Newport News Nuclear BWXT Los Alamos waste processing operators repackage materials from a legacy waste container to a new lined drum in a mock-up glovebag exercise with nonradioactive materials. Glovebags are flexible plastic containers that allow operators to use the inner gloves attached to the containers to safely handle transuranic waste inside the containers.
LOS ALAMOS, N.M. — The Environmental Management Los Alamos Field Office and cleanup contractor Newport News Nuclear BWXT-Los Alamos (N3B) recently resumed preparation of certain legacy transuranic waste at Los Alamos National Laboratory for disposal at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP).
This month, N3B resumed a process called “drill and drain” to remove free liquids and other materials from transuranic waste drums that do not meet WIPP’s waste acceptance criteria.
Transuranic waste is defined as radioactive waste containing more than 100 nanocuries of alpha-emitting transuranic isotopes per gram, with half-lives greater than 20 years. Typically, this waste consists of contaminated protective equipment, tools, debris and other materials.
Newport News Nuclear BWXT Los Alamos waste processing operators close up legacy waste containers after remediation using drill and drain and glovebag process lines.
The drill and drain process involves drilling holes in drum liners to remove free liquids and other materials. The extracted liquid is treated and then solidified using an absorbent. The solidified material and the waste are repackaged in new drums and prepared for characterization, certification and shipment. Waste characterized as transuranic waste is sent for disposal at WIPP, and mixed low-level and low-level waste is sent to offsite disposal facilities.
“The team has invested considerable effort in getting the facility, procedures and training in place to safely resume the drill and drain process,” said Brian Clayman, N3B contact-handled transuranic waste program manager. “This process allows us to remove liquids that do not meet WIPP’s waste acceptance criteria from the transuranic waste stream while maintaining our commitment to safe operations and minimizing exposure to radioactive material.”
In addition to the drill and drain process, N3B is using glovebags to enhance the safety and efficiency of waste handling. Glovebags enable operators to transfer and remediate waste materials that do not meet WIPP’s waste acceptance criteria from a legacy waste container into a new, lined drum securely without the spread of contamination. N3B has established two glovebag process lines, which are expected to significantly increase the rate at which transuranic waste can be processed and disposed of at WIPP.
Since N3B’s contract began in 2018, more than 575 cubic meters of transuranic waste have been shipped to WIPP.