Affordable Cleanup?

Affordable Cleanup?

Opportunities for Cost Reduction in the Decontamination and Decommissioning of the Nation's Uranium Enrichment Facilities

  • Editor: National Academies Press
  • ISBN: 9780309054386
  • eISBN Pdf: 9780309552981
  • eISBN Epub: 9780309175876
  • Lloc de publicació:  United States
  • Any de publicació digital: 1996
  • Mes: Març
  • Pàgines: 324
  • DDC: 690
  • Idioma: Anglés

The Energy Policy Act of 1992 called on the National Academy of Sciences to conduct a study and provide recommendations for reducing the costs of decontaminating and decommissioning (D&D) the nation's uranium enrichment facilities located at Oak Ridge, Tennessee; Raducah, Kentucky; and Portsmouth, Ohio. This volume examines the existing plans and cost estimates for the D&D of these facilities, including such elements as technologies, planning and management, and identifies approaches that could reduce D&D costs. It also assesses options for disposition of the large quantities of depleted uranium hexafluoride that are stored at these sites.

  • Affordable Cleanup?
  • Copyright
  • Preface
  • Contents
  • Executive Summary
    • THE GDPS
    • D&D COST ESTIMATES
    • THE UNCERTAIN CONTEXT
      • Final State of the Sites
      • Disposal of Waste
      • Criteria for Release of Decontaminated Materials
      • The D&D Fund and Budgetary Uncertainties
      • Sequence of Plant Cleanup
      • Management of DUF6
    • RECOMMENDATIONS
      • Previous D&D Experience
      • Contracting and Management
      • Need for New Facilities
      • Waste Management
      • Regulatory Coordination
      • Coordinated Planning
      • Stakeholder Involvement
      • Prioritized Cost and Risk Reduction
      • D&D Technology Issues
      • Safeguards and Security
      • DUF6
  • 1 Introduction
    • STUDY BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
    • THE U.S. URANIUM ENRICHMENT ENTERPRISE
    • THE UNITED STATES ENRICHMENT CORPORATION
    • THE D&D FUND
    • THE CHALLENGES OF A D&D EFFORT
    • D&D COSTS
    • ORGANIZATION OF THE REPORT
    • REFERENCES
  • 2 The GDP Sites: Process, Facilities, Inventories, and Risks
    • THE GASEOUS DIFFUSION PROCESS
    • SITE DESCRIPTIONS
    • BUILDINGS AND EQUIPMENT
    • CONTAMINATION
      • Radiological Contamination
      • Nonradioactive Contamination
    • STORAGE OF DUF6
    • SITE DIFFERENCES
    • RISKS SUBSEQUENT TO GDP CLOSURE
    • CONCLUSIONS
    • REFERENCES
  • 3 Decontamination Processes
    • INTRODUCTION
    • NUCLEAR CRITICALITY
    • URANIUM DEPOSIT REMOVAL
      • Gaseous Removal of Deposits
      • Mechanical Removal
      • Aqueous Spray Removal
    • DECONTAMINATION OF CASCADE EQUIPMENT
      • Disassembly
      • Aqueous Decontamination
    • DECONTAMINATION OF SUPPORT SYSTEMS AND BUILDINGS
      • Radioactively Contaminated Support Systems
      • Radioactively Contaminated Interior Building Surfaces
      • Removal of Nonradioactive Hazardous Material
    • WASTE MANAGEMENT
    • CHARACTERIZATION
      • Radionuclide Measurement Techniques
      • Hazardous Nonradioactive Materials
    • AUTOMATION AND ROBOTICS
    • CAPENHURST TECHNOLOGIES
      • Removal of Uranium from the Capenhurst Enrichment Cascades
      • Decontamination of Equipment from the Capenhurst Cascades
      • Decontamination of Supporting Systems and Building Surfaces
      • Waste Management
      • Characterization
      • General Considerations
    • CIP/CUP TECHNOLOGIES
    • CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
      • General
        • Conclusions
        • Recommendations
      • Uranium Deposit Removal
        • Conclusions
        • Recommendation
      • Decontamination of Cascade Equipment
        • Conclusions
        • Recommendations
      • Decontamination of Support Systems and Buildings
        • Conclusion
      • Waste Management and Recycling
        • Conclusions
        • Recommendations
      • Characterization
        • Conclusions
        • Recommendation
      • Robotics
        • Conclusions
        • Recommendations
    • REFERENCES
  • 4 Analyses of the D&D Cost Estimates for the GDPs
    • PREVIOUS COST ESTIMATES
      • The 1988 MMES Study
      • The 1991 Ebasco and TLG Estimates
      • Comparison of the Ebasco and TLG Estimates for the Five Process Buildings at the Oak Ridge GDP
      • SAIC Analysis of the Ebasco Estimate for DOE
    • IDENTIFICATION OF MAJOR COST ELEMENTS
    • TIME PROFILE OF INCOME AND EXPENDITURES FOR THE D&D FUND
    • ESTIMATING U.S. GDP D&D COSTS FROM CAPENHURST D&D COSTS
      • Capenhurst Plant Description
      • Capenhurst Project Description
      • Estimating Oak Ridge Costs by Scaling Capenhurst Costs
    • THE SHIPPINGPORT REACTOR D&D PROJECT
    • CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
      • Previous D&D Cost Estimates
        • Conclusions
        • Recommendation
      • Cost to D&D the GDPs
        • Conclusion
        • Recommendation
      • Adequacy of the D&D Fund
        • Conclusion
      • Experience from Other D&D Projects
        • Conclusion
    • REFERENCES
  • 5 Planning the D&D Program
    • PUBLIC AND STAKEHOLDER INVOLVEMENT
    • END-STATE ALTERNATIVES
      • Prioritized Cost- and Risk-Reduction Approach
    • DEVELOPMENT OF AN INTEGRATED REGULATORY PROGRAM
      • Federal Regulations
        • DOE
        • EPA
        • Nuclear Regulatory Commission
        • OSHA
        • DOT
        • USEC Effects on Regulatory Oversight
        • EPA and Nuclear Regulatory Commission Development of Radiation Site Cleanup Regulation
      • State Regulation
      • Challenges and Current Developments
        • Safeguards and Security
      • Coordinated Planning
      • DOE-Level Planning
      • Complex-Level Planning
        • D&D Organization and Staffing
        • Plant Characterization Program
        • Regulatory Plan
        • Waste Management Plan
      • Site-Level Planning
      • Execution of the Planning
      • Scheduling and Sequencing
        • Effects of Early Plant Shutdown
        • Effects of D&D Program Delay
    • MANAGEMENT ISSUES
    • RECOMMENDATIONS
      • Public and Stakeholder Involvement
      • Regulatory Issues
      • Planning
      • Management Issues
    • REFERENCES
  • 6 Opportunities for D&D Cost Reduction
    • PROGRAM INTEGRATION
      • Management Approach
        • An Alternative Management Approach
        • Contracting Strategy
        • Planning
      • Contracting Cost
    • RADIOACTIVE AND HAZARDOUS WASTE MANAGEMENT
      • Reducing Waste Quantity
      • Waste Disposal Site and Unit Disposal Cost
      • Waste Packaging, Transport, and Disposal
      • Risk That Waste Management Costs May Be Higher
      • Hazardous Waste Disposal Costs
    • DECONTAMINATION AND DECOMMISSIONING
      • Technology
        • Decontamination Process
        • Melting of Difficult-to-Decontaminate Components
        • Automation and Robotics
        • Building Decontamination and Removal
      • Use of Historical Maintenance Cost Data
      • Characterization
    • SUPPORT FACILITIES
      • Decontamination Facilities
        • Eliminate the High-Assay Decontamination Facility
        • Simplify the Low-Assay Decontamination Facility Design
        • Use of Existing Buildings
        • Multiple Low-Assay Decontamination Facilities versus a Single Shared Facility
      • New Administration Building
    • COST ESTIMATE ASSUMPTIONS
      • Learning Curve
      • Site Practices and Procedures
      • Safeguards, Security, and Classification
      • Criticality Prevention
      • Surveillance and Maintenance
      • Labor Agreements
    • SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS
      • Conclusions and Recommendations
        • Conclusions
        • Recommendations
    • REFERENCES
  • 7 Disposition of the DUF6
    • DUF6 INVENTORY
    • USES FOR DEPLETED URANIUM
      • Shielding Applications
      • Use as a Fluorinating Agent
      • Re-enrichment or Dilution
        • DUF6 Enrichment by AVLIS
        • Blending Agent
        • Potential Energy Resource for Reactors
    • DEPLETED URANIUM MANAGEMENT OPTIONS
      • Condition of Cylinders
      • Environmental, Safety, and Health Issues
      • Regulatory Issues
      • Continued Surveillance and Maintenance: Requirements and Costs
      • Conversion Options and Costs
      • Assessment of Alternative Management Options
    • ANALYSIS OF COST ESTIMATES FOR CONVERSION
    • OPPORTUNITIES FOR COST SAVING
      • Plant Scale
      • Plant Life
      • Uranium Oxide Density
      • HF Production and Marketing
      • Use of Existing Facilities
      • New Technology
    • CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
      • Conclusions
      • Recommendations
    • REFERENCES
  • 8 Major Recommendations
    • COORDINATED PLANNING
    • CONTRACTING AND MANAGEMENT
    • PRIORITIZED COST AND RISK REDUCTION
    • REGULATORY COORDINATION
    • STAKEHOLDER INVOLVEMENT
    • WASTE MANAGEMENT
    • NEED FOR NEW FACILITIES
    • D&D TECHNOLOGY ISSUES
    • SAFEGUARDS AND SECURITY
    • DUF6
  • Appendices
    • Appendix A Statement of Task
    • Appendix B The Committee's Panel Structure and Panel Statement of Tasks
      • Decision And Process Analysis Panel
      • Technology Panel
      • Cost Analysis Panel
    • Appendix C Committee Meetings and Activities
      • Separate Panel Meetings
      • Site Visits and Symposiums Attended by Selected Members of the Committee and Staff
    • Appendix D Biographical Sketches of Committee Members and Staff
      • Staff
        • Board on Energy and Environmental Studies
        • Board on Chemical Sciences and Technology
        • Board on Radioactive Waste Management
    • Appendix E Radionuclide Characterization and Detection
      • Radionuclides To Be Characterized
      • Radionuclide Characterization Processes
        • Initial or Scoping Measurements
        • Characterization During D&D
        • Compliance Characterization
      • Radionuclide Characterization Instrumentation
      • Regulatory Requirements
      • References
    • Appendix F Automation and Robotics
      • Commercial Systems
      • Doe Programs
      • References
    • Appendix G Nuclear Criticality
      • Production And Loss of Neutrons
      • Avoiding Criticality
      • Summary
      • References
    • Appendix H Previous Decontamination and Decommissioning Efforts
      • Capenhurst Gaseous Diffusion Plant
        • Description of Capenhurst Facility
        • Approach
        • Development Activities
        • Decontamination and Disassembly
          • Gaseous Decontamination to Remove UO2F2
          • Characterization
          • Removal of Nonradioactive Hazardous Materials
          • Equipment and Cell Structures Disassembly
          • Interim Storage of Plant Components
          • Size Reduction
          • Chemical Decontamination
          • Melting
          • Ancillary Structures Removal
          • Waste Treatment and Disposal
        • Personnel Protection During Decommissioning
          • Criticality Control
          • Air Monitoring
      • Similarities And Differences Between Capenhurst And The U.S. Enrichment Plants
      • Quantity Comparisons Of Capenhurst And The Oak Ridge Gdp
      • References
    • Appendix I Waste Treatment
      • Separations
      • Treatment Options
        • Recycling
      • References
    • Appendix J Review of Existing Cost Estimates
      • MMES Estimate
      • Ebasco Estimate
        • Assumptions
          • DOE-Directed Assumptions
          • Ebasco Assumptions
        • The Assumption of New High- and Low-Assay Decontamination Facilities
        • Analysis of the Ebasco Estimate
      • Comparison Of The 1988 MMES And 1991 Ebasco Studies
      • TLG Cost Estimate
      • Saic Review
      • Sensitivity Analysis In The Cost Estimates
      • Schedule And Funding Profiles
      • Waste Management
        • Packaging Cost
        • Transportation Cost
          • Local Transportation to Disposal Facilities (within 10 miles from each GDP)
          • Interstate Transportation to the Oak Ridge LADF for Processing
        • Disposal Costs
        • Storage Costs
        • Waste Management Unit Cost Summary
        • Summary on Waste Management
      • References
  • Glossary
  • Acronyms