Spent fuel project personnel at the Savannah River Site recently implemented the use of a new platform that increases efficiency and reduces hazards to employees while moving materials on site.
The material is ion exchanging resin, which is used to maintain the proper chemistry in the 3.4 million gallon L Basin, an underwater storage facility for spent nuclear fuel.
Savannah River Nuclear Solutions, the site's management and operations contractor, said the resin attracts radioactive ions, removing them from the basin water in order to keep conductivity as low as possible and minimize corrosion of stored materials.
Over time, the resin is expended and required to be changed every six to nine months, the contractor said. The expended resin is then removed from the system by pumping it into a High Integrity Container - a steel container housed inside a concrete container that provides radiation shielding for employees conducting this process.
In the past, tall ladders were used to connect hoses from the deionization system to the top of the container, which is 12 to 13 feet tall, in order to remove the resin. Improvements were implemented, and a platform was created for easier and safer access.
Operators have recognized over time that the platform required more improvement. Some of the issues included the platform being difficult to use and time consuming to install and tripping hazards created by routing hoses.
Don Joyner, a day shift operations manager, said operators always make suggestions for improvement and that those suggestions make work easier while eliminating safety hazards.
"We believe the best way to handle a hazard is to eliminate it," Joyner said. "SRS fosters a safety-conscience work environment, and this is evidence that suggestions for improvement are respected and appreciated."
The new concrete platform was designed to incorporate more shielding to protect workers from radiation. It allows for easier installation, eliminates safety hazards and mounts the camera system in a way that eliminates the use of a crane.
The mission of the Spent Fuel Project in L Area is to reduce global nuclear threats and environmental hazards by safely receiving, processing and storing spent nuclear fuel. In 1996, L Basin equipment was reconfigured to safely handle and store spent nuclear fuel from off-site research reactors.
Derrek Asberry is the SRS beat reporter for the Aiken Standard.