waste Management Division, whose mission is to safely receive and store liquid radioactive waste, prepare the waste for processing, and to feed the prepared waste to DWPF and Saltstone for processing into stable, inert solids, so that radioactive materials will be effectively isolated from the environment. In addition, these facilities treat the waste water effluent which is released. The facilities are operational, with the exception of the replacement high-level waste evaporator, which is under construction.
The H Area tank farm consists of an evaporator (241-16H), 23 waste tanks, and transfer systems that are used for storage of high level nuclear waste. The ITP and ESP facilities (6 waste tanks, filter/stripper building, cold chemical feeds area, and transfer systems) are within the H Area tank farm, and are used for nuclear waste processing.
The F Area tank farm consists of an evaporator (241-2F), 22 waste tanks, and transfer systems that are used for storage of high level nuclear waste.
Solid Waste Management Facility (SWMF)
The SWMF provides storage of transuranic wastes, mixed wastes, and nonradioactive hazardous waste materials and disposes of low level solid radioactive wastes generated from production of nuclear materials for the Office of Defense Programs. These facilities consist of a series of burial grounds, vaults, and storage pads.
Burial Grounds
The 643-E Old Burial Grounds, operated between 1952 and 1972, are currently undergoing Comprehensive Environmental Response and Compensation Liability Act (CERCLA) review prior to final closure. The 643-7E Burial Grounds operated from 1972 to March 1995. Various maintenance activities (e.g., mixed waste storage and solvent tank closure) continue. The burial grounds occupy 200 acres.
E-Area Vaults
These vaults are used for disposal of solid low level waste. They became operational in 1994 and occupy 100 acres, including a 110,000 square foot disposal area.
Transuranic Waste Storage Pads
Transuranic waste has been stored in containers on concrete pads since 1974. There are 19 storage pads occupying 114,000 square feet. The containers on some pads are covered with soil, while others have weather proof enclosures. The transuranic waste will eventually be retrieved and characterized to determine if it can be disposed directly or if treatment is necessary prior to disposal.In-Tank Processing Facility (ITP)
The ITP is a 5,000 square foot nuclear waste processing facility that was completed in 1995. In-tank processing operations have been delayed pending the resolution of issues concerning the generation of benzene in the processing tank. When the ITP is operational, wastes accumulated in the F- and H-Area waste tanks are processed to produce a decontaminated salt solution (primarily a chemical waste with trace radioactivity) for feed to the Z-Area Saltstone facility and two different slurries that contain concentrated radioactive materials (i.e., washed sludge and precipitate) for feed to the S-Area vitrification plant. As the neutralized high-level waste ages, gravity causes it to settle into a salt solution (supernate) over a layer containing solids (sludge). In some waste tanks, some of the salt has crystallized from the solution. Salt crystallization and, thus, volume reduction is enhanced by concentrating the supernate in the waste evaporators. The salt solution is decontaminated by the ITP using a batch process.
Consolidated Incinerator Facility (CIF) 261-H
This facility is a 40,000 square foot incinerator constructed in 1995. The CIF will provide a facility for the safe treatment by incineration of combustible wastes (solids and liquids) that are defined as low-level radioactive, hazardous, and mixed (containing both hazardous and radioactive components) under the South Carolina hazardous waste management regulations. The facility is currently undergoing preoperational testing.
Old HB Line
The Old HB Line is a Pu-238 processing facility that was shut down in 1984. It produced Pu-238 oxide primarily for the space program as a heat source to be used in generating electricity for spacecraft going into deep space. It was upgraded throughout its existence, but in 1984 was replaced by the new HB Line.D&D of the Old HB Line facility began in 1984. The D&D efforts were interrupted in 1986 because of a lack of funds. At that time, the scrap recovery process and the shielding for the neptunium oxide process had been removed. When the effort was resumed in 1988, the contamination in these two areas ranged from 40 to 100 million d/m/.1 square meter alpha. On July 26, 1990, D&D work in Room 306 of the Old HB Line was curtailed when concerns involving radiological control practices were raised. The concerns resulted when four radiation workers in plastic suits with breathing air became contaminated, during an emergency exiting of a highly contaminated area of Old HB Line, due to the failure of the 221H breathing air compressor. Further reviews of this incident resulted in stopping work in Room 306.
HB Line
HB Line is a 28,000 square foot plutonium processing facility constructed in three phases during the 1980s. The HB Line plutonium processing facilities are located on top of the H-Area Canyon Building 221-H and include the Scrap Recovery Facility (Phase I) and the Plutonium Oxide Facility (Phase III). The Frame Waste Recovery process is located within the 221-H building. The HB Line facility also houses a vault for the storage of Pu-238 oxide product and scrap material.
Phase I provides a scrap recovery facility, where materials are dissolved in nitric acid and transferred to H Canyon. There are two glove box lines (North and South), of which only the North is operating.
Phase II provides the neptunium oxide facility, where Pu-239 and Np-237 nitrate solutions are received from H-Canyon and converted to oxide. Phase II is not operating.
Phase III provides the plutonium oxide facility, where Pu-242 is received from H Canyon and converted to oxide. Phase III is operating. The Old HB Line is an abandoned plutonium processing facility currently undergoing D&D. Old HB Line is contained within H Canyon and was operated between 1963 and 1984.
The HB Line was built on top of the canyon in the early 1980s, replacing an existing facility (Old HB Line) located on the third and fourth levels of the H Canyon. The HB Line facility operated between 1985 and 1987. These operations were assessed in a 1991 environmental assessment, resulting in a finding of "No Significant Impact" issued in July 1991. The HB Line resumed operations, and, seven days after restart, operations in the HB Line were suspended due to radiological contamination of five workers resulting from conduct of operations inadequacies involving Pu-238 scrap stored in the HB Line vault. Operations resumed in October 1991. One month later, operations were again suspended due to an inadvertent transfer of zirconium within the HB Line. Operations then resumed in December 1991. In March 1992, operations in HB Line and H Canyon were suspended because of a safety question concerning the air exhaust stack liner. Operations resumed in January 1993 and have continued to the present.
F Canyon
F Canyon is a 128,000 square foot plutonium and uranium separations facility used to process plutonium and other materials for national defense purposes. It has done so safely for over 30 years. With recent changes in the world power structure, the United States no longer requires a significant nuclear stockpile. Therefore, F Canyon is phasing out its operation. F Canyon is currently operating a second plutonium cycle to purify and concentrate Pu-239 for transfer to the FB Line; processing TRR spent fuel and Mark-31 targets; storing other plutonium, uranium, and americium/curium solutions awaiting restart authorization; and operating nondiscretionary waste evaporation cycles to process canyon, analytical laboratory, reactor, and related waste streams. The F-Canyon Outside Area Facilities, including the FA Line, are a 37,500 are a square foot complex providing support operations.
FB Line
The FB Line is a 55,000 square foot plutonium separations facility constructed between 1951 and 1953 and expanded in 1958. FB Line is located in Canyon Building 221-F. The FB Line currently stores plutonium and other SNM in a safe configuration awaiting disposition. FB Line completed implementation of a DNFSB 94-1 requirement by finishing stabilization of all plutonium solutions. In addition, the stabilization of plutonium residues commenced three months in advance of the DNFSB 94-1 implementation plan milestone.
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