nuclearactive.com

In exciting news, Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) announced this past week the first shipments of remote-handled transuranic waste to the WIPP facility in southern New Mexico.

The Laboratory plans to prepare three to four shipments per week until all 16 canisters are gone.

Thanks to shielding and design, a loaded RH-TRU shipping cask meets the same Department of Transportation radiation safety requirements as a typical shipment to WIPP. Stringent handling procedures and satellite surveillance will keep the public safe. read more

Safe Containment

The container, called Transuranic Packaging Transporter Model 2, or TRUPACT-II, is:

• Eight feet in diameter and 10 feet high.
• Doubly-contained, non-vented, and constructed of stainless steel.
• Certified by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and meets U.S. Department of Transportation safety requirements.

A series of stringent tests conducted on the container included:

• A drop from a height of 30 feet onto an unyielding surface.
• Exposure to jet fuel fire at a temperature of 1,475 degrees Fahrenheit for a minimum of 30 minutes.
• A drop onto a steel spike from 40 inches to test puncture resistance.

The tests showed that the container would hold its seal and prevent release of radioactivity to the atmosphere.

Safe Storage at WIPP

Why Salt?

Let’s look at storage at the WIPP facility in New Mexico, as an example.

Government officials and scientists chose the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) site through a selection process that started in the 1950s. At that time, the National Academy of Sciences conducted a nationwide search for geological formations stable enough to contain wastes for thousands of years. In 1955, after extensive study, salt deposits were recommended as a promising medium for the disposal of radioactive waste. Since then, bedded salt has been one of the leading candidates for the permanent disposal of radioactive waste. read more