Open AccessRemoval of the Materials Test Reactor overhead working reservoir
Author(s) -
B.C. Lunis
Publication year - 1975
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Reports
DOI - 10.2172/4154299
Subject(s) - waste management , environmental science , radioactive waste , fission products , explosive material , nuclear engineering , overhead (engineering) , gallon (us) , plutonium , contamination , uranium , overhead crane , engineering , radiochemistry , materials science , chemistry , ecology , electrical engineering , organic chemistry , structural engineering , metallurgy , biology
Salient features of the removal of an excessed contaminated facility, the Materials Test Reactor (MTR) overhead working reservoir (OWR) from the Test Reactor Area to the Radioactive Waste Management Complex at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory are described. The 125-ton OWR was an overhead 160,000- gallon-capacity tank approximately 193 feet high which supplied cooling water to the MTR. Radiation at ground level beneath the tank was 5 mR/hr and approximately 600 mR/hr at the exterior surface of the tank. Sources ranging from 3 R/hr to in excess of 500 R/hr exist within the tank. The tank interior is contaminated with uranium, plutonium, and miscellaneous fission products. The OWR was lowered to ground level with the use of explosive cutters. Dismantling, decontamination, and disposal were performed by Aerojet Nuclear Company maintenance forces. (auth