Slag cement - low-level waste forms at the Savannah River Plant

A cement based waste form is being designed for disposal of Savannah River Plant low-level radioactive waste salt. The disposal process includes emplacing the saltstone in engineered trenches. The waste form (matrix) must exhibit reasonable physical/mechanical properties with minimal leaching of the contained waste salts (1). As part of a program carried out at PSU/MRL to optimize properties of the waste form (2), formulations containing low-calcium fly ash and granulated blast furnace slag with and without portland cement have been tested and the data compared with those of other mixes containing either low- or high-calcium fly ash and no slag. The results of physical/mechanical testing, leach tests, chemical characterization, and adiabatic heat of hydration are presented. Included is a review of the alkali-activated slag hydration process. 12 refs., 21 figs., 10 tabs