Characterization of the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) Environmental Assessment (EA) glass standard reference material

Abstract

Liquid high-level nuclear waste at the Savannah River Site (SRS) will be immobilized by vitrification in borosilicate glass. The glass will be produced and poured into stainless steel canisters in the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF). Other waste form producers, such as West Valley Nuclear Services (WVNS) and the Hanford Waste Vitrification Project (HWVP), will also immobilize high-level radioactive waste in borosilicate glass. The canistered waste will be stored temporarily at each facility for eventual permanent disposal in a geologic repository. The Department of Energy has defined a set of requirements for the canistered waste forms, the Waste Acceptance Preliminary Specifications (WAPS). The current Waste Acceptance Preliminary Specification (WAPS) 1.3, the product consistency specification, requires the waste form producers to demonstrate control of the consistency of the final waste form using a crushed glass durability test, the Product Consistency Test (PC'T). In order to be acceptable, a waste glass must be more durable during PC'I' analysis than the waste glass identified in the DWPF Environmental Assessment (EA). In order to supply ali the waste form producers with the same standard benchmark glass, 1000 pounds of the EA glass was fabricated. The chemical analyses and characterization of the benchmark EA glass are reported. This material is now available to act as a durability, analytic, and/or redox Standard Reference Material (SRM) for ali waste form producers.

Development of Glass Compositions to Immobilize Alkali, Alkaline Earth, Lanthanide and Transition Metal Fission Products from Nuclear Fuel Reprocessing

“…Similar to values reported in previous LaBS glass studies, the PCT release values were extremely low (<0.08 g/L) [6][7]. This is compared to the baseline reported value for repository acceptance of EA glass at an average normalized boron release of 16.695 [8]. In almost all cases for Option 1, normalized elemental releases were below the measurement detection limit.…”

International Studies of Enhanced Waste Loading and Improved Melt Rate for High Alumina Concentration Nuclear Waste Glasses

“…Included in the experimental test matrix was the Environmental Assessment (EA) glass, which is used for comparison to assure acceptable durability. 5 Glass samples were ground, washed, and prepared according to the ASTM procedure. At the completion of the 7-day test, the solutions were sampled (filtered and acidified) and analyzed by Inductively Coupled Plasma -Atomic Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-AES).…”

“…All of the glasses had NL [B] values that are well below that of the EA reference glass (16.695 g/L). 5 This indicates that these glasses would be acceptable for disposal in the federal repository. The PCT results also indicate that the crystallization (spinels) identified in the glasses does not have a significant impact on their chemical durability.…”

Characterization and Performance of Fluidized Bed Steam Reforming (FBSR) Product as a Final Waste form

“…A standard glass, the EA glass [5], with a known and reproducible REDOX, was used during the analysis for quality assurance.…”

“…The PCT-A test was run for 7 days at 90°C in stainless steel vessels. Triplicate samples were tested along with two standard glasses; the ARM-1 standard and the Environmental Assessment (EA) glass [5] standard used to assess the durability of HLW vitrified waste forms. Testing of the FBSR final waste form using the EPA TCLP protocol was performed by Evergreen Analytical, an EPA certified laboratory, under subcontract to TTT.…”