ML20033F421
| ML20033F421 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 12/11/1989 |
| From: | Vacca P NRC OFFICE OF NUCLEAR MATERIAL SAFETY & SAFEGUARDS (NMSS) |
| To: | Glenn J NRC OFFICE OF NUCLEAR MATERIAL SAFETY & SAFEGUARDS (NMSS) |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20033D963 | List:
|
| References | |
| FOIA-90-29 NUDOCS 9003200393 | |
| Download: ML20033F421 (13) | |
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1 MEMORANDUM FOR: John E. Glenn, Chief
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Medical Academic, and Connercial 4
Use Safety Branch Division of Industrial and i
7 Medical Nuclear Safety 4
THRU:
3 Michael A. Lamastra, Section Leader s
Commercial Section Medical,fety Branc,h Academic and Commercial 1
Use Sa i
s Division of Industrial and 1
Medical Nuclear Safety m
FROM:
Patricia C. Vacca A
W Cranercial Section
/
bedical, Academic, and Comercial j
Use Safety Branch q
Division of Industrial and S
Medical Nuclear Safety
SUBJECT:
2 1
SIXTH RSI CAPSULE AND SITE RECOVERY INFORMATIO' i
On December 7,1989, I attended the Sixth Radiation Sterilizers, Inc. (RSI)
Q Capsule and Site Recovery Meeting held in Decatur, Georgia, and chaired by h
John Rothrock of the Department of Energy's (DOE's) Oak Ridge Operations
}
Office.
ll-STATUS OF CASKS 0 BUSS Cask for Shippin r
Facility (WESF) Sources:g Special Form (SF) Waste Encapsulation and Storage
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expedite their respective reviews of this package.Both NRC and the D g
Apparently there are acceptance tests that must be done af ter approvals are received P
L performance of these tests may delay the use of the BUSS cask on,ce it is so that approved.
Note that RSI (Decatur) does not need to be modified in order to j
use the BUS $ cask there.
u i
0 BUSS Cask for Shipping Normal Form (NF) WESF Sources:
told by the Sandia representative at the December 6,1989, meetinEven though we w BUSS cask may not need modification in order to ship NF sources, g that the it is necessary to do additional analyses, which may take about 3 months.
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Note that because the cask is larger than the opening in the facility.the 5
0 GE-1500 Casks:
Westinghouse Hanford Corporation (WHC), the DOE contractor i
responsible for shipping make its 2 casks available for shipping WESF sources. expects GE to decide by D Depending on the outcome of WHC's efforts to obtain the GE-1500 casks, it may be necessary to elevate this matter to higher level discussions between DOE and GE officials, a
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John
.E. Glenn H j
0 GE-1500 Cask at Neutron Products, Inc. (NPI):
U This cask has undergone its dnnual inspection and GE modified it to meet the Cer d
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after the repair.
NPI has asked GE for assistance.
If the cask passes the l
h required thrse tests, NPI has a commitment to another customer who wanted to P
use the cask during the week of December 3.
to late-December.
The cask may be available by mid-y n.
3 0
RSI-1500 Casks the new, narrower: diameter drain line as proposed in RSI's 8j NRC approved.
December and the other 6, by the end of January 1990.Dr. Chin e 6
4 It is not clear who will conduct the required tests on the repaired casks, but both RSI and WHC y) prefer that RSI do the tests, rather than WHC.
There was concern that inserting the new drain line may not solve the problem 2
and there was some discussion of adding a bead weld at the bottom of the
- )
inside liner of the cask as a precautionary measure.
y However, it does not appear that RSI will take this step.
Dr. Chin indicated that RSI had contacted other potential cask repair 1
urganizations (GE, Chem Nuclear Services, Inc. (CNSI) and NuPac (?sp These organizations declined to submit proposals for c,ask repair (e.g)).
M did not want liabilityt did not think they could do a better job or do it faster (i
than RSI; did not think the cost-benefit ratio supported making a proposal; schedule conflicts).
0, s 0
R$1-1500 Cask Modification (with liner) for Shipping NF WESF Sources:
NRC approval appears to be iminent, e.
O GE-600 Cask:
NF sources later this week (i.e., December 7-9).This cask is at RSI (De l
t h
L Dr. Chin indicated that there is competition for the casks. He said that GE A
is referring all inquiries it gets to RSI dnd NPI.
In response to questions, 1
Dr. Chin said that RSI's current response to such inquiries is that the casks are not certified. When asked what he will respond once the casks are repaired pass the required tests, and are certified Dr. Chin hesitated and I.
finally s, aid that his first priority is to get the WESF sources out of his two e,'
facilities.
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DEC 18 1 gag li p
John E. Glenn i 1 d
CASK TESTS q
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OCofC, especially the bubble test.There was considerable discussion ab Fj In view of the recent experience with a GE-1500 cask that failed the bubble test performed b a
4 with C1uck MacDorald (NRC) regarding test parameters.
if BillBowen(WHC)is trying to develop technical information is support a revised, less strenuous 9
test procedure.
his technical information to RSI, who can then submit it to 3
s another amendment of the CofC.
d H
0 There was also a discussion of a possible change in the fre d
the currently required tests or the modified test procedures. quency of either i
if (NRC) indicated that once the casks are repaired and demonstrate a record o Nancy Osgood j
then NRC could consider a request to amend the CofC to r it d
frequency.
3 TESTING WESF SOURCES AT OTHER COMMERCIAL FACILITIES s
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p 0(ARECO)and10 TECH. Bill Bowen (WHC) has visited both Applied Radiant Energ d
from RSI in terms of design, configuration, pool width and depth, P
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- Thus, new equipment will need to be fabricated in order to conduct tests of the WESF sources at these facilities.
WHC estimates that it should have the equipment i
ready by late January 1990 and will make arrangements with the licensees to do the tests.
h 0 WHC will conduct the following tests:
e 1.
Visual examination using closed circuit underwater television; 2.
The " clunk" test; 3
3.
Ring gauging tests on those sources tnat do not pass the " clunk" test, h
0 Ganna scans will NOT be done because portable equipment to do these tests F
has not yet been built, although it is under development.
GAlWA SCANS 4
(
0 Bill Bowen (WHC) provided a lengthy presentation on the results of gamma scans conducted by Pacific Northwest Lasoratories (PNL) on a number of WESF 9
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John E. Glenn i l 4
sources that include:
subjected to thermal cycling; sources from the Transportable Irradia b
Package that have been held at 300 C except for four occasions when they 0
removed from the cask and placed in air.(these sources were never thermally 1
3 cycled to water); sources returned from RS! that were thermally cycled to
[i water.
November 1989 has not yet been gama scanned. Note that the "non-c O Results to date indicate that game scans:
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1, Can distinguish between " clunkers" and "non-clunkers "
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2.
Have shown that one " clunker" has begun to swell; N
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cycled to water (i.e., sources returned from RSI);Have shown ev
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Have shown NO EVIDENCE of salt compaction in sources that have not been
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thermally cycled to water (i.e., those stored in the Hanford pool and those from the Transportable Irradiator Package).
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Note that in a private conversation with Sylvia Wolf of DOE /0R0 I learned p;
that DOE staff have a high confidence (955 certainty) that thermal cycling Q
plays an important role in the failure mechanism and that DOE has N0 r;
t reservations about the continued use of WESF sources at ARECO and 10 TECH.
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Wolf will be lookin Ms.
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DOE on this issue. g into whether she can get something to us in writing from.
K OTHER MATTERS b
d 0
Dick Chitwood (DOE HQ) and Jim Setser (State of Georgia) discussed the b
December 6,1989 meeting attended by DOE, NRC, and Georgia representatives.
M They made it clear that all three organizations are anxious to see prompt
[.i resolution of this problem (i.e., identification of cause of failures removal 1
of sources from both RSI facilities).
They also indicated that decision p
makers from NRC and DOE were present and committed to expediting all work 6
associated with the resolution of the RSI/WESF problem.
N 0
Dick Chitwood (00E HQ) also indicated that, if all goes well, Buildin 4
at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) will be reopened by mid. January,g 3517 h
will do the destructive testing, and could have all the analyses completed by late d'
March 1990.
(I think this is very optimistic considering our past experience
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in this project.)
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No shipping scheoule has been established pending receipt of useable casks.
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There have been a series of problems with the chiller at RSI (Decatur).
CNSI is chiller. preparing to get bids on replacement parts, new chiller, and a back-up
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Jim Setser (State of Georgta) urged that a new chiller be obtained and installed before the Christmas holicays, as it may be imsossible to get
.i someone to repair the chiller if it should break down over tie holidays, i
Bruce Mallett (NRC RI!!) asked Allan Chin (R$1) to look into the status of 3
chiller at RSI (Westerville of service, and may soon exp)e,rience similar problems.see whether it has ha i
1 Dr. Chin agreed to Dr.
Mallett's request, a
1 f
0 Once an aggressive shipping schedule can be resumed, the limiting factor a
will be the number of sources that Hanford can receive and decontaminate I
week (i.e., maximum of 12 per week).
h number of personnel, decontamination equipment that can be placed in theThi j'
cells, radiation and contamination limits on the cells, ability to process the amount of liquid waste that is generated in decontamination, etc. The a
possible use of hot cells at PNL was discussed; PNL does not want this kind
]
of notorial or project in its hot cells.
3 0
In private conversations with State of Georgia representatives, the R$!
(Decatur) license issued by the State of Georgia is due to expire on December e
31, 1989.
R$1 HAS filed a timely application for renewal and, according to Tom Hill (State of Georgia), the State will probably let the license remain in a " deemed timely" status.
1 Renewal may be complicated by the passage of a local law or ordinance that requires anyone using more than 1000 Curies in a g"
sealed source to be in an area zoned as " Heavy Industrial." RSI(Decatur)'s current location is not so zoned.
j 0 The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, January 25, 1990 in Decatur.
L i,
1 Ortsiaal signed By, Patricia C. Vacca j.
Commercial Section Medical, Academic, and Commercial 2
Use Safety Branch Division of Industrial and Medical Nuclear Safety 5j cc:
M. Lamastra G. Sjoblom 1
R. Cunningham R. Burnett 1
C. MacDonald, SGTB N. Osgood, SGTB h,
V. Miller GPA/SLITPB.
Mallett, RIII M. McCann,, Rll!
P. Pelke, RIII t
S. Baggett L. Roche, EDO i
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November 10, 1989 y
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M Mr. Thomas E. Hill, Acting Director 1
7 Radiological Health Section - Room 600 d9 Georgia Department of Human Resources d
878 Peachtree Street, N.E.
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Atlanta, Georgia 30309 a
3 Dear Mr. Hill' I' acknowledge the concerns that you expressed in your Nov' ember N
3, 1989 letter to an.
- First, that I do not belie /o that anyone has a stronger desire than II would lik L3 T
to remove the cesium capsules from the Decatur facility.
p Second, I Strongly disagree with your statements that RSI is d
causing unnecessary delays, and not supporting the recovery g
effort in a positive way.
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3 RSI, as you stated, has agreed to permitting the DOE under our Fj license to supervise the identification and removal of the 0
leaking source 9
recovery phases (s), and supervise the decontamination and of the operation.
j' has been limited, but when called on RSI has respondedSince then our p 6
g, positively and expeditiously.
s
!"i To review some pertinent details of this project, I submit the following:
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1.
After the June 6, 1984 incident, it was estimated that the Q
project would take 3-6 months to return RSI to operating i
status.
It is now 17 months, and appears that at least 12 y:s more months will be required.
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f 2.
It took 6 months to identify the leaking source, e
3.
r.)
Removal of the leaking source required-the design, h
construction and approval of a capsula overpack.
estimated that this would take several months.
DOE RSI volunteered to assume this task, and in two weeks produced the capsula overpack to ship the leaking source to ORNL.
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Page 2
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4.
Non-destructive tests were performed at ORNL between 4
December and April at which time the hot call was shut down 1
by DOE due to seismic concerns.
As of today, these concerns y
are still unresolved in spite of ORNL's position that the l;
het cell is seismically safe.
The location of the leak, and N
the mechanism of the failure of the leaking source have not i
A been identified and all work at ORNL has been put on hold l@L since April.
Without knowing the mechanism of failure there is still danger that additional failures can occu,r by t
h leaving WEsr capsules in Decatur and Westerville.
4 We will i
be fortunate if we have the failure analysis results w
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a year after the identification of the leaking source.ithin 1b_
5.
N RSI contracted with WHc to ship the 115 special form capsules from Westerville to Richland.
Using the nine 9)
[il RSI-1500 casks the 115 special form capsules were shippe(d by L'l RSI and WMC during the period of February 1, y
1989 to March 30, 1989, a period of two months.
a 6.
Li WHC contracted with CNSI to ship the 161 special form capsules located in Decatur following the Westerville j
shipments.
To date, seven and a half months later, 77 in special form capsules have been shipped from Decatur.
7; various concerns from various regulatory agencies havs caused shipment delays of several months duration.
$}
7.
b Current DOE and WHC concerns and new NRC test regulations have rendered all GE and RSI model 1500 casks unusable for shipments.
This in spite of the fact that these casks have
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been used successfully in hundreds of prior shipments, v#
8.
RSI questioned the validity of the DOE bubble' test in a L'(
f 71.95 report filed per 10CFR71 because we felt it was not
.the lead area, which was the original concern.necessarily indicativ b
G Subsequent usage and testing of these casks has provided information d
which further questions the validity of this test.
y, Two RSI-1500 casks which originally passed the test, were Q
subsequently failed.
subsequently passed when tested at GE.A GE-1500 cask which was f l,1
- WHC, U
The bubble test f.
is the reason seven RSI casks were taken out of service upon j
completion of testing _by WMC on September 22, 1989.
All seven passed two other tests which are more idicative of i
testing for water movement from the cavity to the lead area.
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Mr. Thomas E. Hill y.
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Since the september 28 aseting RSI has accomplished the Q) following in support of getting the casks back into operation.
iT y
a.
submitted the 71.95 report to the NRC on September 29.
R d
The NRC response invoking the DOE tests was received by RSI on October 26, 1989.
i S
S b.
f The state of California has been contacted and an 2
agreement ~on rework control procedures has been reached for RSI to proceed to work on the casks.
((
The California Licensing Group has been very supportive and has offered g2 several suggestions which will accelerate the cask a
rework.
We see no problems in this area, 1,,
e l.j A contract has been placed with U.S. EcoloW Inc. to c.
provide health physics support for the projec,t.
1 d.
The casks have been surveyed and further decontaminated j
by U.S. Ecology personnel.
- .i Tests have been performed to identify the location of e.
3 the leak site by RSI personnel.
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f.
d A repair procedure has been defined by RSI which should H
solve the question of leakage from the cavity.
i d
g.
An automatic remote welding process has been developed a
by RST in support of the repair procedure.
Sample welds a
have been sent to WMC for metallurgical sectioning and evaluation.
c.)
h.
An informational submission has been made to the NRC for Fj.
their review on November 8, 1989.
We have called NRC to b
f confirm the receipt'of this information, and were informed that review will start on November 13, 1989.
i.
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We have prepared a full scale model of the proposed repair and have offered to carry it to NRC in Washington yp if required.
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Mr. Thomas E. Hill Page 4
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Casks 4 and 5 which are known leakers are being dried l
3 out in preparation for the repair process.
Cask 7 shows j
no signs of water in the lead area.
Ajj k.
The other six (6) RSI casks have been requested to be j
surveyed, decontaminated and sent to California.
g.
11 1.
Rework will commence if the NRC approves our formal
!.1 submission.
4 From the above information, I hope you can see why I strongly l,1 disagree with your statement that RSI is not acting in an p
expeditious manner and is causing unnecessary delays in the p
repair of its shipping casks, and thereby consequent delays in g
source shipments.
W'j If you or anyone else can demonstrate that the repairs can be L
performed more expeditiously than RSI, I will be the first to y
enter into such discussions.
Bear in mind also that RSI is 9
operating under financial constraints which have been influenced f;
by this incident.
We will welcome any and all offers of
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financial support.
I will gladly accept any positive, constructive action that anyone can offer.
I believe my action record speaks for itself.
/i If you would like to discuss this matter further, please give me P
a call.
gj sincerely,
/ dh ec Allan Chin i
Vice chairman Pi l.i Actek N
L cc Mr. Martin J. Rotter j
Mr. James L. Setser llj Mr. John D. Rothrock
.i Mr. W. Kelly Dagenhart 0
Mr. Vandy L. Miller 5
Mr. Richard L. Woodruff
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W. K. Dagenhart D.O.E. Recovery Site Manager 4
1 2300 Mellon court 4
Decatur, Georgia 30035 I
- Phon, (404) 987-9233 4
yax (404) 987-8751 1
Verify
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RAOIOLOGICAL HEALTH SECTION - ROOM 600 oprict CF mEov6 Atony stavicts
.l.mse 4. Leon.n r. ph.c./comm:n.oner s7s PE ACHTREE sf HEET, N.E. / ATI. ANT A. CEoRGIA 3c309
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November 3, 1989 g,
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Radiation Sterilizers Inc.
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46721 Tremont Boulevard I
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Fremont, California 94538 N.
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0 Dear Mr. Chint
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In the Management Plan for the recovery activities at the 4 a,tur,,Gi6rgia 9
facility, it was agreed that the Department of Energy wnuld supervise the J,
identification and removal of the leaking cesium-137 source (or sources),
1l and would supervise the decontamination and recovery phases of the I
operation. You, along with other interested parties, signed an agreement I
to that effect.
n 9
After the identification of the leaking source by Oak Ridge National l
L.aboratory personnel, you stated that you wanted the remainder of the l
cesium sources shipped out of the Decatur, Georgia facility to Hanford, K
Washington as soon as could be accomplished.
In addition, the Governor of j
Georgia wrote a letter to Secretary of Energy Watkins in which he asked h
that the cesium sources be removed in an expeditious manner from the j
j Decatur, Georgia facility.
At the RSI information meeting in Decatur, Georgia on September 28, 1989, it was reported by Westinghouse Hanford personnel that "wa need two more shipping casks yesterday!" There were, at that time, several RSI model p
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1500 shipping casks which were in need of repair to make them "roadworthy".
At this same meeting, you reported that RSI would need.tc apply for an Q
amendment to its California license in order to examine the casks at their 9f preferred cask fabricator in California in order to determine what repairs d
were needed and to effect repairs.
a h
At the next RSI information meeting in Decatur, Georgia on October 26, 1989, it was reported that only three Model 1500 shipping caska were s
available for use in shipping sources from the Decatur, Georgia facility.
)
At this same meeting it was stated that no plan for repair of the RSI casko M
had been submitted to the NRC for approval even t. hough a plan had been e
i expected by NRC for a month. The participants at this mceting v6ce 1
informed that RSI had not received an amendment to its California license Q
and that RSI had not investigated the possibility of contracting with existing licensed facilitics for repair of the RSI Model 1500 shipping l
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casks.
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f Mr. Allan Chin L'
- age 2 Noveinber 3,1989 It thus appcars that there is an unnecessary delay in the repair of the RSI i
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Model 1500 shipping casks and a conscquent delay in source shipments.
l Radiation Sterilir.ars, Inc., now has a total of 9 Model 1500 shipping casks P
which presently cannot be used to ship sources from the Decatur, Georgia j
i facility. yurther delays in the shipment of cenium sources from this facility vill increase the risk to the Stato and to the citizens of Qsorgia J
l since there has, to this date, been no determination of the mechanism for failure of the shielding integrity of these sources.
It appears from RSI's j
actions, as stated above, that RSI is not supporting in a positive manner the agreement for DOE to manage the recovery of your Decatur, Georgia facility.
I If there is a problem that is preventing RSI from proceeding in a more expeditious manner with DOE recovery efforts, please let me know.
We expect that RSI will repair the Model 1500 casks in an expeditious manner by prcmptly submitting the proposed repair plan to NRC for approval and without delay contracting with an already licensed facility for the repairs.
Sincerely,
/
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Thomas E. Hill, Acting Director Radiological Health Section j
TEH/dp
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cca Mr. Martin J. Rotter F
Mr. James L. Setser f*
Mr. John D. Rothrock Mr. W. Kelly Dagenhart f,
Mr. Vandy L. Miller ij Mr. Richard L. Woodruff 3
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UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION j
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00T 2 31989 SGTB:NLO 4
71-5939 7
'I Radiation Sterilizers, Incorporated
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ATTN: Dr. Allan Chin, Vice Chairman a
4020 Clipper Court Fremont, CA 94538 l
a Gentlemen:
e I am responding to your letter dated September 29, 1989, in which Radiation Sterilizers, incorporated provided a report under the provisions of y]
10 CFR 671.95. The report concerns water leakage into the containment vessel 1
of the Model No.1500 and results of tests to determine the integrity of the j
containment vessel, n
Based on our review of this report, enclosed is Certificate of Compliance a
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No. 5939 Revision No.16 for the Model No.1500 package. This certificate j
supersedes, in its entirety, Certificate of Compliance No. 5939. Revision 9
No. 15, dated August 30, 1989. The Certificate of Compliance, as amended, requires prior to every third use additional tests and determinations to 1) verify containment vessel integrity. Changes made to the certificate are indicated by vertical lines in the margin.
Those on the attached list have been registered as users of the package under the general license provisions of 10 CFR 671.12 or 49 CFR 6173.471.
L, The approval constitutes the authority to use this package for shipment of radioactive material and for the package to be shipped in accordance with the l
provisions of 49 CFR 6173.471.
p Sincerely, i
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LR.C&
!i arles E. MacDonal, C ief Transportation Branch W
Division of Safeguards ll and Transportation, NMSS
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Enclosure:
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Certificate of Compliance H
No. 5939, Rev. 16 li 2.
Approval Record cc w/ enc 1:
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Mr. Michael E. Wangler L
Department of Transportation Mr. E. G. Cunningham General Electric Company L,
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CERTIMCATE OF COMPuANCE Pon nApeoAcTwt aanTamAI.s PACKAGES
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s General Electric company General Electric Company application I
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P.O. Box 460, Vallecitos Road dated November 18, 1987, as supplemented,
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Asteelencased41ead'shieldeksh:Ippag' cask. The cas b double-walled J
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a tentral cavity'4-inch diameter by J5 ' inches high.
P Il reduced from.301/4 inches :to !!7'1/2 inches byicone construction at the i
top 7 inches.cf-the cask;; $pproximately 11 inches of: lead surround the l
central cavity.)'The c~ask lis tequipped with a> cavity drain line and lif ting I
C16sure isjecsaptished )by&gasketed and polted steel lead-filled devif.ai I
plug. t A prot'ettiveiacket'. consisting offan upright +.tircular cylinder with o
l open bottom arid'a prptruding b'ox 3ect$on diametrical.ly across the top and p',
i vertically down the sides:attacheFtd a. square palle't. Dimensions of the C
i protectivv,iacket are 60-7/8(inches high by 50(inches wide across the box H
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l section. The-outer cylindrical diameter is.36-1/2 inches and the pallet
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I is 59-1/2 inches square.
approximately 15.500' pounds. (
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I The packaging is constructed in accordance with the following General l
I Electric Cornpany Drawing Nos.: 12904748, Rev. 6; 12904749. Rev. 4; li l
and 12904750, Rev. 6 or P.ev. 7.
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Page 2 - Certificate No. $939 - Revision No.16 - Docket No. 71-5939 j
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(b) Contents 1
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4 (1) Type and form of material w
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(i) Byproduct material and special nuclear material meeting the requirements of special form radioactive raterial and antimony l
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pins encased in stainless steel; i
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,o CPlutonium ist incess of 20 curies perpsitkage must hin the form l
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Maximum number of packages per shipnient 22
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ForthecontentsdescribedinItem5(b)(1)(ii)above:
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137CSC1 must be encapsulated in accordance with Vitro Drawing Nos. H-2-66760, f
y Rev. 0; and H-2-66761. Rev. O.
l 90 The SrF 137CsC1 capsules after fabrication must be leak tested using a 2 and I
method havin9 sufficient sensitivity tg detect a legk rate (air at standard 7
tem >erature and pressure leaking to 10 atm) of 10~ atm cc/sec. Any capsule l
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wit 1 a detectable leak may not be delivered to a carrier for transport.
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In addition to the requirements to Subpart G of 10 CFR part 71:
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i Prior to each shipment the silicone rubber lid gaskets anJst be inspected.
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(b) The package must be maintained in accordance with the applicable sections of I
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I Chapter XVII Cask /Fireshield Maintenance, in Exhibit H of the application.
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rated in accordance with b
I Sections Q and Y of XVIII Shipping P epsembly/ Disassembly, j
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I bird shipment a detemination must be p by test d
(d) Prior to ever l
M and observat "that the following criteria are met:
I (i) Bubbihst.
4sk cavity must be fill pp deately 1/4-teth depth Ntth.lt(p and water solutfah,',ihe ca I
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reduted to no more7thans2.5fria;end e]d for' at least vninutes.
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cask tavity we,L; mustabe. dusted with blue chalk, the'eavity pressure 1
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Acceptance is rio wett(pg af'the'chajk.M
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The package authorized' by this certific}te 1. hereby) ap veUforuseunder I
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I the general license proyision of 10 CFR 671.12.
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Expiration date: December 31/19924 M
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Transportation Branch I
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and Transportation, HMSS OM 2 8 W j
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3-Approval Record
- l Transportation Branch b.
Certificate of compliance No. 5939 j
RevisionNo.,3 y?
J By letter dated September 29, 1989, Radiation Sterilizers, Incorporated (RSI)
.provided a report under the provisions of 10 CFR 671.95. The report concerns F{
water leakage into the containment vessel of the Model No.1500 and results of tests to determine the integrity of the containment vessel. Based on this i
report, Certificate of Compliance No. 5939 has been amended to require 1
periodic testing to verify the integrity of the containment vessel in the Model No. 1500 package. Three tests. must be performed prior to every third use, as described in Condit on No. 7 in the certificate: 1)SubbleTest, i
E 1
- 2) Pressure Test, 3) Chalk hst. The tests must show that the welds do not j-leak.
t RSI reported that during past shipments of special form cesium chloride j
capsules in the Model No. 1500 package, water was found in the containment i
vessel when the cask was opened. The cask was loaded under water, and had been drained prior to shipment. Communication between the containment vessel
.)
and the area outside the containment vessel possibly resulted in water entering t
the containment vessel during shipment. Testing of a group of Model No. 1500 1
casks indicated that the containment vessel bottom welds or the drain line i
l welds were leaking in some casks.
The cause of the leakage has not been determined. Manufacturing defects or damage during service are possible causes. Sufficient uncertainty exists to
(
warrant additional precautions to ensure package integrity. The three tests now specified in the certificate were used to evaluate the integrity of Model cj No. 1500 cask cavities.
3
)
The contents authorized in Certificate of Compliance No. 5939 are limited to encapsulated radioactive materials, irradiated hardware, and radioactivt W
Consequently, leak tests 5
materials meeting the requirements of special form.
J-which are required for shipment for Type B qt.pt.ities of normal form radioactive 1
materials are not required for the Model No.1500 package. However, the cask provides shielding and must therefore maintain its structural integrity under j
both normal conditions of transport and hypothetical accident conditions.
j Structural integrity of the cask includes integrity of the containment vessel p
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The packa e design was reviewed and approved based on information contained in Genera Electric Company apalication dated November 18, 1987, as supplemented.
The application was based on tie assumption that the containment vessel is dry il' 9-
-during transport. To assure that the containment vessel would not leak, the 1
application specified that a leak test be performed on each unit prior to its 2
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2 first uge which shows that the containment vessel has a leak rate less thanAc d
3 1 x 10' std cm'/sec.
the cask is required to be properly sealed during transport. Operating procedures specify the use of a gasket to seal the cask, and the gasket and l
sealing surfaces must be inspected prior to each shipment to ensure that the i-The purpose served by providing a cask lid will provide an adequate seal.
j_
closure seal would be nullified by leaks through the containment vessel welds, j
To assure that the operational performance of the casks is in accordance with e
j the intent of the design, Certificate of Compliance No. 5939 is amended to require three tests and determinations to be performed prior to every third shipment to verify the integrity of the containment vessel.
l A 2.cJa g g
Charles E. MacDonal, chief Transportation Branch Division of Safeguards i-and Transportation, NMSS OCT I3 18 t
Date:
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