The Fernald Closure Project (FCP), formerly known as the Fernald Environmental Management Project (FEMP) and the Feed Materials Production Center, is a 1050-acre Department of Energy (DOE) facility located approximately 18 miles northwest of Cincinnati. Fernald, Ohio is a small rural community located just south of the FCP. The FCP is a government-owned facility that operated from 1952 to 1989 providing in excess of 500 million pounds of high-purity uranium metal products in support of U.S. Defense initiatives. In 1992 the site was renamed the Fernald Environmental Management Project and the mission was formally changed to environmental restoration under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), commonly known as Superfund. Its current name, the Fernald Closure Project, was adopted in 2003 to reflect a continuing emphasis on the completion of restoration activities and achieving the final closure end state safely and efficiently. Silo 3, located on the western periphery of the site, is an unbermed concrete silo that contains approximately 5,088 cubic yards of cold metal oxides, a by-product material generated during Fernald's uranium processing operations. The materials contained in Silo 3 consist of relatively dry, powder-like residues that were placed in the silo from 1954 to 1957. The residues consist of the metallic and non-metallic impurities that remained following the extraction of uranium from ore and ore concentrates in Fernald's refinery operations during the mid-1950s. The residues were prepared for storage following a volume reduction and concentration step known as calcining, which is a roasting process in the presence of lime that serves to remove moisture and convert the impurities to their more stable (less teachable) oxide form. Following calcining, the dry residues were pneumatically conveyed to Silo 3 for longer-term interim storage as part of DOE's ongoing custodial responsibility for the materials. The Silo 3 residues are designated as Section lle.(2) byproduct materials under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended. As lle.(2) byproduct materials, the residues are statutorily excluded from the definition of solid and hazardous waste under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). Although Silo 3 material is statutorily excluded from formal RCRA hazardous waste definitions and administrative requirements, the Silo 3 residues do contain sufficient quantities of four RCRA regulated metals (arsenic, cadmium, chromium, and selenium) such that they can exceed RCRA thresholds for teachability as measured through the RCRA TCLP laboratory test. The predominant radionuclide of concern identified within the material is thorium-230, which is produced from the natural decay of uranium-238. The overall objective of the Silo 3 remedial action is to safely retrieve the residues from the concrete silo by both pneumatic and mechanical processes, condition the waste to reduce its dispersability and reduce teachability of RCRA heavy metals and package and transport the materials for off-site disposal. MHF-LS was contracted by Fluor Fernald to provide the mechanic packaging handling system, the software operating system and US Department of Transportation (USDOT) specified packaging to remove the Silo 3 material. This paper provides details on all aspects of the project. The package handling system utilized "off the shelf" components that were customized to create a virtually dust free environment for the packaging radioactive materials. The system was designed in accordance with the Conveyor Equipment Manufacturer Associations (CEMA) requirements. All pneumatic components were UL rated and meet the standards set fourth by the National Fluid Power Association (NFPA). All electrical devices were designed in accordance with the National Electric Manufacturer Association (NEMA) requirements. The entire system met Fluor Fernald's Quality Level
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