ML20028H094

Responds to to Rl Bowen Re Financial Responsibility of License SNM-1373

ML20028H094
Person / Time
Site:	07001374
Issue date:	10/02/1990
From:	Adam Wilson IDAHO STATE UNIV., POCATELLO, ID
To:	Haughney C NRC OFFICE OF NUCLEAR MATERIAL SAFETY & SAFEGUARDS (NMSS)
References
NUDOCS 9010090102
Download: ML20028H094 (3)

Text

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' Idaho State University Pocatello, Idaho 83209 0009 T

' College of Engineering..

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. Box 8000

-(208) 236-2902 October 2, 1990 1

Mr.-Charles'J. Ha'ughney,. Chief Dockot No.' 70-1374-Fuel Cycle Safety Branch, NMSS License No.'SNM-1373 U. S..Nuc 'ar Regulatory Commission Washington, D.

C.

20555

Dear Mr. Haughney:

I have been_ asked to respond to your letter of August 22, 1990 to Dr.

Richard L.

Bowen, President of Idaho State University regarding. financial responsibility of special nuclear material

. held under' license No. SNM-1373.

The Statement of. Intent submitted July 19, 1990,'should not have ti

. included. the special? nuclear material held under License No.

1373.

All; material held.under that license ~ consists of. sealed' sources and therefore is-not subject to decommissioning-rules of the commission.

Attached is.a complete description of all the material held under j

. the license.,

In my conversation ~with Mr.

Scott Pennington of 1

your~ staff on September 19, 1990, I found.that the-concern was:

for the uranium-." foils" which are listed.on the license.

As you-

' will notetingthe: description, each of these " foils" consists of:

c approximately four4 milligrams of uranium-235-clad'on each side by a

aluminum 0.010. inches thick.

The aluminum ~ clad is 1.5-inches in diameter and' is : sealed.

Semiannual' wipe tests have never i

revealed any leakage of alpha emitting contamination from-these l

" foils".

I hope that this explanation will clarify the matter.

I am sorry for any inconvenience' caused

!.y the erroneous inclusion'of' this 1

~ material in'the' financial statement.

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Sincerely, h

A Albert E. Wilson Nuclear Reactor Supervisor Professor of Engineering

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. cc:

Dr. Robert W.

Pearce Dr. Richard-L. Bowen p

-Mr.'

Scott Pennington h

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ISU is An Equal Opportunity Employer p

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-DESCRIPTION _OF-MATERIAL HELD UNDER NRC LICENSE NO. 1373 9

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Uranium-Aluminum fuel plates:

B The fuel plates were tabricated in 1960 by M

& C Nuclear, Inc., for Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey.

Each plate consists' it of-a Uranium-Aluminum iuol zone completely enclosed by an aluminum-3E clad.

The plates are subj9cted to a wipe test semiannually and no l[i alpha emitting materisl hac ever been_found on.-the outside of the 4

.s plates.

Detailed descitptiot, of the plates are:

L-EE Total number of plates.

150-f@

Total mass of uranium 7614.79 gm Enrichment of U-235 isotope 19.83%

ke-k Total U-235 content (all plates) 1510.27 gm U-235 loading'per. plate 10.07 gm

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Overall plate dimensions 26.0" X 3.0" X.080" Dimensions of.U bearing portion 24.0" X 2.75" X.04" L_

k Clad thickness 0. 0 2 r,"

Et (b)

Uranium-Alum.lnum foils:

The Uranium-Aluminum foils each consist-of a very small amount-of1 r

uranium, highly enriched in the uranium-235 isotope, deposited in lg; the conter of an' alitninum disk.

A second aluminum disk ~is' then placed on top-and the outside contact area of the disks not E-containing uranium is sealed.

Thus,- the foils sre each a sealed EE-source containing a small-amount of uranium-235.

The foils 1.are subjected to a; wipe test semlannually-and no = alpha emitting mater.ial has ever boon found on the outside of the disks.

Detailed description of the foils are:

Number of foils-74 Total uranium mass 318 milligrams gem Enrichment of U-235 isotope 93%

Total U-235 mass 296 milligrams U-235 mass per. foil 4 milligrams Poil diameter 1.5" Foil thickness 0.020" Cled thickness 0.010"

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Fission counter:

The fission counter, manufactured by Westinghouse, model WA' 7186, is designed to be used as a flux mapping probe.

.'he active length of 'the counter is_only 1.0" with an active di~ametar of 0.20".

The

counter, which contains 2.0 milligrams-of uranium-235 is sealed into one end of a stainless steel tube 40" long and 0.25" in diameter.

A BNC connector is attached to the ether end of this tube for. electrical-connection.

A detailed description of the counter is:

Active length of counter 1.0" Active diameter 0.20" Enrichment of U-235 isotope 93%

Uranium-235 mass 2.0 milligrams Case material Stainless steel operating voltage 200 volts (d)

Pu-Be neutron sources Two Pu-Be neutron sources were obtained in 1962 from Monsanto Research Corp.,- Mound Laboratory, under an AEC

loan, later to become a grant.-

They-were added to SNM License.1373 in

April, 1981.

The sources are. sealed and wipe tests performed,simiannually.

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have never revealed-any alpha emitting material.

Detailed description of the sources are:

For each source:

Container inside dimensions 0.82" ID'X 0.75" H Container.outside-dimensions 1.02" OD'X 1.45" H Handling connection (cyl. end) 10-32 tap,

.25" deep' Source material. composition Source S.N.-M-1197 18.04 gm Pu, 7.86 gm-be Source S.N. M-1198-1.80 gm Pu, 7.86 gm.Be Neutron emission' Source S.N. M-1197 2.10 X 10* n/sec Source S.N. M-1198 2.80 X 105 n/sec

.These specifications for the Pu-Be neutror. sources were taken from the Mound Laboratory _ shipping data form supplied with the sources.

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