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MICROCOPY RESOLUTION TEST CHART
NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS - 1963
ORNL P-3229
Conf. 6702.j.
RECEIVED BY DTIE AUG 29.1967
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MASTER
"Problems and Successes in the First Major
Maintenance Performed in the Transuranium Processing Plant"
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by
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J. L. Matherne.
E. D. Collins
W. W. Evans
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LEGAL NOTICE
This report was propured as an account of Government sponsored work. Nolther the United
States, nor the Commissior, nor any person acting on behalf of the Commission:
A. Makos any warranty or representation, expressed or implied, with respect to the accu-
racy, completeness, or usefulness of the information contained in this roport, or that the wo
of any information, apparatus, mothod, or process disclosed in this report may not infringe
privately owned rights; or
B. Assumes any liabilities with respect to the use of, or for damages resulting from the
uso of any information, apparatus, mothod, or process disclosed in thio roport.
As used in the abova, "person acting on behalf of the Commission" includes any on-
ployer or contractor of the Commission, or employee of such contractor, to the extent that
such employee or contractor of the Commission, or employee of such contractor prepares,
disseminates, or provides accouo to, any Information pursuant to bli omployment or contract
with the Commission, or bio employment with such contractor,
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"Research sponsored by the Atomic Energy Commission under contract
with the Union Carbide Corporation.
DISTRIBUTION OF THIS DOCUMENT IS UNLIMITED
"Problems and Successes in the First Major
Maintenance Performed in the Transuranium Processing Plant"
J. L. Matherne, E. D. Collins, and W. W. Evans
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Oak Ridge, Tennessee
Abstract
Major 'maintenance that was performed after seven months of
operation demonstrated that we could successfully handle all the
maintenance problems and techniques that are expected to be
encountered in the foreseeable future in the Transuranium Processing
Plant.
The equipment racks in one procèssing cubicle were l'emoved and
modified, and extensive revisions and replacements were made in the
corresponding tank pit. The maintenance was accomplished without
significant mechanical, radiation, or contamination problems, and the
facility was returned to full-scale operation.
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Introduction
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The Transuranium Processing Plant (TRU) at Oak Ridge National
Laboratory is operated in conjunction with the High Flux Isotope Reactor
(HFIR) to provide gram quantities of many of the transuranium elements,
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and milligram quantities of sove of the transcalifornium elements, for
Research sponsored by the U. &. Atomic Energy Commisssion under con-
tract with the Union Carbide Corporation
use in research laboratories throughout the world. Detailed descrip-
tions of the TRU facility have been presented in the literature idees.
During the seven months of operating this facility, we experienced
several equipment problems each of which, although not sufficiently
serious to force a plant shutdown per se, caused inefficiencies in
some of the operations. However, in March 1967, becauce of an accumu-
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lation of problems, and because of a desire to make a number of process
improvements, we decided to shut the plant down for major maintenance.
It is the purpose of this paper to describe how the maintenance
methods originally devised for TRU were applied and to what extent
are discussed; however, major emphasis is placed on equipment handling,
radiation, and contamination.
In the initial period of operation, satisfactory operating methods
for dissolution, plutonium recovery, and actinide purification were
established. While the flowsheets for the actinide separation
processes were tested and used on a semi-laboratory scale to recover
significant quantities of the transcurium iso topes, normal operation of
the plant-scale equipment for these separations has not yet been
achieved. Feed material has consisted of “Pu from irradiations that
were begun up to two years ago at the Savannah River Production Plant.
The SRP-irradiated material involved two batches of slugs: four HFIR
prototypes (each containing 10 g of <**Pu) and six SRP slugs origi-
nally containing 200 g of 242pu. The isotopes that were recovered
from these SRP materials are listed in Table 1.
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Table 1. Material Recovered in TRU
During First Year's Operation
Isotope
Alpha Counts
(per uinute).
Neutrons
(per second).
242pu
4.3 x 104
243 AM
51 g
25 g
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2.2 x 1011
5.5 x 1012
7.6 x 1015
244 cm
83 8
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9.4 x 108
230 48
2.13 my
4.9 x 10°
25 mg
(B-emitter)
1.2 x 1012
1.2 x 108
1.2 x 1011
1.2 x 104
2.2 x 105 ..
253ES
4 48
1.5 x.10%
2448u
10 mg
30
Fission Products
25,000
total curies processed.
Cubicle Equipment Maintenance
A11 three equipment racks in cubicle 7 (see Fig. 1) required
major maintenance.
The specific tasks performed were:
(1)
The Zircaloy-2 plutonium ion exchange column, which had
collapsed because of excessive pressure in the external water jacket,
was replaced with a new unit.
(2)
The Tramex solvent extraction system (on the left in Fig. 1)
was modified to correct some hydraulic problems.
(3) The sampler station was extensively repaired and revised,
and the back rack (feed distribution system) was discarded and .
replaced with a new, more efficient ynit of an entirely different
design.
To perform these tasks it was necessary to move the solvent
extraction, the sampler, and the ion exchange racks to the glove box
where decontamination and repairs were done.
The back rack in
cubicle 7 was moved to the concrete waste loading station for disposal,
and was replaced with the new rack.
The procedures used to accomplish the cubicle maintenance were
essentially identical to those originally planned, as discussed by
Bottenfield et al. (4)
For these operations, over 150 disconnects had to be broken, and
40 jumper lines had to be removed and then subsequently reinstalled.
Six disconnects for the instrument lines on the solvent extraction
columns, located at the top of the equipment rack, proved to be very.
difficult to reconnect because of a slight misalignment. To expedite

Fig. 1. Front View of Cubicle 7.
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this work, entry into the cubicle was made. Although the job
required special safety measures (1.e., a tent was placed over the
cubicie door, and the individual entering the cubicle was clothed
in a plastic suit having a fresh air supply), it was performed
without incident. The lines were reconnected in approximately 10
min. A dose of only 100 mrem was received, and very little contami-
nation was found on the surface of the plastic suit.
The transfer cake was used to move items to and from the
cubicle. This device has proved to be an invaluable aid in the
operation of the facility.
It has been used at least 100 times with-
out any serious problems. When items having an alpha contamination
level in excess of 10' dis/min were moved, smears taken outside the
bottom door seal indicated a contamination level of approximately
500 dis/min; however, this contamination was readily cleaned up.
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The maintenance in the decontamination-and-repair glove box was
accomplished without serious difficulty.
The window gaskets and
glove-port gaskets were found to be a source of contamination when
equipment inside the box was sprayed with water. During the first
stages of the work we frequently experienced rupture of gloves, which
was evidently due to inferior-quality material; this problem was
partially solved by usi.ng gloves from a new shipment. During the
some temporary lead shielding; however, in certain instances a day's
dose was received in less than 1 hr.
Cell Pit Maintenance
Extensive repairs and revisions were required in cell pit 7,
a top view of which is shown in Fig. 2. The specific tasks involved
were:
(1) One of the two line bundles (connecting cubicle and cell.
pit equipment), which had several line failures as a Tesult of
corrosion, was replaced.
(2) A Hastelloy-C tank was replaced with a tantalu-lined
evaporator to eliminate processing problems.
(3) Zircaloy-2 probes, which had failed by corrosion, were
replaced in the rework collection tank.
(4) A Zircaloy-2 product line, which had been the source of
zirconium contamination of the product, was replaced with a tantalum
line.
It was originally thought that cell pit maintenance in TRU would
require almost completely remote techniques using the maintenance
shield, as described by Bottenfield et al. (4) However, after the cell:
was washed down, the equipment flushed out, and the cell flooded to
a point immediately below the disconnect clamps, the radiation field ,
in the working areas was reduced to a maximum of approximately
abedy
600 mr/hr. Neutron levels were less than 10 mr and constituted no
problem. However, at a later date, when the level of neutrons in
process solutions have increased by a factor of 100, we expect that
the work may be limited by neutron activity. Although remote methods
could have been employed to perform such simple tasks as loosening
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Fig. 2. Top View of Cell Pit 7.
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disconnect clamps, they would have been much more difficult and
time consuming for other, more involved tasks such as the actual
removal and replacement of certain lines. Therefore, we decided
to use contact maintenance procedures while controlling individual
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exposures to a maximum of 300 mr/week. Although surveys indicated
no significant initial air contamination, surface contamination
(alpha) was in excess of 10° dis/sec. This contamination, and the
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necessity of disconnecting numerous highly contaminated process
lines, made the use of assault masks and double layers of clothing
necessary. Initially, two pairs of coveralls were used; however,
prevention of the spread of activity and of the contamination of the
under pair during the removal of the outer pair was found to be .
difficult. This problem was minimized later by the use of an outer
plastic suit, which was readily removed by the use of scissors; no
attempt was made to reclaim the contaminated plastic suit.
The most difficult task in the cell pit work was the replacement
of the line bundle (see Fig. 3). The procedure was identical to that
originally planned. After all the lines were disconnected from the
bundle in the cubicle and the cell pit, a cable was attached from the
transfer case hoist to the bundle at the cubicle end, and from the
crane to the bundle at the cell pit end. The bundle was then pulled
into and out of the cell pit and then into a plastic bag. After about
25 disconnect clumps were reclaimed, the bundle was placed in a wooden
box, which was filled with concrete for further containment and shield-
Ing; disposal was by burial. The new line bundle was Installed by

ORNL-LR-DWG 68478
Cable For
Removing
i Line Bundle
Shield Wall Between
Cubicle and Pit
Cubicle
Pit
Window
Hot Disconnect
Well
Cubicie
Floor
22SP
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Disconnects for
Connections to
Tanks and Headers
24 Tubes, 0.5"
Back
Shield
Wall
Track
Fig. 3. Hot Disconnect Well Replacement Method.
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ceversing the above procedure. The entire job was accomplished in.
less than 8 hr; no mechanical, radiation, or contamination problems
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were encountered. .
Twenty-five entries by personnel were made into the pit; radia-
tion exposures ranged from 60 to 185 mrem for a period of approximately
20 min. By using different craftsmen, it was possible to keep
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individual exposures below 300 mr/week. This work was accomplished
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without any contamination problems outside the cell pit. This was
made possible by strict adherence to zoning regulations and a careful
cleanup after each day's work (to a level of less than 30 dis/min
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TOISI
(alpha) as determined from smears).
The entire maintenance job was accomplished in approximately one
month, and the plant was returned to operation. This achievement
successfully demonstrated that we are capable of handling all the
problems and techniques that are expected to be encountered in TRU in
the foreseeable future. It is true that the radiation in the cell pit
was sufficiently low to permit contact maintenance methods; however,
subsequent to this shut down, a completely remote maintenance job
(replacement of probės in a catch tank) was performed. At that time
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the tank contained approximately 10 g of curium and had a contact
KONtd
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radiation reading in excess of 100 rem. By using the maintenance
shield, the reading at the top of the cell was reduced from 300 to
10 mr/hr, with beams of approximately 100 mr/hr through the working
ports. The replacement of four probes was accomplished in approxi-
mately 2 hr, with a maximum radiation exposure of 115 mrem.
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References
1. W. E. Unger et al., "Transuranium Processing. Facility Design, ".
Nucl. Sci. Eng. 11, 479 (1963).
2. 0. 0. Yarbro et al., "Process Equipment Design and Development
for Transuranium Processing Plant,". Nucl. Sci. Eng. 17, 492
(1963).
3. F. L. Peishel et al., "Philosophy of Chemical Processing Equip-
ment Dess.gn and Installation in the Transuranium Processing
Plant," Proc. 14th Conf. Remote Systems Technol., Oct. 30-Nov. 4,
1966, Pittsburgh, Pa., ANS, Hinsdale, Ill., 1966.
4. B. F. Bottenfield et al., "Remote Maintenance Systems in the
Transuranium Processing Plant," Proc. 14th Conf. Remote Systems
Technol., Oct. 30-Nov. 4, 1966, Pittsburgh, Pa., ANS, Hinsdale,
111., 1966.

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