EM Update | Vol. 5, Issue 8 | August 2013

Idaho Waste Treatment Facility Improves Worker Safety and Efficiency, Saves Taxpayer Dollars 

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho – Continual operations improvements are integral to the mission of the Idaho site’s Advanced Mixed Waste Treatment Project (AMWTP). Two recent developments in retrieval operations save taxpayer dollars and illustrate advancements in employee safety and efficiency. 

   Retrieving and repackaging degraded, decades-old wooden boxes containing waste at AMWTP is a hazard for retrieval crews with EM’s cleanup contractor, Idaho Treatment Group (ITG). Workers must retrieve and transport the boxes and safely treat and repackage them for shipment to permanent disposal sites outside Idaho. They are big, measuring 8 feet and weighing up to 4,000 pounds. About 650 boxes remain underneath an earthen berm.

The box retrieval forklift carriage lifts a degraded box as retrieval personnel monitor progress.

   Workers at AMWTP focus on the safe and compliant retrieval, characterization, treatment and shipment of Cold War waste for permanent disposal to sites outside of Idaho. They also support the receipt and processing of transuranic waste from other DOE sites for shipment to the EM's Waste Isolation Pilot Plant. Nearly all waste at AMWTP was shipped in drums and boxes to Idaho in the 1970s and early 1980s from the Department’s now-closed Rocky Flats site near Denver.

   This year, employees developed a process to simplify the retrieval of boxes. The box retrieval forklift carriage (BRFC) is a unique tool conceived by ITG retrieval employees and designed by their co-workers in the company’s radiological and engineering organizations to handle degraded boxes safely. The BRFC is mounted on the end of a fork lift that holds four of the six sides of the boxes.

   The BRFC greatly reduces the chances boxes will fall apart during retrieval, provides a more streamlined process, enhances employee safety and allows work to be completed more quickly.

   But retrieving the boxes is only part of the task. Another important project is repackaging the boxes so they can be safely removed from the retrieval area.

The new soft-sided overpack is placed for shipment for treatment and repackaging.

   In the past, AMWTP used large metal containers, called cake boxes, to overpack the boxes. Now, the workers use the new soft-sided overpack system, which improves the process of repackaging boxes.

   Based on ITG designs, this new system was manufactured by Bull Run, a Tennessee small business ITG mentors in its mentor-protégé program. Each new soft box costs about $1,600, or 60 percent less than the cost of a cake box. The new system is expected to reduce costs of the retrieval task by about $2.1 million. Retrieval operations are scheduled to end in 2015.

   Use of the soft boxes eases the packaging process and reduces steel waste. Workers had to loosen the bolts of the cake boxes and re-torque them once the boxes were inside. These steps took up to two hours to complete for each box and resulted in a large amount of low-level steel waste that was shredded and disposed.

   Under the new system, the boxes can be overpacked in as little as 30 minutes and the amount of steel used in the process has dropped by nearly 70 percent, equating to much less secondary low-level waste.

Award Spotlight Could Return to EM-Developed Technology for Tracking Shipments 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – EM’s James Shuler felt honored being named a technology innovation award finalist for developing radiofrequency identification (RFID) technology to track and monitor radioactive material shipments.

   “I was very surprised,” he said. “It’s humbling to think I’ve been selected with all these other innovative personnel.”

   Come October, the manager of DOE’s Packaging Certification Program, within EM's Office of Packaging and Transportation, will find out if he is chosen out of 19 finalists from 12 federal agencies for a Bold Award from Nextgov, an online information resource on technology and government.

James Shuler, manager of DOE’s Packaging Certification Program, within EM's Office of Packaging and Transportation, discusses the radiofrequency identification technology he developed. At left is RFID Team Leader Yung Liu, with Argonne National Laboratory.

   EM officials believe the creative technology is a win for the Department on several fronts.

   "Jim's innovation allows DOE to track and monitor radioactive material and waste shipments in real time, which has resulted in improved safety and cost savings for the Department as well as attracted a global interest for its broader impacts," EM Associate Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Alice Williams said.

   Shuler said he came up with the idea for the technology — it is named ARG-US, a reference to the mythological giant with multiple eyes — after reading articles about RFID. He soon learned the technology had not been used to track and monitor radioactive material shipments.

   “We started to talk about it and started to research. We finally figured out no one was doing what we wanted to do,” Shuler recalled. “We could see a great return on our investment for the good of the transportation, safety, safeguard and security world. We felt like we were filling a gap that needed to be filled.”

The radiofrequency identification technology EM's James Shuler developed is shown here, attached to a waste shipment.

   The Nextgov award would add to a growing list of accolades for the licensed technology. Shuler’s technology development team has won several international technology awards since 2011, from “Most Innovated Use of RFIDs,” to one of the "100 World's Best Technologies.” This year, the Association for Automatic Identification and Mobility honored the team with its first Active RFID Award, which captures successful RFID case histories of actual installations that have proven measurable benefits. DOE also briefed President Obama on the technology for last year’s World Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul, Republic of Korea.

   Nextgov’s Bold Awards honor federal employees who have taken risks to implement innovative programs that make government more effective. More than 180 people were nominated for the awards.

   Nextgov noted that the RFID technology developed by Shuler’s team saved money, improved safety and attracted global interest for its broader potential.

   Other finalists were recognized for enhancing veterans’ health care, boosting national security, saving lives during emergencies, advancing international relations, strengthening environmental protections and saving taxpayers money.

   The EM RFID technology transmits continuous, almost real-time information using radiofrequency waves from sensors bolted to the lids of the transportation packages. A remote receiver miles away receives the information for tracking and monitoring packages in transport, in-transit stops and storage. The sensors work in conjunction with the local receiver, secured computer network servers, and satellite- or cellular-based communication channels.

The original team that developed the radiofrequency identification technology to track and monitor radioactive material shipments is pictured here, left to right: Hanchung Tsai, Yung Liu, James Shuler and Kun Chen. Tsai, Liu and Chen are Argonne National Laboratory employees.

   The EM RFID technology was developed to cut costs of required, periodic leak testing of these shipment packages. The robust containers have seals to prevent leaks that are tested before shipment and replaced at least annually to ensure safety. The technology also monitors the temperature of the seals to ensure it does not exceed designated thresholds. As a result, the seals last longer and testing is needed less frequently, which lowers packaging costs complex-wide.

   Other benefits of the system include enhanced safety, safeguards, security and materials accountability. Radiation exposure is reduced by decreasing the need for manned surveillance, and users receive real-time access to data, including continuous monitoring of environmental conditions.

Hanford’s 200 West Pump and Treat System Garners Worldwide Attention 

RICHLAND, Wash. – A groundwater treatment system at the Hanford site is in the international spotlight and is being called a technological marvel.

   The 200 West Pump and Treat System pumps groundwater through wells and removes contaminants from a four-square-mile area near the center of the site in southeast Washington state. EM’s Richland Operations Office and its contractor, CH2M HILL Plateau Remediation Company, began operating the system in 2012.

The award recognized CH2M HILL for its excellence in the international water industry. CH2M HILL’s Water Business Group's International Client Sector Director Peter Nicol accepted the award from Global Water Awards Speaker and former Mexican President Vicente Fox.

   The project received The Water and Wastewater Project of the Year Distinction Award at the Global Water Summit in Seville, Spain. The event is a major gathering of water leaders worldwide. The award recognized the great innovation of the team in optimizing the physical and environmental footprint at the 200 West Pump and Treat System. Keeping the facility footprint small was part of the effort to design and build a system that would have a reduced impact on the environment while it removes tons of contaminants from Hanford’s groundwater and remediates the area of contamination.

The 200 West Pump and Treat System design and construction teams utilized energy efficient and sustainable design elements, including recycled steal. This photo shows the system’s processing equipment. Approximately 539 tons, or 5 percent, of the steel used in construction was recycled.

   The centerpiece of the treatment system is the largest groundwater treatment facility on the Hanford site. The facility is designed to treat seven major contaminants of concern: carbon tetrachloride, trichloroethylene, total chromium, hexavalent chromium, nitrates, uranium and technetium-99. The uranium treatment portion is currently being added. Following treatment, the water is injected into the aquifer to create a barrier to contain contamination and push contaminated groundwater toward the extraction wells.

Fire Department Gets New Trucks, Saves Money

RICHLAND, Wash. – Last year, the Hanford Fire Department (HFD) set out to replace its aging chemical truck used for metal fires. Originally purchased to respond to potential incidents at the Fast Flux Test Facility, the 31-year-old vehicle was at the end of its lifecycle.

   HFD learned that instead of buying a factory-built truck, it could procure two chemical skid-mounted units for about $80,000 and then mount the equipment on smaller trucks, saving approximately $325,000.

   “Having two more chem trucks increases our fire extinguishing capabilities for metal fires dramatically, while saving the taxpayer a considerable amount of money,” said Hanford Fire Chief Jeff Hawkins.

Hanford firefighters stand next to the 31-year-old chemical truck. Pictured, left to right, are Hanford Fire Lt. Robert Smith, Firefighter/Paramedic Kyle Harbert, Firefighter Don Blackburn and Capt. Sean Barajas.

   Funded by DOE, HFD provides life safety services at the 586-square-mile Hanford site in support of the safe and timely cleanup of the site. Services include fire suppression and prevention; medical and rescue response; incident command; and hazardous materials, chemical, biological, and radiological emergency response. 

   Better known in firefighter lingo as a “chem” truck, its main purpose is to put out Class D fires, or combustible metal fires. Magnesium and titanium are the most common types of metal fires, but they also include elements like liquid sodium and metal shavings leftover from plutonium production.

One of two of the Hanford Fire Department’s new chemical trucks.

   Chem trucks use a dry powder extinguishing agent and work by smothering and heat absorption. Water, which is the common extinguishing agent on most fire trucks, cannot be used effectively on a Class D fire. If water were applied to a combustible metal fire, it would accelerate the burning and add the potential for steam and hydrogen reactions and explosions, ultimately increasing the risk to a fire crew.

   HFD staff is being trained on the new chem truck apparatuses.

Oak Ridge’s EM Program Demolishes North America’s Tallest Water Tower

OAK RIDGE, Tenn. – Oak Ridge’s EM program recently demolished one of the most iconic structures at the East Tennessee Technology Park (ETTP). The 382-foot checkerboard water tower — the tallest in North America — dominated the site’s skyline since its construction in 1958.

   The K-1206 F Fire Water Tower operated as part of the site’s fire protection system, but it was drained, disconnected and permanently taken out of service on July 15. The project involved the EM program, prime cleanup contractor URS | CH2M Oak Ridge (UCOR), and subcontractors Veterans Contracting Services Group and Controlled Demolition Inc. Together, workers safely brought down the tower using controlled explosive demolition that sent the structure toppling into an empty field. 

Oak Ridge’s K-1206 F Fire Water Tower falls into an empty field during a recent demolition project.

   Without the 400,000-gallon tower, the site now relies on pumping stations to provide the necessary pressure for its fire water system. DOE will eventually transfer the system to the city of Oak Ridge, which marks another step forward in the federal agency’s goal to convert ETTP into a private sector industrial park. 

   “Removing this water tower is a significant, and very visible, step in cleaning up ETTP,” said Jim Kopotic, federal project director for the site. “Many people have worked countless hours to safely bring down this historic tower, which was one of the most visible and identifiable structures at the site. This demolition marks another major advancement in the transformation of ETTP.” 

   The tower deteriorated over the years, and after an engineering assessment conducted in 1994, EM added the structure to the list of facilities scheduled for demolition. Although it was not originally scheduled to be removed this year, DOE and UCOR accelerated the demolition schedule due to the tower’s continuing deterioration.

   “The skyline at ETTP is forever changed with the demolition of the water tower,” said Bob Smith, technical services and site support projects manager. “We are pleased that we were able to safely and expeditiously bring down this massive structure, accomplishing another major cleanup milestone at the site. This demolition project is emblematic of the cleanup and reindustrialization of the ETTP site.”

Portsmouth Site Delivers First Radioactive Waste Shipment to Disposal Facility in Texas

PIKETON, Ohio — EM’s Portsmouth site this summer sent its first shipment of mixed low-level radioactive waste from its uranium enrichment operations to Waste Control Specialists (WCS) in Andrews, Texas for treatment and disposal.

   Completing the shipment to the commercial disposal facility was a significant achievement for the site and its contractor, Fluor-B&W Portsmouth, because few alternatives exist for disposing of radioactive waste, especially when it is a mix of low-level radioactive and hazardous waste.

   “This shipment to WCS is a key part of safe cleanup of the former gaseous diffusion plant,” DOE Site Director Dr. Vince Adams said. “The work being done is another step in preparing the site for future use.”

Waste management and transportation personnel worked late to complete the first shipment to WCS. Through a contract with DOE, WCS will treat and accept potentially hazardous waste that has been at the Portsmouth site for decades. Pictured (from left) are Scott Fraser, Joe Hawes, Craig Herrmann, Jim Book, John Lee, John Perry, Josh Knipp, Melissa Dunsieth, Randy Barr, Rick Williams, Janet Harris, Maureen Fischels, Cecil McCoy, Trent Eckert, Anthony Howard and Chris Ashley.

   The shipment contained waste with uranium and chromium contaminants. Due to the presence of chromium, a hazardous waste, the material was subject to regulations and criteria of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Resource and Conservation Recovery Act (RCRA), which aims to protect human health and the environment from the potential hazards of waste disposal. Treatment is required to help ensure the RCRA contents do not leach into the environment after disposal.

   WCS, a waste processing and disposal company, has worked with DOE and the state of Texas since the late 1990s to treat mixed radioactive waste generated across the DOE complex. Until earlier this year, the waste had to be sent to other sites for disposal. But now WCS operates the licensed federal waste disposal facility on site. This new facility eliminates the need to transport the waste to an offsite disposal facility after it is treated, reducing risk to the public and environment. WCS also is closer to the Portsmouth site than other disposal facilities.

These drums containing radioactive waste from uranium enrichment operations were included in the Portsmouth site’s first shipment to WCS.

   “We have to do a cost-benefit analysis for all of the waste streams and look at safety, cost, compliance and quality to determine the best options. There are very few places in the U.S. that will take radioactive waste. WCS’s entry into the market offers us additional choices,” Fluor-B&W Transportation Manager John McCoy.

   In June, DOE officials marked the opening of the WCS facility. EM Senior Advisor Dave Huizenga and several other federal, state and local officials attended an event at WCS and witnessed the first container being placed in the new state-of-the-art facility. The DOE Los Alamos Field Office was the first to dispose of waste in the facility.

Paducah Demolition Debris Shipped for Disposition

PADUCAH, Ky. – Twenty-eight rail cars filled with debris from a major demolition project under the EM program at the Paducah site have been delivered to an offsite disposal facility.

   “Removing the remaining demolition waste from one of the most contaminated structures on site is a major accomplishment toward our cleanup mission,” DOE Paducah Project Manager Rob Seifert said.   

   Covered rail cars, called gondolas, contained 1,920 tons of steel I-beams, steel plates, piping, ductwork and equipment removed from the C-340 Metals Reduction Plant. The plant was demolished to slab in February after nearly five months of work by EM cleanup contractor LATA Environmental Services of Kentucky. Workers demobilized the site earlier this month.

   The rail cars left the fenced area of the Paducah site last month and were coupled with a Paducah & Louisville (P&L) Railway train just west of the site. The rail cars later were broken into sections, and the last shipment arrived at the commercial low-level radioactive waste disposal facility in Utah Aug. 8.

The first five-car section of demolition debris from the C-340 Metals Plant leaves the Paducah site July 15.

A P&L locomotive travels near Woodville Road, south of the Paducah site, with the waste shipment in tow.

   Better known as the Metals Plant, the facility was used to manufacture uranium metal during the Cold War and contained polychlorinated biphenyls, radionuclides and asbestos. It is the first uranium processing facility at the site to undergo full-scale demolition.

   Special steps were taken to ensure safe, efficient rail shipment:

• Large, heavy-duty liners were installed in the rail cars, which also were equipped with removable, sealable lids to keep rain out of the waste. The railcars and lids will be decontaminated at the disposal facility and returned to the Paducah site for reuse; and
• LATA Kentucky members of United Steelworkers Local 550 used heavy equipment to cut large steel sections into smaller pieces so that rail cars could accommodate more waste.

   The Metals Plant encompassed about 1.5 million cubic feet, the volume of a football field roughly three stories tall. Demolition of a single-story section was completed in mid-December, followed by removal of a four-story section. The metals plant was a seven-story, 120-foot-high structure — the tallest building at the site — and the latest to be taken down.

Contributors

Rick Dale, Idaho site

Deanna Hawkins, Hanford site

Danielle Miller, Idaho site

Dylan Nichols, Paducah site

Tania Reyes, Hanford site

Cameron Salony, Hanford site

David Sheeley, EM headquarters

Fran Smith, Oak Ridge site

Michelle Teeters, Portsmouth site

Joe Walker, Paducah site

Ben Williams, Oak Ridge site

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