scholarly journals U.S. Department of Energy Implementation of Chemical Evaluation Requirements for Transuranic Waste Disposal at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alison Moon ◽  
Michelle Barkley ◽  
James Poppiti
Keyword(s):  
Waste Disposal ◽  
Pilot Plant ◽  
Department Of Energy ◽  
Waste Isolation Pilot Plant ◽  
Chemical Evaluation ◽  
Transuranic Waste

Hydration of Magnesium Oxide in the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant

2002 ◽  
Vol 757 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna C. Snider
Keyword(s):  
Magnesium Oxide ◽  
Pilot Plant ◽  
Free Water ◽  
Department Of Energy ◽  
Stable Phase ◽  
Nacl Solution ◽  
Waste Isolation Pilot Plant ◽  
Diffusion Limited ◽  
Transuranic Waste ◽  
Hydroxide Hydrate

ABSTRACTMagnesium oxide (MgO) is the only engineered barrier being emplaced in the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), a U.S. Department of Energy repository for transuranic waste. MgO will lower dissolved concentrations of actinides by consuming CO2 from possible microbial activity, by buffering the pH between 8.5 and 9.5, and by reducing the amount of free water in the repository. This paper discusses results from experiments measuring the hydration of MgO. Results suggest that periclase (MgO) hydrates rapidly to brucite (Mg(OH)2) in de-ionized water and 4 M NaCl solution at 90°C; the hydration rate decreases as temperature decreases. In ERDA-6, a NaCl-rich WIPP brine, MgO hydrates directly to brucite; in GWB, a high-Mg brine, periclase hydrates to magnesium chloride hydroxide hydrate(s) until the dissolved Mg2+ concentration decreases, and brucite becomes the stable phase. Under humid conditions MgO fully hydrates at higher humidities(> 50%). All data are consistent with diffusion-limited hydration reactions.

The Role of the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in the Cleanup of the U.S. Nuclear Weapons Complex

2003 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lynne K. Smith ◽  
Mary L. Bisesi
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Nuclear Weapons ◽  
Pilot Plant ◽  
The United States ◽  
Department Of Energy ◽  
United States Department ◽  
National Academy Of Sciences ◽  
Waste Isolation Pilot Plant ◽  
Term Operation ◽  
Transuranic Waste

As a result of nuclear weapons production, the United States of America produced significant quantities of transuranic waste, which consists of clothing, tools, rags, residues, debris and other items contaminated with small amounts of radioactive man-made elements — mostly plutonium — with an atomic number greater than that of uranium. Transuranic waste began accumulating in the 1940s and continued through the Cold War era. Today, most transuranic waste is stored at weapons production sites across the United States. In 1957, the National Academy of Sciences concluded that the most promising disposal option for radioactive wastes was disposal in deep geologic repositories situated in the salt formations. After nearly a decade of study, the United States Department of Energy decided in January 1981 to proceed with construction of the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) at a site 41.6 km (26 miles) southest of Carlsbad, New Mexico. After years of study, construction, and permitting, the WIPP facility became operational in early 1999. As the United States continues to clean up and close its former nuclear weapon facilities, the operation of WIPP will continue into the next several decades. This paper will provide on overview of the history, regulatory, and public process to permit a radioactive repository for disposal of transuranic wastes and the process to ensure its long-term operation in a safe and environmentally compliant manner.

Materials Interface Interactions Test (MIIT); in-Situ Testing of Simulated Hlw Forms in Salt- Performance of Srs Simulated Waste Glass After up to 5 Years of Burial at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP)

1991 ◽  
Vol 257 ◽  
Author(s):  
G.G. Wicks ◽  
A.R. Lodding ◽  
P.B. Macedo ◽  
D.E. Clark
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Pilot Plant ◽  
Field Tests ◽  
Field Testing ◽  
The United States ◽  
Waste Glass ◽  
Department Of Energy ◽  
High Level Waste ◽  
Waste Isolation Pilot Plant ◽  
High Level

ABSTRACTThe first field tests conducted in the United States involving burial of simulated high-level waste [HLW] forms and package components, were started in July of 1986. The program, called the Materials Interface Interactions Test or MIIT, is the largest cooperative field-testing venture in the international waste management community. Included in the study are over 900 waste form samples comprising 15 different systems supplied by 7 countries. Also included are approximately 300 potential canister or overpack metal samples along with more than 500 geologic and backfill specimens. There are almost 2000 relevant interactions that characterize this effort which is being conducted in the bedded salt site at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), near Carlsbad, New Mexico. The MIIT program represents a joint endeavor managed by Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, N.M., and Savannah River Laboratory in Aiken, S.C. and sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy. Also involved in MIIT are participants from various laboratories and universities in France, Germany, Belgium, Canada, Japan, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States. In July of 1991, the experimental portion of the 5-yr. MIIT program was completed. Although only about 5% of all MIIT samples have been assessed thus far, there are already interesting findings that have emerged. The present paper will discuss results obtained for SRS 165/TDS waste glass after burial of 6 mo., 1 yr. and 2 yrs., along with initial analyses of 5 yr. samples.

AN OVERVIEW OF EPA REGULATION OF THE SAFE DISPOSAL OF TRANSURANIC WASTE AT THE WASTE ISOLATION PILOT PLANT

2001 ◽  
Vol 80 (2) ◽  
pp. 110-125 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. B. Wolbarst ◽  
E. K. Forinash ◽  
C. O. Byrum ◽  
R. T. Peake ◽  
F. Marcinowski ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pilot Plant ◽  
Waste Isolation Pilot Plant ◽  
Safe Disposal ◽  
Transuranic Waste

scholarly journals Experimental Work Conducted on MgO Characterization and Hydration

2008 ◽  
Vol 1124 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haoran Deng ◽  
Yongliang Xiong ◽  
Martin Nemer ◽  
Shelly Johnsen
Keyword(s):  
Control Agent ◽  
Department Of Energy ◽  
Fractional Factorial ◽  
Test Results ◽  
Waste Isolation Pilot Plant ◽  
Large Particles ◽  
Series Of Experiments ◽  
Engineered Barriers ◽  
And Diffusion ◽  
Transuranic Waste

AbstractMagnesium oxide (MgO) is the only engineered barrier certified by the EPA for emplacement in the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), a U.S. Department of Energy repository for transuranic waste. MgO will reduce actinide solubilities by sequestering CO2 generated by the biodegradation of cellulosic, plastic, and rubber materials. Demonstration of the effectiveness of MgO is essential to meet the U.S Environmental Protection Agency's requirement for multiple natural and engineered barriers. In the past, a series of experiments was conducted at Sandia National Laboratories to verify the efficacy of Premier Chemicals LLC (Premier) MgO as a chemical-control agent in the WIPP. Since December 2004, Premier MgO is no longer available for emplacement in the WIPP. Martin Marietta Magnesia Specialties LLC is the new MgO supplier. MgO characterization, including chemical, mineralogic, and reactivity analysis, has been performed to address uncertainties concerning the amount of reactive constituents in Martin Marietta MgO. Characterization results of Premier MgO will be reported for comparison. Particle size, solid-to-liquid ratio, and stir speed could affect the rate of carbonation of MgO slurries. Thus, it's reasonable to hypothesize that these factors will also affect the rate of hydration. Accelerated MgO hydration experiments were carried out at two or three levels for each of the above factors in deionized water at 70 °C. The Minitab statistical software package was used to design a fractional-factorial experimental matrix and analyze the test results. We also fitted the accelerated inundated hydration data to four different kinetic models and calculated the hydration rates. As a result of this study we have determined that different mechanisms may be important for different particle sizes, surface control for large particles and diffusion for small particles.

Using Results from Tru Experiments for WIPP to Determine Model Development and Needed Experimental Programs

2000 ◽  
Vol 663 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. K. Silva ◽  
V. M. Oversby
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Protection Agency ◽  
Model Development ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Department Of Energy ◽  
Organic Ligands ◽  
Oxidation States ◽  
Waste Isolation Pilot Plant ◽  
Oxide Phases ◽  
A Site ◽  
Transuranic Waste

ABSTRACTThe Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) is located at a depth of 655 m in bedded salt at a site about 40 km east of Carlsbad, New Mexico.The 1996 U. S. Department of Energy (DOE) application for certification by the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) included results of a performance assessment (PA) for the planned repository.After the EPA certified the facility in May, 1998, emplacement of contact handled transuranic waste (CHTRU) began in March, 1999.The WIPP facility must undergo a recertification by EPA every 5 years to demonstrate compliance with disposal regulations.Performance assessment is expected to be a key part of the recertification process.The PA will include probabilistic calculations to predict the release of actinides to the accessible environment over a 10,000 year period using a variety of plausible scenarios.The 1996 PA used a model for Pu(IV) solubility based on Th data and the assumption of analogous behavior for all actinides in the (IV) oxidation state.That model did not allow for mobility between the various possible oxidation states of Pu.The possible effects of increases in solubility of Pu through complexation with organic ligands was also not included in the PA because it was argued by DOE that such complexation would be insignificant. Subsequent data from tests using actual TRU wastes show strong evidence that the importance of organic ligands and the potential for multiple oxidation states must be carefully considered in estimating the expected solution concentrations of Pu in WIPP brines.This paper reviews the present state of knowledge of the behavior of Pu-containing wastes in contact with brines similar to those expected to be important for the WIPP repository, recent advances in understanding of the nature of Pu-oxide phases, and analytical methods that have high sensitivity for Pu speciation. A conceptual model for Pu in TRU wastes is presented and a series of steps - including experiments and calculations - that could led to an improved basis for the PA calculations to be done during the WIPP recertification process is outlined.

Laboratory Studies of Gas Generation for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant

1992 ◽  
Vol 294 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. H. Brush ◽  
M. A. Molecke ◽  
R. E. Westerman ◽  
A. J. Francis ◽  
J. B. Gillow ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Microbial Activity ◽  
Pilot Plant ◽  
Laboratory Studies ◽  
Gas Generation ◽  
Waste Isolation Pilot Plant ◽  
Design Basis ◽  
Transuranic Waste

ABSTRACTThe design-basis, defense-related, transuranic waste to be emplaced in the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant may, if sufficient H2O, nutrients, and viable microorganisms are present, generate significant quantities of gas in the repository after filling and sealing. We summarize recent results of laboratory studies of anoxic corrosion and microbial activity, the most potentially significant processes. We also discuss possible implications for the repository gas budget.

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