UCOR is implementing an innovative solution for treating and disposing of sodium shields. These shields have proved to be one of the most challenging legacy waste streams from Oak Ridge’s nuclear research history.
The shields were constructed during the height of radiation shielding research activities in the 1960s and 1970s. They were used at ORNL’s Tower Shielding Facility to conduct pioneering measurements of neutron transport through various shielding configurations.
The promising solution will transform the reactive metals in the shields into a stable glass form using a process known as vitrification. Veolia Nuclear Solution will size reduce and perform vitrification of the shields using its GeoMelt® technology at its facility in Andrews, Texas. The demonstration project will initially process seven of the 43 shields currently stored on the Oak Ridge Reservation. The first shields will be shipped next month.
Shipment of the shields requires a special Department of Transportation (DOT) permit. Under current regulations, there is no DOT-approved package that can be used for compliant transport of sodium shields due to their mass, volume, and configuration. Subject matter experts in OREM and UCOR spent several months developing a packaging strategy and safety analysis in support of the special permit application, which was approved in May.
Clint Mori, UCOR’s Manager of Difficult Waste Streams, said Veolia’s EPA-approved vitrification treatment technology potentially establishes a disposal path for handling similar reactive metal legacy waste streams across the DOE complex.
