Science and technology perspective

This paper looks at the waste processing program for Hanford from the perspective of science and technology. The Hanford waste processing problem is but one phase of the total defense waste problem in the country, and a small part of the total waste disposal problem of the industrial base of the country. Basic research effort on this problem will address the specific problems encountered in the forms of this waste, but will also develop technology of use to the entire industrial base of the country, while at the same time trying to benefit from technology being developed in this industrial base. The Hanford waste represents a huge financial cost in terms of its present volume, if handled by the proposed methods of grouting and vitrification. To decrease this costs technology will have to come forward with new processes which result in the overall decrease in waste volume, if not the chemical tailoring of this volume to be more amenable to these disposal methods. There must be a tradeoff in overall costs, technology development costs, treatment and disposal costs. But in general, if separations can be carried to a more developed level, the volume reductions will give cost gains which will support the effort. As technology is developed, the flow charts set up for dealing with the different waste streams will be narrowed by decisions made at different points. Adequate scientific support for these decisions will result in the minimum costs in developing eventual waste processing streams