Hot isostatic press waste option study report

A Settlement Agreement between the Department of Energy and the State of Idaho mandates that all high-level radioactive waste now stored at the Idaho Chemical Processing Plant be treated so that it is ready to move out of Idaho for disposal by the target date of 2035. This study investigates the immobilization of all Idaho Chemical Processing Plant calcine, including calcined sodium bearing waste, via the process known as hot isostatic press, which produces compact solid waste forms by means of high temperature and pressure (1,050 C and 20,000 psi), as the treatment method for complying with the settlement agreement. The final waste product would be contained in stainless-steel canisters, the same type used at the Savannah River Site for vitrified waste, and stored at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory until a national geological repository becomes available for its disposal. The waste processing period is from 2013 through 2032, and disposal at the High Level Waste repository will probably begin sometime after 2065