ML20003D987
| ML20003D987 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Wood River Junction |
| Issue date: | 08/24/1964 |
| From: | US ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION (AEC) |
| To: | |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20003D980 | List: |
| References | |
| FOIA-81-58 NUDOCS 8104010789 | |
| Download: ML20003D987 (6) | |
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AUG ~'>1 CRITICALI?! ACCIDLT AT UNITED hUCLEAR CORPORATICN g~ Iczi,/ffgr1pp WCOD PtIVER JUNCTION, PSCDE ISLAND g
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Tne Director of P.egulation, Atomic Energy Com.iscica, today S
Y issued the folletting rcpcrt of preliminary infomatica conceming the nucicar criticality accident on July 24 at United Naclear Ccrporation's U-235 scrap recovery facility, Wood P'ver Junction, e
Ehode Island.
Tnis report contains a narrative account of the accident, and no atte.gt is rade to state conclusions at this time Tna AEC Regu-latory Staff is ccntinuirc its work of developing, analyzirg, and cvaluating all pcrtinent infornticn. All info = ation will be re-viewed by' a tectinicci review ccc.ittee before a final report is made cn the accident. Barcre resuming operations, the cc=pany 1.111 sub-M mit its plans to the Ato.ic Energy Cc=.issica for cpproval.
T.c United Nac1ccr Cor;cratica operates the Wood River Junction c
facility = der license from the Cc=ission.
It recovers enriched urani= from u.irradiatet scrap material resultirc h the fabri-cation of nuclear N1.
Tne criticality accident-nn accidental reaclear chain reaction-cccurred in a rccm cn the third floor of the plant about 6:05 p.=.,
Frids.y, July 24, thile F.r. Rchart Peabody, an operator egloyed by the cc=;cny, t. s pouring lic.uid iYcm a cylindrical polyethylene bottle, cp,rc:2..:.tcly ^1va inches in di=3 tor and 48 ine'.cs in length and.
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I havin; a capacity of about 11 liters, into an open top chemical makeup tar;c approxirately 18 incl-M in diarater and 25 inches deep. Tne secratry of the ll-liter bottle is such as to assure against criti-cality regardless of the uranium content of any solution in the bottle.
Tais is not true of the tar 2c into thich the liquid vias poured.
hhen naarly all the liquid had been poured from the bottle into the tank, the nuclear chain reaction occurred and the radiation alam.s sc=ded. Fr. Peabody fell bac cerd to the floor, arose, and ran from the building to an crargency shack about 200 yards from the rain buildin'g. Four other employees, vio were in the builcing but not i
in the rcon viere the accident occurred, also went imadiately to the erargency shack. Tne shift supervisor called an arbulance and notified the plant ranager and other company officials by telephone.
M'. ?cabody, acccmpanied by anothar erployee, was taken in the am-balance to b'esterly Hospital where it was diverted to the larger Khode Is1=d Hospital in Providence.
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.khen the plant ranager a~ rived at the plant, he a.d the shift superviscr
.to, was in the building vlaen the accident occurred-=ade radiation surveys around the building and prJoed several entries to the buildin;, using conitoring equipran; obtained n cm the erargency
.:. __ ak. Scy then left the building and borrowed hir.-level radiation rz,r.itoring equip 2nt frca Civil Defense perso=al tho had arrived 1
at thy.1 nt.
- 7. c plc. r2 nager and the shift supervisor re-entered i
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- the building and took steps to rake sure that no further chain re-cctica could take place. Tney drair.ed the raheup tank into a 3-inch dia eter colu::n below it nnd thence into critically safe containers.
Ecth mn then left the building nnd returned to the omrgency shack.
After his admission to the hospital, Fr. Peabod 's conditica gew steadily worse. He died at 7:20 p.m., Sunday, July 2o, approxi-
=tely 49 hours5.671296e-4 days <br />0.0136 hours <br />8.101852e-5 weeks <br />1.86445e-5 months <br /> after the accident. Tne initial estirate is that he received an exposum of about 7,000 rcm.
One film badge reading for the plant r.rager indicated an exoosure -
of tpproxirately 50 rem. Fedical tests have been performed on all exployees involved in the accident. Tnem were no observable effects of their exposure to radiation. All are scheduled for periodic re-exc.i.ation.
Enck;nound Infonnation T.ichloroethane (TCE), an organic liquid, is used at the plant to rerove solvent Mm the product stream. Tnis solvent contains srall traces of uranium. Tnus, when the used T E is tcken frca the system, it centains sc=a enriched uranit:n '(as much as 1,000 parts per millicn).
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hicr to July 17, tha rathed of mcovering this uranium frcm TCE was to placa two or three litera of TCE in a 5-inch,11-liter, criti-cally safe bottia together with about six liters of sodium carbonato.
Tr.c bottle was then chaken by ha.d and the liquids were allowed to soprate. Tno enriched uraniur. was then removed.
Beginning en July 17, a new rathod was used on two shifts for l
re.sving uranium fecm ' ICE.
This mathod rado use of the sodium car-tonate rakeup tan:c on the third ficor of the colt:m area.
Tne nor.r.al fa.ction of this tank is to rake up sodium carbonato solution for a solvent inching operation. Its design did not conte:: plate ary use involving ttunium solution.
Yr. Pcatody worked the 4:00.p.m. to midni@.t shift on Ju2y 17,.
as well as en July 24, the ni@.t of the accident, and had used the naw r;thod fcr removing uranit:a frr. TCE.
Early Onursday r.srning, July 23, an evaporator at the plant failed i
to cperata proparly.
It was discovered that a pipe to the evaporator 1.3 plugged with uranium nitrate crystals. Steam was used to unplug the lina. ' ten'the line was unplugged miterial f: c. the evaporator system was drained 1.to soveral 5-inch, ll-liter bottles. Tnis ra-terial had a relatively high concentration of uraniu=. hhether Iu,
Pcahedy 5:an using cna of thesc bottles 1. ten the accident occurred
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Post-Accident Activities Se ccmpany developed plcns fcr decentcminaticn of the building and for detamining, insofar as is possible, the rasnitude of the nuclecr criticality. In order to do this, the cc=pany established a task force of senior engineers frca its Waite Plains, New York, and Lw F.aven, Connecticut, divisions.
Ss=ples of solutions and of pieces of equipmnt, tools, and e
=.terials have been obtained feca the area where the chnin reaction occurred. Soy are being Pralyzed to help determine the energy're-letsed by the criticality accident, the quantities of uranium, and the cerfiguration of the system when the accident occurred. Other ca:ples also have been taken frca solutions found in bottles.
Technical Review Cc=1ttee Appointed by EC In keeping with established Cc=.ission procedures, the EC Directcr of Regulation has appointed a technical review co=lttee
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to revieu a.d evaluate the infomation being assembled by the Regulatory i
Staff. Se Cc=.ittee will review all irfor.ation, advise t. tether ad-ditional i-for.ation should be gathered, and review and co=ent on irfcm.aticn devalcped with mcpect to such matters as the nature of the, accident, its cause or causes, and matters to be considemd in order to :-ini-1:e or preclude similar accidents.- Its report will-be :--' public.
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!"aders of the Co=.ittee are Dr. Herbert J. C. Kouts of Brockhaven Nr.ticnal Inbomtory, Chai=.::n; Dr. Hugh C. Paxton of Ios Alarcs Scientific L-bomtory; Dr. Ihrvirl M. Mann,15C Assistant Director of Regulation for Nuclear Safety; Dr. Richard L. Doan, Director of the AEC Division of Reactor Licensing; Dr. Warren E. Winsche of Brockhaven National Labomtory; and Dr. C. Wayne Bills of the Co=lssion's Idaho Operations i
Office.
'he infomation Ulthemd at the plant by Co=.ission inspectors is being studied and evaluated and additional infomation is being collected by the inspectors. "ne conpany will furnish the /20 a report of the accident and this report will be mde public. Nur.erous sa.ples of mterials that were taken fror. the plant have been cent to Cc=lssion 1cbomtories for analysis. Tne results of these analyses will be avail-abic i; hen the laboratory work is completed. Tne co=.ittee will review r'1 of this infonr.ation.
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