Open AccessStatus Report on Phase Identification in Hanford Tank Sludges
Author(s) -
Brian M. Rapko,
Gregg J. Lumetta
Publication year - 2000
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Reports
DOI - 10.2172/965216
Subject(s) - hanford site , waste management , leaching (pedology) , environmental science , vitrification , hazardous waste , municipal solid waste , chemistry , radioactive waste , engineering , medicine , soil science , andrology , soil water
The U.S. Department of Energy plans to vitrify Hanford's underground storage tank wastes. The vitrified wastes will be divided into low-activity and high-level fractions. There is an effort to reduce the quantity of high-activity wastes by removing nonradioactive components because of the high costs involved in treating high-level waste. Pretreatment options, such as caustic leaching, to selectively remove nonradioactive components are being investigated. The effectiveness of these proposed processes for removing nonradioactive components depends on the chemical phases in the tank sludges. This review summarizes the chemical phases identified to date in Hanford tank sludges