(18h) Treatment of the Sodium Bearing Waste at the Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center by Steam Reforming

There is approximately one million gallons of liquid radioactive mixed waste remaining in three underground tanks at the Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center (INTEC), which is located at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL). The treatment method chosen for this waste is the THOR® steam reforming process. The process will convert the waste to a carbonate solid, package the solids in RH-72B containers, store the containers, and ship the containers to WIPP. The facility, which is called the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit (IWTU), will be designed to also package the waste calcine that is currently stored at INTEC for shipment to Yucca Mountain. After the liquid radioactive waste has been processed, which will take about 15 months; a TRU drum treatment process will be installed and operated. This process will use an autoclave with an inert atmosphere to pyrolyze the drum contents and then treat the off-gas using the THOR® steam reforming process. This process can be used on drums that do not currently meet the WIPP acceptance criteria because they contain free liquids, containers over 4 liters in capacity, or unacceptable levels of organics.

The preliminary design of the facility has been completed and final design is underway. A one-tenth scale pilot plant has been built and will be operated to provide data for the final design and permit application. The status of the design and how the pilot plant test results were factored into the design will be presented.