THE APPLICATION OF COMMERCIAL THERMAL DRYING TECHNOLOGY IN THE PROCESSING,TRANSPORTATION,AND DISPOSAL OF THE WASTE PITS AT FERNALD

摘要

The Fernald Closure Project(FCP)is the site of the former Department of Energy(DOE)Feed Material Production Center,which operated from 1952 to 1989 producing high purity uranium metal products.The liquid and solid wastes that were generated by the various chemical and metallurgical processes were disposed in the Waste Pits area of the facility.The 759,440 cubic yards(580,634 m~3 )of material contained within the Waste Pits area was designated for excavation,thermal removal of free water,and transportation to an off-site commercial disposal facility. rnThis paper will provide an overview,technical description,and current status of progress in the application of a commercially financed,constructed,and managed facility installed at Fernald to process and transport the Waste Pits material.The facility and process was required to meet multiple performance requirements,including applicable DOE orders,standard industrial codes, Department of Transportation(DOT)regulations,and the off-site disposal facility acceptance criteria.The application of two(2)natural gas-fired rotary calciners,supported by a wet-gas cleaning system,water treatment system,and material handling/railcar loadout facility will result (upon completion)in the successful disposition of over 850,000 tons(771,107 metric tons)of material to an off-site commercial disposal facility.The facility has overcome technical challenges in the execution of the process,including high variability in the characteristics of the material,evolution of organics in the processing of the material,and the control of airborne contamination in the handling of the material.Each of these was met through the prudent application of available technology,operational experience,and open partnerships between contractors and agency interests. rnSpecifically reviewed in this paper is(1)the use of commercial rotary calciner technology in the drying process,(2)the application of wet-scrubbing,electrostatic precipitation,High-Efficiency Particulate(HEPA)filtration,and thermal oxidation in the gas cleaning process,and(3)the management of airborne contamination in the material handling activities.