Destruction of DOE/DP surrogate wastes with supercritical water oxidation technology

Surrogate wastes of specific interest to DOE/DP production facilities (Hanford and Rocky Flats), and the electronics industry have been successfully processed in a laboratory-scale, supercritical water oxidation flow reactor. In all cases, the observed destruction/reduction efficiencies for the organic components were in excess of 99.9%, limited by instrumentation detection capability. Separation of the inorganic components of the Hanford process stream was more difficult to accomplish than destruction of the organic component. Large fractions of all metals contained in this stream were found both in the solids separator effluent and in deposits removed from the reactor. Mass closure was not achieved. Of the process stream's non-metallic, inorganic components, the sulfates and phosphates precipitated, while the nitrates tended to stay in solution. The inorganic material that did precipitate from the simulated Hanford mixed waste accumulated in zones that may be associated with changes in the chemical and physical properties of the supercritical fluid. Corrosion is expected to be a significant problem. Witness wires of Inconel 625, Hastalloy C-276, and titanium placed in the preheater, reactor and cooldown exchanger indicated selective dissolution of chromium, nickel, and molybdenum for some conditions, and non-selective dissolution for others. While these results are very promising, further research is required to evaluate the scalability, reliability, and economics of SCWO reactor components and systems, particularly for mixed wastes. Future research must explore a parameter space (temperature, pressure, pH, residence time, etc.) focused on selecting conditions and materials for specific process streams