Hanford defense waste separation options

This paper discusses the Hanford Site, which is located in south-central Washington, is a Department of Energy (DOE) installation that began production of nuclear materials for national defense during World War II. Since that time, Hanford has dedicated its resources to defense nuclear materials production, research, and defense nuclear waste management. These activities have generated tank wastes in the form of liquid, slurry, sludge, and salt cake; encapsulated cesium and strontium; dry solid waste; and contaminated soil. Since 1971, newly generated waste has been sorted in under ground, concrete-encased double-shell tanks (DSTs). Twenty-eight DSTs were installed between 1970 and 1985, each having a capacity of 3,800 m3 (1 million gal.). By 1981, to lessen the potential risk to the environment via tank leakage, large quantities of liquid waste had been removed from SSTs and placed into DSTs