The design, construction, and operation of the Integrated Radwaste Treatment System (IRTS) Drum Cell

This report describes the design, construction, and the operation of the Integrated Radwaste Treatment Systems (IRTS) Drum Cell at the West Valley Demonstration Project (WVDP), West Valley, New York. The IRTS Drum Cell was designed to provide a shielded, secure storage area for the remote handling and placement of low-level Class C radioactive waste produced in the IRTS. The Drum Cell was designed to contain up to approximately 8,804 drums from decontaminated supernatant processing. This waste is to be poured into 0.27m3 in a temperature controlled environment to ensure the cement will not be subjected to freezing and thawing cycles. A Temporary Weather Structure (TWS), a pre-engineered building, now encloses the Drum Cell and associated equipment so that remote waste-handling and placement operations can continue without regard to weather conditions. The Drum Cell was designed so that this TWS could be removed and the low-level waste entombed in place. Final disposition of this low-level waste is currently being evaluated in an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). 10 refs., 11 figs., 1 tab