ML19207B358
| ML19207B358 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | 07001852, 07002155, 07002201 |
| Issue date: | 06/20/1979 |
| From: | Soong A, Stevenson R NRC OFFICE OF NUCLEAR MATERIAL SAFETY & SAFEGUARDS (NMSS) |
| To: | Crow W NRC OFFICE OF NUCLEAR MATERIAL SAFETY & SAFEGUARDS (NMSS) |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 7908240492 | |
| Download: ML19207B358 (2) | |
Text
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UNITED STATES
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
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JUL 2 01979 MEMORANDUM FOR:
W. T. Crow, Section Leader Uranium Fuel Fabrication Section Fuel Processing & Fabrication Branch Division of Fuel Cycle and Material Safety FROM:
A. L. Soong Uranium Fuel Fabrication Section R. L. Steverson Uranium Fuel Fabrication Section
SUBJECT:
TRIP REPORT Purcose To visit the Westinghouse Electric Corporaticn (WEC) fuel fabrication plant at Columbia, South Carolina, to see the equipment in the plant expansion area and to discuss the pending amendment application with WEC representatives.
Place and Date WEC fuel fabrication plant near Columoia, South Carolina, July 17 and 18, 1979.
Discussion The plant tour on July 17, 1979, was conducted by E. Reitic r and H. King of the Radiolog1 cal and Environmental Engineering staff an; (part time) by C. Sanders, who is manager of the group. Detailed explanations of the made of operation and safety controls for the process equipment seen in the new process area were provided by the process engineers: B.
Garrett, W. Shang and R. Noe. The expansion area equipment explained in detail included the new waste incinerator and solvent extraction waste treatment process equipment, controls and auxiliary equipment. The equipment seen and descriptions provided are in accord with the infor-mation pre rided for that equipment in the amendment application of April 3,1979,.ar authorization to process SNM in the expanded process area.
None of the developmen'. Labo,atory equipment, which will be similar to the existing licensed facility equipment, was in the new area.
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Dr. Soong had not previously visited the plant and hence we also went by one of the existing wet conversion Unes, pellet presses, sintering furnace, rod loading area, rod testing area, and fuel fabrication and shipping area. The DCFB process was not operating. The existing plant areas were explained by Messrs. King and Reitler. A detailed explanation of the whole body counter, which was also visited, was provided by Jimie Heath and Larry Coco, also of Sanders staf f.
We saw that the process ponds had been cleaned out, with the exception of the one in current use. The solidified sludge from the ponds (hardened by admixture with a hardening material) is piled in a large single pile awaiting NRC approval for shipment to Barnwell.
To reinforce our picture of the plant expansion area and equipment, we returned to the expansion area briefly on July 1P, li.. following discussions with WEC representatives of the cutttanding 4:testions on the application. The Health Physics Laboratory was also visitad to see the counting equipment and hear a description of the procedures fra r ting and recording the air samples by J. Weath'erford, who is the manager in charge of the Health Physics technicians.
Discussions of the outstanding questions on the pending-amendment application were held on July 18 with aesh 5. Goodwin (Manager, Compliance),
Sanders, Reitler, and King. The main outstanding questions - identified as numbers 9 and 13 in the attachment to our letter to WEC dated May 22, 1979 - concern the procedure for disp Mai of uranium contaminated degraded solvent from the solvent extraction p;ocess, and the controls to ensure the homogeneity and maximum U-235 content in the process wastes being degraded to source material. We told the WEC representatives that the radioactivity limits for aqueous solutions in Part 20 did not seem applicable to an immiscible organic solvent but that we would let them i
know our decision following discussions of the question with other NRC staff.
It was agreed that WEC would provide additional supporting infomation on the degradation procedure in a week to ten days.
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R. L. Stevenson Uranium Fuel Fabrication Section Uranium Fuel Fabrication Section Fuel Processing & Fabrication Fuel Processing & Fabrication Branch Branch
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