  Alpha-2 is the Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management’s largest demolition to date at the Y-12 National Security Complex. The former uranium enrichment facility dates to the Manhattan Project and spans more than 2.5 acres.
OAK RIDGE, Tenn. — The U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management (OREM) and cleanup contractor UCOR have achieved a significant milestone on the biggest demolition project to date at the Y-12 National Security Complex.
Crews have safely brought down the south side of the Alpha-2 building. The structure is approximately the length of a football field and spans 2.5 acres. With the latest progress, workers have removed 34,000 square feet of the 325,000-square-foot facility since beginning the teardown last fall.
“Safely and successfully removing this portion of the building is a crucial first step as we work to accomplish the largest demolition project yet at Y-12,” said OREM Project Manager Morgan Carden. “Removal of the south side gives our crews more room to work with in a very tight footprint. These crews have made outstanding progress and preparations are underway to keep that momentum going.”
 Crews began demolition of the Alpha-2 building in fall 2024, and they have already removed 34,000 square feet from the 325,000-square-foot facility.
Constructed in 1944, Alpha-2 originally conducted uranium enrichment operations as part of the Manhattan Project.
Today, the structure is categorized as a high-risk excess contaminated facility due to its contents and level of deterioration. Its removal eliminates risks, modernizes the site and clears land to support national security missions.
“Because Y-12 is an active production complex, being able to bring this section down gives us more breathing room as we prepare to continue demolition on the rest of the structure,” said UCOR Y-12 Cleanup Area Project Manager Larry Brede. “We’ve made great progress and look forward to embarking on the next phase of demolition.”
 Teams have successfully cleared away the south side of the Alpha-2 facility. The structure is approximately the length of a football field. Next, crews will address the northeast portion and high bay area of the facility.
A major accomplishment that has helped facilitate this project, and others in the future, is the completion of a yearlong utilities reroute project.
Workers rerouted all piping systems to isolate them from the Alpha-2 building. This separation of active systems is crucial for ensuring demolition efforts do not impact the facilities and piping systems supporting Y-12’s ongoing operations.
The northeast portion and high bay of Alpha-2 are the next areas scheduled for demolition. Due to the height of the structure, employees must assemble special high-reach equipment in coming weeks to conduct the next phases of the teardown.
The Alpha-2 demolition is slated for completion in 2027.
-Contributor: Carol Hendrycks
 Idaho Cleanup Project crews with the Calcine Disposition Project watch as robotics equipment is tested remotely inside a full-scale replica of a calcine bin set. The technology will aid the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management mission to retrieve 4,400 cubic meters of calcine waste stored at the Idaho National Laboratory Site.
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho — A robot central to innovative methods Idaho Cleanup Project crews are developing to retrieve calcine, a granular solid waste, has successfully demonstrated its proficiency.
The team recently launched a new technology and equipment test at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Site to prove the capability of remote-handled robotics to properly weld access points in the Calcined Solids Storage Facilities, where 4,400 cubic meters of calcine waste is stored. The robot passed the test.
All calcine waste must be removed from the state for permanent disposal under an agreement with the State of Idaho. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) had converted liquid, high-level radioactive waste into calcine, which is similar in consistency to sand, until those operations ended in 2000. The waste was created during historic spent nuclear fuel reprocessing runs at the Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center.
Workers transferred the calcine to large, stainless steel bins encased in six concrete vaults called bin sets. Due to the design of one of the six bin sets, called bin set 1, crews must install a nearly 20-foot long, 8-inch diameter pipe, or access riser, to retrieve the granular waste.
Mechanical Engineer Jeremiah Voss explained the importance of the robotics equipment to the overarching mission of the Calcine Disposition Project and DOE Office of Environmental Management (EM) contractor Idaho Environmental Coalition.
“Our mission is to retrieve calcine, a challenging feat because the oldest bin sets were not designed to allow for material removal,” said Voss. “What we accomplish through these tests is essential to demonstrating that EM can achieve that mission."
 Calcine, a granular solid waste converted from a high-level radioactive liquid waste, is stored in stainless steel bins encased in six concrete vaults called bin sets. The bin sets, shown here in blue and green, are located at the Idaho National Laboratory Site’s Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center.
During the test, conducted at a full-scale replica of bin set 1, engineers and operators used the robot, operated remotely from a centralized control, to connect an access riser pipe segment to a steel plate and then cut the steel plate.
In practice, the robot is designed to travel down the 20-foot pipe and weld it to the bins. Once the weld is complete, the same robot is fitted with equipment to cut a hole into the bins at the welded point of the pipe.
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A robot was designed to weld an access riser pipe, pictured, to stainless steel bins in a bin set at the Calcined Solids Storage Facilities. The robot completed a successful weld and cut during testing. |
Voss was encouraged by the results of the test, which included several successful welds and cuts by the robot.
“We gained a lot of valuable information from the test and saw that the technology functioned the way we had hoped it would,” said Voss. “Going forward, we know what steps we need to take to improve the robot design and to better prepare for actual retrieval of calcine at the bin sets.”
The project team will perform more extensive integrated tests to closely imitate the process to be performed at the bin sets.
-Contributor: Carter Harrison
EM highlights the contributions of five engineers we’ve interviewed across the cleanup complex for National Engineers Week.
Editor's Note: Founded by the National Society of Professional Engineers in 1951, National Engineers Week is dedicated to ensuring a well-educated future engineering workforce by increasing understanding of and interest in engineering and technology careers. Engineers Week is from Feb. 16-22.
 When did you begin working at the site and what got you interested in the cleanup mission?
I began my career at the DOE Savannah River Operations Office in 2021, working as a facility engineer at the Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF). DOE offered great opportunities to build onto my previous commercial nuclear industry experience and allowed me to add value to the cleanup mission. Additionally, DOE offered new and exciting opportunities to work with very technical individuals in technology development and environmental remediation.
Can you tell us a little about a project you have worked on?
The SWPF is a newer facility that processes about 90% of the legacy radioactive liquid waste, generated in the 1950s from the Savannah River Site nuclear material production operations. As a facility engineer, I was able to work in collaboration with the contractor on numerous optimization projects, review and approve safety basis updates, and provide oversight to help increase facility throughput and aid in the overall cleanup mission, scheduled to be completed by 2037.
How is your expertise making an impact on an EM project, or the mission in general?
Having a diverse background in chemical and mechanical engineering, along with years of commercial nuclear experience, has allowed me to provide technical expertise and oversight to help accelerate the cleanup mission. I have since taken on additional oversight roles, overseeing work at the Saltstone Production & Disposal Facility and Effluent Treatment Facility, all of which play an intricate role in the overall cleanup mission.
How do you measure team success?
Team success is measured by the accomplishments the team has made over a given period of time, having worked together to achieve milestones or resolve complex issues to help improve the overall process. A great example would be the complex work performed by the SWPF Optimization Team, improving facility processes, to get closer to the target cleanup rates needed to meet the cleanup mission target completion date. The SWPF Optimization Team’s hard work was recognized by being awarded with the 2024 Secretary’s Honor Award.
 Bechtel National Inc. Manager Joni Weamer practices using a whole-body monitor to check for radiation during training at the Hanford Site’s Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant.
RICHLAND, Wash. — Workers at the Hanford Site’s Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant are sporting a new accessory for the first time: radiological dosimeters. These small devices worn on workers’ clothing measure radiation exposure. Their use is another visible sign of how close the project is to processing tank waste into an immobilized form safe for disposal.
“We are preparing to introduce radiological and chemical waste into the plant,” said Mat Irwin, Hanford’s assistant manager for the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant Project. “These early preparations help the team become proficient in radiological operations and requirements while reinforcing a nuclear operations safety culture prior to receiving the actual waste.”
During plant operations, specially designed underground pipes will transfer radiological and chemical waste from Hanford’s large underground tanks to the plant’s Low-Activity Waste Facility. There, in a process called vitrification, the waste will be mixed with glass-forming materials and heated to 2,100 degrees Fahrenheit inside one of two large melters, then poured into stainless steel containers for safe disposal.
 Bechtel National Inc. Manager Joni Weamer practices putting on and taking off protective clothing during radiological worker training at the Hanford Site’s Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant.
Workers have also added new contamination and radiation signage at the Low-Activity Waste Facility. The new postings help employees grow accustomed to the hazard warnings and restrictions before plant operations begin.
The plant’s Radiological Controls team has created new programs to help workers develop proficiency in radiation safety, and weekly computer-based and hands-on learning simulations.
“The shift to radiological operations will be a significant change in our operations and safety culture, and we are preparing the people, plant and paper for this milestone,” said Chris Musick, general manager for Waste Treatment Completion Company, the main subcontractor for Bechtel National Inc., the prime contractor designing, building and commissioning the plant. “The proficiency phase symbolizes the real progress made by our team in moving closer to full plant operations later this year.”
 Owensboro High School Team #1 members Kaleb Horn, second from left, and Landon Black, second from right, discuss an answer to a toss-up question during the U.S. Department of Energy West Kentucky Regional Science Bowl for area high schools.
Portsmouth Paducah Project Office Employees, Contractors Support Annual Event
PADUCAH, Ky. — Owensboro High School Team #1 recently won this year’s U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) West Kentucky Regional Science Bowl, culminating months of planning by volunteers and coaches for an event touted as the region’s most prominent science competition for high school students.
The 17th annual event was sponsored and organized by DOE Office of Environmental Management (EM) Portsmouth/Paducah Project Office employees and contractors. More than 120 volunteers serve as moderators, judges, technical advisors and scorekeepers.
 U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Environmental Management Portsmouth Paducah Project Office (PPPO) Paducah Site Lead April Ladd, far left, and PPPO Program Analyst Robert “Buz” Smith, far right, pose with DOE West Kentucky Regional Science Bowl champion Owensboro High School Team #1 members, from left, Landon Block, Kaleb Horn, Madelyn Haysely, Kaden Blankenship, Tiara Campbell Newton and coach Marcie Baldwin.
The five-member team from Owensboro High School is set to compete in DOE’s National Science Bowl finals in Washington, D.C., from April 24 to 28.
"The Owensboro team demonstrated exceptional talent and dedication to win this year’s West Kentucky Regional Science Bowl," EM Paducah Site Lead April Ladd said. "This competition highlights the remarkable abilities of our region’s students and the incredible commitment of volunteers and coaches who make this event possible. We are excited to see the team represent our region at the National Science Bowl in Washington, D.C."
 U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Portsmouth Paducah Project Office (PPPO) Paducah Site Lead April Ladd, far left, and PPPO Program Analyst Robert “Buz” Smith, far right, pose with DOE West Kentucky Regional Science Bowl runner-up Madisonville North Hopkins High School Team #1, from left, Albany Ray, River McDurmon, Kaylee Brandon, EJ Williams and coach Linda Gigliette.
The regional tournament is a quick-recall, fast-paced, question-and-answer contest. During the competition, high school students are quizzed on their knowledge of biology, chemistry, Earth and space, energy, mathematics and physics.
Madisonville North Hopkins High School Team #1 finished second and Marshall County High School took third place in the regional competition.
“When we came here three years ago, we never expected to one day walk away as the regional champions and go to Washington, D.C., to the National Science Bowl,” Owensboro High School Team #1 Coach Marcie Baldwin said. “Thank you so much to DOE for this wonderful opportunity for our students to excel in competition and life.”
 U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Portsmouth Paducah Project Office (PPPO) Paducah Site Lead April Ladd, far left, and PPPO Program Analyst Robert “Buz” Smith, far right, pose with DOE West Kentucky Regional Science Bowl second-runner-up Marshall County High School Team, from left, Dustin Sanders, Jerry Hall, Anastasiia Lisovska, Boston English and coach Shelley McGregor.
Also competing in this year’s regional match were Kentucky’s Ballard Memorial, Calloway County, Christian County, Fulton County, Graves County, Hopkinsville, McCracken County, and Murray high schools, and St. Mary School System. Cairo Senior and Massac County high schools from Illinois participated as well.
The first-place high school team in the regional tournament will receive $1,200 for its school.
DOE created the National Science Bowl in 1991 to encourage students to excel in mathematics and science and to pursue careers in those fields. More than 344,000 students have participated in the annual event — one of the nation’s largest science competitions — throughout its 34-year history.
 Representatives from Cattaraugus County and West Valley Demonstration Project cleanup contractor CH2M HILL BWXT West Valley (CHBWV) pose for a photo inside the Cattaraugus County Department of Public Works facility. From left, county Public Works Deputy Commissioner Mike Prinino; County Administrator Jack Searles; county Highway Engineer Mark Warner; and CHBWV President Jason Casper. Not pictured is county Engineering Director Bill Fox.
WEST VALLEY, N.Y. — The cleanup team at the West Valley Demonstration Project recognized the Cattaraugus County Department of Public Works for its partnership to ensure the site promptly received required permits for special oversized waste shipments for offsite disposal. West Valley also acknowledged the county for road improvements near the site and other infrastructure in the community and surrounding towns.
The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management and cleanup contractor CH2M HILL BWXT West Valley (CHBWV) honored the department and highlighted two employees in its Engineering Division — Highway Engineer Mark Warner and Engineering Director Bill Fox — for their work with CHBWV’s Waste Management Operations on the permits and improvements. West Valley is located in the county.
“The transportation of these specialty shipments happened because of the help we received from the Public Works Department and their Engineering Division,” CHBWV President Jason Casper said. “We are glad to be a partner with the county and look forward to our continued work together as we fulfill our cleanup mission.”
As part of its Main Plant Process Building deconstruction and legacy waste disposition projects, the site transported heavy oversized shipments offsite for safe disposal. Some of the items, such as a waste tank pump, required heavily shielded specialty containers and heavy-duty tractor trailers to transport them, necessitating permits due to their size and weight.
“The Cattaraugus County Department of Public Works is pleased to continue supporting the cleanup efforts of the West Valley Demonstration Project,” said Mike Prinino, the county department’s deputy commissioner. “We appreciate this honor and recognize all the county employees who tirelessly work to keep our highway infrastructure ready to support this endeavor.”
RICHLAND, Wash. — Crews at the Hanford Site recently tackled a unique challenge with moving a 70-ton crane needing repairs. Before the heavy lift, departments with U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management contractor Hanford Mission Integration Solutions developed a plan to move the 24-year-old crane. They used two 80-ton cranes to carefully lift the 70-ton crane onto a trailer for repair at Hanford’s fleet maintenance shop.
Watch this video to see how crews completed this complex lift.
-Contributor: Alison Manka
AIKEN, S.C. — Contractors supporting the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Environmental Management (EM) at the Savannah River Site (SRS) hosted the Department's Packaging Certification Program, delivering a cutting-edge course in collaboration with Los Alamos National Laboratory.
The weeklong course, "Use of Certified Type B and Fissile Packages," was hosted by Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS) Packaging & Transportation Engineering and Savannah River National Laboratory’s (SRNL) Packaging Technology group. Type B and fissile packages are highly engineered shipping containers certified to transport high quantities of radioactive and fissile materials.
The course attracted experts from the SRS and SRNL workforce as well as Argonne, Oak Ridge, and Idaho national laboratories, and the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA).
Safe packaging and transportation of materials is critical to the success of DOE operations. EM's Office of Packaging & Transportation manages the Packaging Certification Program. The office supports field sites in achieving safe transportation through development and management of policy, oversight programs, automated tools and collaborative forums.
In addition to offering routine training for radioactive packaging activities, the Packaging Certification Program provides guidance for preparing safety analysis reports for packaging; reviews and approves packaging designs; issues DOE certificates of compliance; curtails and suspends use of specific packages, when warranted; and reviews and approves quality assurance programs for Type B and fissile materials packaging.
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A course titled, "Use of Certified Type B and Fissile Packages," from the U.S. Department of Energy Package Certification Program provided participants with practical experience at the Savannah River Site. From left: Pat Lira and Josiah Valenzuela with Savannah River Nuclear Solutions, and John Brookshire and Thomas Heusel with Savannah River National Laboratory. |
SRS Transportation Safety Basis Regulatory Authority Andrew Escobar was instrumental in bringing the program to SRS. He discussed the advantages of offering this training locally, addressing key needs for waste packaging users in areas like packaging and transportation procedure development, content evaluation and hands-on exercises.
“Since May 2023, I’ve been in talks with Los Alamos to bring this valuable training to SRS personnel, a strategic move to help decentralize expertise and reduce travel costs,” Escobar said. “This course not only advances our technical capabilities at SRS but also reinforces the site's commitment to cost effective solutions, employee retention and collaborative progress within the greater DOE complex.”
By conducting the training at SRS, the course provided attendees with practical experience through exercises at locations such as SRNL’s Packaging Test Facility.
“The course brought together various stakeholders to plan, deliver and share best practices. This unique integration provides a classroom environment that will improve the development, execution and management of packaging and transportation processes,” said SRNL’s Lynh Nguyen. “It was great to see SRNS and SRNL work together to bring better solutions to the site.”
Participants learned about the legal framework for transporting radioactive materials and operations within nuclear facilities. They also learned to systematically characterize radioactive materials, select appropriate and compliant packaging and develop packaging procedures. Moreover, the course emphasized the importance of a safety analysis report for packaging and quality assurance in packaging and transportation processes.
“This opportunity would not have been possible without the various organizations at SRNS identifying a need and thinking outside the box on how to continuously improve,” said Rich Zaharek, SRNS senior vice president, chief engineer and nuclear safety officer. “To meet DOE and NNSA missions, we must continue to engage and educate the next generation of the workforce to become experts in the field.”
For additional course information, visit the Radioactive Material Packaging (RAMPAC) website. To inquire about future courses, contact the DOE Packaging Certification Program Docket Manager Lawrence Gelder at 803-645-3490, or email RAMPAC@srs.gov.
-Contributor: Mackenzie McNabb
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