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At least 613 records · Page 34
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Cryogenic Propellant Tank Drain Simulation with a Stratified Ullage Nodal Model

Cryogenic propellant tank pressurization systems maintain tank pressure within specified limits to comply with propellant thermodynamic and tank structural design requirements. Many pump-fed cryogenic liquid propulsion systems control tank pressure using an autogenous pressurization system. Autogenous pressurization systems vaporize and heat propellant to produce the pressurant gas delivered to the tank. While autogenous pressurization systems eliminate the need for a separate pressurant gas storage and delivery system, they couple pressurant mass requirements to propellant mass requirements. Accurate prediction of autogenous pressurant mass during propellant drain is essential in optimizing cryogenic propellant tank designs.

Richard G Hibbs↗
NASA NTRS2023

CFD Modeling of Bi-Directional PMD inside Cryogenic Propellant Tanks Onboard Parabolic Flights

Future cryogenic propulsion systems will require efficient methods with which to transfer cryogenic propellants from a depot storage tank to a customer receiver tank to minimize cost and maximize reusability. The Reduced Gravity Cryogenic Transfer project is currently developing advanced cryogenic fluid management technology and developing and validating new numerical models for three phases of transfer: line chilldown, tank chilldown, and tank fill. Additionally, multiple liquid nitrogen (LN 2 ) parabolic flight transfer rigs are being designed by universities and NASA to investigate the gravitational sensitivities that exist in these three technologies. In order to maximize the collection of low-g data during flights, it is required to extract as much (LN 2 as possible from the supply tank, despite variable gravity levels. The purpose of this paper is to present computational fluid dynamics (CFD) volume of fluid simulations of (LN 2 behavior in the supply tank onboard parabolic flights to validate the optimal design of a bi-directional propellant management device (PMD) using the commercial software FLOW-3D. A parametric study is conducted on the effects of gravity level, fill level, pore size, open area, thickness, and type of baffle on PMD performance. Based on results, the PMD as designed exceeds the targeted expulsion efficiency.

Jason Hartwig↗
DOE OSTI2020

Thermal Insulation for a High Temperature Molten Salt Storage Tank in a CSP Plant: Preprint

A ternary molten chloride has been suggested as a high temperature (550-720 °C) sensible heat storage medium for a two-tank system. An effective thermal insulation is proposed to provide an opportunity for the fabrication of both the hot and cold storage tanks from lower cost metals, e.g. A240-347H, by maintaining the tank wall below 500 °C. To achieve this, the hot storage tank mainly comprises of inner shell (11.4 cm of a refractory brick as liner (KX-99 ®), 30 cm of insulation brick) and outer metal shell, where 5 cm of frozen layer of PCM800 (NaCl), and 5 cm of ceramic wool fill the annular space between the shells. Another layer of ceramic wool was introduced at the outer side of the metal shell to keep the temperature lower than 60 °C. ANSYS Fluent was used for the numerical study of the cool down behavior of the system during idle period when tank is quarter-filled. The heat transfer modes were considered as radiation and natural convection heat transfer from the hot molten salt at 720 °C, conduction through the solid layers and convection heat transfer from the outer shell to the environment at 15 °C. The results showed that the proposed insulation system including a frozen layer of PCM800 maintains the temperature at the metal wall lower than 500 °C, and lower than 60 °C at the outer side of the tank. Apart from the insulation property of the frozen layer of PCM800, it absorbs any leak of hot molten salt, acting as a barrier between salt and the metal shell. The thermal performance analysis provide an insight into the benefits of the multilayer insulation.

41 EE - Solar Energy Technologies Office (EE-4S)↗
DOE OSTI2020

Comparison of plug flow and multi-node stratified tank modeling approaches regarding computational efficiency and accuracy

Residential water heaters contain water stratified by temperature-driven density differences. This implies that a water tank can reach a state in which the top and bottom sections have different temperatures, unless mixing happens. A high degree of thermal stratification can improve the efficiency of some water heaters, by saving the amount of energy required for the heat-up process. Studies of stratification became popular in the 1970s and it remains an active research topic today. The research has led to the development of different models and techniques to better predict and define a stratified tanks behavior. By comparing these models and techniques used previously to describe thermal stratification, the phenomenon could be better understood, exploited, and used to increase efficiency and thermal energy capacity in modern water tanks. From the existing models, we found the one-dimensional standard plug-flow and a multi node model to be appropriate for analyzing the processes of the heat up and cool-down in a water tank. These two models are based on energy balances. This work involved comparing the accuracy and computational effort needed to implement these models. To assess accuracy, we compared both types of existing models to experimental data (also collected in this work) which included a heat up process using an external heat pump. This external process included a layering process that has an eddy diffusivity at five times the rate of thermal diffusion. For this project, we implemented the models in MATLAB, the multi-paradigm numerical computing environment. We quantified model accuracy using the root mean squared error between modeled data and experimental data for six measured tank temperatures. Comparing the accuracy and the computational time taken to run the simulation provides a method to contrast the performance of each model and a way to rate it. The multi node model was run using from 6 to 96 spatial nodes; the plug flow model was run using 1 to 0.001 º C temperature bin sizes. Additionally, timesteps were varied from 4 to 236 s. The results quantify the tradeoff between accuracy and computational time, providing guidance for simulations to intelligently select the best model type and simulation parameters. This research can be used to validate the pre-existing models and possibly improve the modern water tank.

Bulnes, Fernando Karg↗
DOE OSTI2012

Development of a Thermodynamic Model for the Hanford Tank Waste Operations Simulator - 12193

The Hanford Tank Waste Operations Simulator (HTWOS) is the current tool used by the Hanford Tank Operations Contractor for system planning and assessment of different operational strategies. Activities such as waste retrievals in the Hanford tank farms and washing and leaching of waste in the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) are currently modeled in HTWOS. To predict phase compositions during these activities, HTWOS currently uses simple wash and leach factors that were developed many years ago. To improve these predictions, a rigorous thermodynamic framework has been developed based on the multi-component Pitzer ion interaction model for use with several important chemical species in Hanford tank waste. These chemical species are those with the greatest impact on high-level waste glass production in the WTP and whose solubility depends on the processing conditions. Starting with Pitzer parameter coefficients and species chemical potential coefficients collated from open literature sources, reconciliation with published experimental data led to a self-consistent set of coefficients known as the HTWOS Pitzer database. Using Gibbs energy minimization with the Pitzer ion interaction equations in Microsoft Excel,1 a number of successful predictions were made for the solubility of simple mixtures of the chosen species. Currently, this thermodynamic framework is being programmed into HTWOS as the mechanism for determining the solid-liquid phase distributions for the chosen species, replacing their simple wash and leach factors. Starting from a variety of open literature sources, a collection of Pitzer parameters and species chemical potentials, as functions of temperature, was tested for consistency and accuracy by comparison with available experimental thermodynamic data (e.g., osmotic coefficients and solubility). Reconciliation of the initial set of parameter coefficients with the experimental data led to the development of the self-consistent set known as the HTWOS Pitzer database. Using Microsoft Excel to formulate the Gibbs energy minimization method and the multi-component Pitzer ion interaction equations, several predictions of the solubility of solute mixtures at various temperatures were made using the HTWOS Pitzer database coefficients. Examples of these predictions are shown in Figure 3 and Figure 4. A listing of the entire HTWOS Pitzer database can be found in RPP-RPT-50703. Currently, work is underway to install the Pitzer ion interaction model in HTWOS as the mechanism for determining the solid-liquid phase distributions of select waste constituents during tank retrievals and subsequent washing and leaching of the waste. Validation of the Pitzer ion interaction model in HTWOS will be performed with analytical laboratory data of actual tank waste. This change in HTWOS is expected to elicit shifts in mission criteria, such as mission end date and quantity of high-level waste glass produced by WTP, as predicted by HTWOS. These improvements to the speciation calculations in HTWOS, however, will establish a better planning basis and facilitate more effective and efficient future operations of the WTP. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2017

Hanford's Double-Shell Tank AY-102 Recovery Project - 17416

Since at least August 2012, Hanford Tank 241-AY-102 (AY-102) has been leaking from its primary tank into its secondary containment. A pumping plan was developed in 2013 to provide a path forward for recommended remediation actions to be implemented as part of the AY-102 Recovery Project. On March 21, 2014, the Washington State Department of Ecology issued Administrative Order No. 10618 requiring Washington River Protection Solutions and the United States Department of Energy to conduct actions related to and including the removal of waste from AY-102. The three parties agreed to resolve the appeal of the Administrative Order through a Settlement Agreement which addresses the remaining requirements and implements enforceable milestone dates, including initiation of waste retrieval by March 4, 2016 and completion of waste retrieval operations by March 4, 2017. The AY-102 Recovery Project was developed to address the Settlement Agreement requirements. While retrieval of waste from Single-Shell Tanks has been performed at Hanford for decades, retrieval from Double-Shell Tank AY-102 required adaptation of the existing technologies to a new environment on a larger scale than previously encountered. A significant number of obstructions and in-tank equipment limit accessibility to the high source term AY-102 waste and the location of the selected receiver tank required installation of an extensive, heavily-shielded above-ground transfer line. Despite countless challenges and obstacles encountered throughout, the project successfully completed system design, fabrication, installation, testing, and the first phase of operations within a highly compressed, aggressive schedule. Waste retrieval operations in AY-102 commenced on March 3, 2016 and the initial operating phase concluded on April 30. Additional sluicing capability was required to complete the mission and four Extended Reach Sluicers were installed to support the second operating phase, which began on December 8, 2016. As of December 31, 2016, approximately 97% of the original waste volume had been removed, resulting in an estimated remaining waste volume of about 75,000 liters. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2019

Development of a Preliminary Performance Assessment to Support Single-Shell Tank Waste Retrieval - 19446

A preliminary Performance Assessment (PA) of Single-Shell Tank (SST) Waste Management Area A-AX (WMA A-AX) located at DoE's Hanford Site in southeastern Washington is being conducted to satisfy the requirements of the Hanford Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order (HFFACO), as well as other Federal and State requirements of closure plans and permits. The WMA A-AX PA effort is assessing the fate, transport, and impacts of radionuclides and hazardous chemicals within residual wastes left in tanks, ancillary equipment, and facilities in their assumed closed configuration, and the subsequent risks to humans into the far future. WMA A-AX includes the 241-A Tank Farm (A Farm), the 241-AX Tank Farm (AX Farm), and the ancillary equipment associated with each Farm. There are six underground SSTs in A Farm, and four underground SSTs in AX Farm. Each of these SSTs have a storage capacity of 1,000,000 gallons. A complex waste transfer system of ancillary equipment supported the transfer and storage of waste within WMA A-AX SSTs. This ancillary equipment includes transfer lines, catch tanks, diversion boxes, vaults, valve pits, and other miscellaneous structures. This paper emphasizes the development of the PA effort focused on radiological impacts to meet the requirements for a closure authorization under DOE Order 435.1. Lessons learned from retrieval and development of a recently completed PA of the nearby Waste Management Area C (WMA C) led to the decision to develop a preliminary PA for WMA A-AX prior to initiation of retrieval efforts so that a site-specific risk management capability could be available to support anticipated retrieval decisions. The technical approach for the PA analysis includes developing both a process-level model using site-specific hydrogeological data, as well as a system-level model. The system model is being developed to facilitate uncertainty and sensitivity analyses being conducted in the PA effort. Preliminary results of the DOE Order 435.1 PA are evaluating potential impacts to the groundwater and air pathways to determine radiation exposure once radionuclides are released to the environment from residual waste after closure of the tank farm. To meet other analysis requirements in DOE Order 435.1, the PA effort must also evaluate potential radiological impacts from inadvertent intruder scenarios into the closed WMA A-AX facility. The results of the PA evaluation will be compared to performance objectives and measures in the DOE Order 435.1 to support retrieval and eventual closure decisions at WMA A-AX. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2019

Tank Side Cesium Removal System Project and Technology Maturation Program - 19519

Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS) is the Tank Operating Contractor (TOC) for the U.S. Department of Energy-Office of River Protection (DOE-ORP) on the Hanford Site. The Hanford Site stores an estimated 56 million gallons of mixed radioactive and chemically hazardous waste in large underground tanks. WRPS is in the process of designing the Tank Side Cesium Removal (TSCR) system to produce Low Activity Waste (LAW) from Hanford tank waste. The LAW will be transferred to the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) LAW Vitrification Facility, where the hazardous constituents in the LAW will be immobilized in a durable glass waste form for disposal. The TSCR Project demonstrates a tank-side treatment system for providing feed to the WTP LAW Vitrification Facility. This system removes cesium from supernatant tank waste using non-elutable cesium ion exchange media to meet the applicable waste acceptance criteria for the WTP. In support of the project, a tailored Technology Maturation/Testing Plan (TMP) has been developed to identify principal Technology Elements (TEs) for the proposed process, designate Critical Technology Elements (CTEs), identify gaps in the existing knowledge base and identify the necessary activities to mature the technologies for successful deployment of TSCR. The project scope and technology maturation approach are presented. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2020

Mercury Speciation of Hanford 241-AP-107 Tank Waste Samples - 20384

The concentration of key mercury species in the Hanford tank waste has not been previously measured. Based on process knowledge, an estimated inventory of 2,100 kg of mercury is assumed and was distributed in varied amounts across 149 single-shell tanks (SSTs) and 28 double-shell tanks (DSTs). Limited analyses of individual SSTs and DSTs for total mercury were all below detection, yielding upper limits in concentration estimates based solely on instrument detection limits, resulting in an uncertain mercury inventory for Hanford tanks. Accurate and reliable chemical speciation and quantification is desired to anticipate, predict, and abate the mass movements of various mercury species through the Hanford waste processing flowsheet. Highly sensitive separation and quantification methods for total, elemental, and monomethyl mercury species, in tank waste, have been developed at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's (PNNL) Radiochemical Processing Laboratory (RPL). A non-radiological environmental method to quantify mercury species has been adapted for application to Hanford tank 241-AP-107 raw supernatant feed, filtered feed, and cesium-decontaminated samples. These samples represent feed inventory and pretreatment process effluents prior to immobilization by vitrification. This method separates and preconcentrates total, elemental, and monomethyl mercury onto selective solid substrates with little-to-no radioactive background. The solid samples can then be released from strict radiological control, allowing for analytical work to be conducted in low-level radiological facilities. Separation of mercury species was demonstrated at PNNL's RPL in Richland, Washington before transport and analytical quantification using cold vapor atomic fluorescence spectrometry (CVAFS) at PNNL's Marine Science Laboratory (MSL) in Sequim, Washington. Additional studies were conducted to assess the stability of monomethyl mercury in distilled matrices and preconcentrated onto the Carbotrap{sup R} solid substrate to assess sample degradation over time during transport. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2020

Tank Side Cesium Removal System Project and Technology Maturation Program - 20101

Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS) is the Tank Operating Contractor (TOC) for the U.S. Department of Energy-Office of River Protection (DOE-ORP) on the Hanford Site. The Hanford Site stores an estimated 56 million gallons of mixed radioactive and chemically hazardous waste in large underground tanks. WRPS is in the process of designing the Tank Side Cesium Removal (TSCR) system to produce a Low Activity Waste (LAW) feed from existing mixed Hanford tank waste. The LAW will be transferred to the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) LAW Vitrification Facility, where it will be immobilized in a durable glass waste form for disposal. The TSCR Project demonstrates a tank-side treatment system for providing feed to the WTP LAW Vitrification Facility. This system removes undissolved solids and cesium from tank waste supernatant using non-elutable ion exchange media to meet the applicable waste acceptance criteria for the WTP. In support of the project, technology testing has been performed to answer design questions and reduce risk. The project scope and technology testing approach are presented. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2015

Development of a process for remediation of enriched uranium coolant tanks at AWE Aldermaston - 14520

Machining processes involving Enriched Uranium (EU) at the UK Atomic Weapons Establishment have historically required the use of a liquid coolant to ensure product quality and to provide protection against hazards associated with ignition of the EU swarf in the non-inert gloved air box atmosphere. This coolant is typically provided by closed circuit re-circulating systems utilising large volume tanks to contain the bulk coolant. Small losses of EU to the coolant tank are experienced during the machining process leading to accumulation over time. This is expected and appropriate measures are put in place to control such accumulations to ensure criticality safety during the operational phase. The original design intent made no specific provision for recovery of the EU as it was not expected to be required based on the anticipated losses and design lifetime of the tanks. However, in support of ongoing operations it has become necessary to develop a process to remediate out of service coolant tanks to recover the EU and to replace the coolant and some of the end-of-life tank components. Detailed optioneering has been undertaken to develop a process that addresses all the relevant hazards, including nuclear criticality safety. Non-destructive assay techniques have been developed to help determine the inventory of EU present and consequently the level of control required during the remediation process. This has led to the selection of favourable geometry collection vessels that not only afford significant defence-in-depth against criticality hazards during the remediation work but also satisfy interim storage requirements. These vessels may also be of interest to other operators. This paper presents an overview of the history of operation of the coolant tanks and proposed remediation process and provides an overview of the criticality safety case that has been developed to support it. It is anticipated that the remediation work will be undertaken before 2019 allowing the findings and lessons learnt (including validation of non-destructive assay results on expected hold up) to be reported at the next ICNC. (authors)

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Effectiveness of Vapor Corrosion Inhibitors Under Elevated Chloride Conditions for Aboveground Storage Tank Application

The sand quality used to construct the tank pad is an important contributing factor to the rate of corrosion that occurs on the soil-side of the aboveground storage tanks (ASTs) floor plates. Clean sand that meets specific criteria provides the first line of defense for mitigation of tank floor corrosion. However, it has been observed that the sand quality used for some existing tanks differ greatly from the specifications provided in the API 651 standard; this could be partially due to initial sand quality not meeting the specification, and partially due to the environmental effects over time. For example, rain-water intrusion could lead to higher than the specified contents of corrosive species such as chloride. Tank operators are increasingly using vapor corrosion inhibitors (VCIs) either as a stand alone or in combination with cathodic protection (CP) for ASTs to mitigate soil-side corrosion. VCIs are delivered either through-thefloor or injected through the ports in the ring wall. Experimental studies were conducted to evaluate VCIs’ performance at elevated chloride concentrations and to study the effectiveness of the delivery methods under extreme chloride conditions. The experimental work found that VCI performance is robust and not compromised due to high chloride levels, such as 300 ppm or more. The work also showed that the through-the-floor VCI delivery method is more beneficial compared to the through-the-sand-pad method when tank pad corrosivity is elevated.

Shukla, Pavan K.↗
DOE OSTI2024

STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF IN-SERVICE ULTRASONIC INSPECTION DATA OF WASTE TANKS AT THE SAVANNAH RIVER Site-25021

Liquid radioactive waste has been stored in large, underground carbon steel tanks of 4.92-million-liter capacity at the United States Department of Energy's Savannah River Site (SRS) in Aiken, South Carolina since the 1950s. The In-service inspection of the Savannah River Site High Level Waste tanks will be reviewed as well as Ultrasonic testing (UT) for detecting for general wall thinning, pitting and interface attack through accessible regions of the tanks. In-service inspection [1] of the Savannah River Site (SRS) High Level Waste (HLW) tanks is an essential element of a comprehensive structural integrity program. Inspection confirmed the effectiveness of chemistry and temperature controls used to preclude localized and general corrosion of the tanks. Ultrasonic testing is used to detect general wall thinning, pitting and interface attack, as well as vertically oriented cracks through inspection of a 21.59 cm (8.5-in.) wide strip extending over the accessible height of the primary tank wall.

Harris, Stephen P.↗
DOE OSTI2019

Cesium Removal from AP-105 Hanford Tank Waste Using Spherical Resorcinol Formaldehyde Resin

Spherical resorcinol formaldehyde (SRF) resin is planned to be used to remove cesium (137Cs) from the aqueous phases of Hanford tank wastes in preparation for their vitrification at the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant. SRF is an elutable organic ion exchanger that is projected to be used in up to 30multiple process cycles (load/elute/regeneration) before being disposal . Only two full process cycles have been tested using SRF on Hanford tank waste. This paper describes the test results of six complete load/elute cycles using the SRF in a lead/lag column format with 12 liters of Hanford tank waste supernatant collected from Tank AP-105. The testing exposed the SRF to the combined sources of degradation: chemical attack from dissolved oxygen, nitric acid, and tank waste components; physical stress from resin expansion and contraction; and beta and gamma radiolytic exposure. Process conditions, dictated by Washington River Protection Solutions, featured loading until the lag column effluent reached 10% of the waste acceptance criteria (a Cs decontamination factor of 6,000). Under these conditions the lead column was nearly fully loaded and the lag column was loaded with about 20% of the input Cs. Variations in process flowrates and elution volumes were investigated as part of the testing. Characteristics examined included degradation with cycling, mass transfer zones as a function of flowrate, Cs leakage into the ensuing process cycle, and analyte mass fractionation.

spherical resorcincol formaldehyde, ion exchange, ↗
DOE OSTI2011

Ostwald Ripening and Its Effect on PuO2 Particle Size in Hanford Tank Waste

Between 1944 and 1989, the Hanford Site produced 60 percent (54.5 metric tons) of the United States weapons plutonium and produced an additional 12.9 metric tons of fuels-grade plutonium. High activity wastes, including plutonium lost from the separations processes used to isolate the plutonium, were discharged to underground storage tanks during these operations. Plutonium in the Hanford tank farms is estimated to be {approx}700 kg but may be up to {approx}1000 kg. Despite these apparent large quantities, the average plutonium concentration in the {approx}200 million liter tank waste volume is only about 0.003 grams per liter ({approx}0.0002 wt%). The plutonium is largely associated with low solubility metal hydroxide/oxide sludges where its low concentration and intimate mixture with neutron-absorbing elements (e.g., iron) are credited in nuclear criticality safety. However, concerns have been expressed that plutonium, in the form of plutonium hydrous oxide, PuO{sub 2} {center_dot} xH{sub 2}O, could undergo sufficient crystal growth through Ostwald ripening in the alkaline tank waste to potentially be separable from neutron absorbing constituents by settling or sedimentation. It was found that plutonium that entered the alkaline tank waste by precipitation through neutralization from acid solution is initially present as 2- to 3-nm (0.002- to 0.003-{mu}m) scale PuO{sub 2} {center_dot} xH{sub 2}O crystallite particles and grows from that point at exceedingly slow rates, posing no risk to physical segregation. These conclusions are reached by both general considerations of Ostwald ripening and specific observations of the behaviors of PuO{sub 2} and PuO{sub 2} {center_dot} xH{sub 2}O upon aging in alkaline solution.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2012

Literature Review on the Sorption of Plutonium, Uranium, Neptunium, Americium and Technetium to Corrosion Products on Waste Tank Liners

The Savannah River Site (SRS) has conducted performance assessment (PA) calculations to determine the risk associated with closing liquid waste tanks. The PA estimates the risk associated with a number of scenarios, making various assumptions. Throughout all of these scenarios, it is assumed that the carbon-steel tank liners holding the liquid waste do not sorb the radionuclides. Tank liners have been shown to form corrosion products, such as Fe-oxyhydroxides (Wiersma and Subramanian 2002). Many corrosion products, including Fe-oxyhydroxides, at the high pH values of tank effluent, take on a very strong negative charge. Given that many radionuclides may have net positive charges, either as free ions or complexed species, it is expected that many radionuclides will sorb to corrosion products associated with tank liners.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2012

Simulant Development for Hanford Double-Shell Tank Mixing and Waste Feed Delivery Testing

The U.S. Department of Energy Office of River Projection manages the River Protection Project, which has the mission to retrieve and treat the Hanford tank waste for disposal and close the tank farms (Certa et al. 2011). Washington River Protection Solutions, LLC (WRPS) is responsible for a primary objective of this mission which is to retrieve and transfer tank waste to the Hanford Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP). A mixing and sampling program with four separate demonstrations is currently being conducted to support this objective and also to support activities in a plan for addressing safety concerns identified by the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board related to the ability of the WTP to mix, sample, and transfer fast settling particles. Previous studies have documented the objectives, criteria, and selection of non-radioactive simulants for these four demonstrations. The identified simulants include Newtonian suspending liquids with densities and viscosities that span the range expected in waste feed tanks. The identified simulants also include non-Newtonian slurries with Bingham yield stress values that span a range that is expected to bound the Bingham yield stress in the feed delivery tanks. The previous studies identified candidate materials for the Newtonian and non-Newtonian suspending fluids, but did not provide specific recipes for obtaining the target properties and information was not available to evaluate the compatibility of the fluids and particles or the potential for salt precipitation at lower temperatures. The purpose of this study is to prepare small batches of simulants in advance of the demonstrations to determine specific simulant recipes, to evaluate the compatibility of the liquids and particles, and to determine if the simulants are stable for the potential range of test temperatures. The objective of the testing, which is focused primarily on the Newtonian and non-Newtonian fluids, is to determine the composition of simulant materials that give the desired density and viscosity or rheological parameters.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2013

Hanford Double-Shell Tank Inspection Annual Report - Calendar Year 2012

The double-shell tanks (DSTs) were constructed between 1968 and 1986. They will have exceeded their design life before the waste can be removed and transferred to the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant for vitrification. The Double-Shell Tank Integrity Project has been established to evaluate tank aging, and ensure that each tank is structurally sound for continued use. This is the first issue of the Double-Shell Tank Inspection Annual Report. The purpose of this issue is to summarize the results of DST inspections conducted from the beginning of the inspection program through the end of CY2012. Hereafter, the report will be updated annually with summaries of the past year's DST inspection activities.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗