ML20116P274

Univ of Wi Nuclear Lab Annual Operating Rept for FY95-96

ML20116P274
Person / Time
Site:	University of Wisconsin
Issue date:	12/31/1996
From:	Cashwell R, Jerome Murphy WISCONSIN, UNIV. OF, MADISON, WI
To:	NRC OFFICE OF INFORMATION RESOURCES MANAGEMENT (IRM)
References
NUDOCS 9608230220
Download: ML20116P274 (22)

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Tech Specs, Docket 50-156 August 15, 1996 l

'U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission ATTN: Document Control Desk Washington, D. C. 20555

Dear Sir:

Enclosed herewith is a copy of the Annual Report for fiscal year I 1995-96 for the University of Wisconsin Nuclear Reactor Laboratory as required by cur Technical Specifications.

Very truly yours, i

pf()A-&

i R 1./ . Cashwell Reactor Director Enc. (Annual Report)

XC: Region III Administrator

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4 UWNR THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN NUCLEAR REACTOR LABORATORY ANNUAL OPERATING REPORT fiscal year 1995-96

't i Prepared to meet reporting requirements of:

U. S. Department of Energy 4

SPECIAL MASTER TASK RESEARCH SUBCONTRACT NO. C87-101251 i and U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission j (Docket 50-156, License R-74) l Prepared by:

R. J. Cashwell and J. G. Murphy Department of Nuclear Engineering and Engineering Physics k

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UWNR ANNUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 1 of 20 fiscal year 1995-96 EXECUTIVE

SUMMARY

OF REACTOR UTILI2ATION Teaching: Teaching usage of the reactor during the year included:

35 NEEP students in laboratory courses.

10 students in lecture courses which included demonstrations in the reactor laboratory.

- 317 students and 51 staff members from 17 other educational institutions used the facility as part of the USDOE Reactor Sharing Program.

Research Neutrons from the reactor were used primarily for neutron activation and analysis.

669 samples were irradiated for departments at UW-Madison.

399 samples were irradiated for other educational institution research programs.

Industrial Use:

NAA services were provided to Hazelton Laboratories, Molten Metal Technology, and M4 Environmental.

Irradiations were performed for Green Park Gems. A total of 684 samples were irradiated for these industrial users.

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4 UWNR AkWUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 2 of 20 fiscal year 1995-96 TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE

SUMMARY

OF REACTOR UTILIZATION . . . . . . . . . . . 1 A.

SUMMARY

OF OPERATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

1. INSTRUCTIONAL USE --UW-Madison Classes and Activities . . 4

2. REACTOR SHARING PROGRAM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

3. SAMPLE IRRADIATIONS AND NEUTRON ACTIVATION ANALYSIS SERVICES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

4. OTHER MAJOR RESEARCH USE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 CHANGES IN PERSONNEL, FACILITY AND PROCEDURES . . . 10

6. RESULTS OF SURVEILLANCE TESTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 B. OPERATING STATISTICS AND FUEL EXPOSURE . . . . . . . . 11 C. EMERGENCY SHUTDOWNS AND INADVERTENT SCRAMS . . . . . . . 12 D. MAINTENANCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 E. CHANGES IN THE FACILITY OR PROCEDURES REPORTABLE UNDER 10CFR 50.59 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 F. RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 G.

SUMMARY

OF RADIATION EXPOSURE OF PERSONNEL . . . . . . . 16 H. RESULTS OF ENVIRONMENTAL SURVEYS . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 I. PUBLICATIONS BASED ON REACTOR USE . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Table 1 LIQUID RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISCHARGED TO SEWER . 18 TABLE 2 EFFLUENT FROM STACK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 l TABLE 3 LIQUID RADIOACTIVE RELEASES TO THE ENVIRONMENT 19 1

UWNR ANNUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 3 of 20 fiscal year 1995-96 i

TABLE 4 ANNUAL DOSE DATA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 1

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UWNR ANNUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 4 of 20 fiscal year 1995-96 A.

SUMMARY

OF OPERATIONS 1

1. INSTRUCTIONAL USE --UW-Madison Classes and Activities 10 students enrolled in NEEP 231 participated in a laboratory session introducing students to reactor behavior characteristics. 8 hours9.259259e-5 days <br />0.00222 hours <br />1.322751e-5 weeks <br />3.044e-6 months <br /> of reactor operating time were devoted to this session.

NEEP 427 was offered in the fall and spring semesters

with a total enrollment of 19. Several NEEP 427 experiments l use materials that are activated in the reactor. One experiment entitled " Radiation Survey" requires that students make measurements of radiation levels in and around the reactor laboratory. All of these reactor uses take place during normal isotope production runs, so no reactor time is specifically devoted to NEEP 427.

The enrollment in NEEP 428 was 16 as it was offered in both semesters. Three experiments in NEEP 428 require exclusive use of the reactor. Each of these experiments

(" Critical Experiment," " Control Element Calibration," and

" Pulsing") was repeated four times during the year requiring a total of 15 hours1.736111e-4 days <br />0.00417 hours <br />2.480159e-5 weeks <br />5.7075e-6 months <br /> of exclusive reactor use. Other NEEP 428 laboratory sessions use material that has been irradiated in the reactor (" Fast Neutron Flux Measurements by Threshold Foil Techniques" and " Resonance Absorption").

These two experiments were repeated 8 times during the year. l i

Individual class sessions for History of Science 655, l EPD 275, and Physics 208 were held in the Reactor Laboratory, with 39 students participating.

i The Reactor Laboratory continues to attract large

! numbers of tours, with groups from public schools, day l cares, scout troops, Kollege for Kids, trades apprentice programs, teacher groups, senior citizens, and service organizations visiting for tours and nuclear power information.

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l UWNR ANNUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 5 of 20 fiscal year 1995-96

2. REACTOR SHARING PROGRAM User institutions participated in the program as detailed below.

Participating Principal Number of Faculty /

Institution Investigator Students Involved Edgewood College Madison, WI P. Weldy 1/24 NAA demonstration / Reactor tour for chemistry class.

Lakeshore Technical Institute D. Gossett 1/5 Reactor operation demonstration, Neutron survey instrument use , NAA demonstration. For Health Physics Technician class instruction.

Milwaukee School of Engineering

. Prof. Mayer 1/11 Reactor operation demonstration Madison West High School M. Lyman 1/?

Prepared license exempt beta and alpha sources for use in a cloud chamber. The cloud chamber design was presented at a high school science teacher workshop on  !

construction and use of a cloud chamber in high school physics instructional units.

University of Minnesota-Duluth G. Rapp 2/2 NAA of copper and tin artifacts and rock (chert, quartzite, and other quartz-based) for provenance studies.

University of Southern Mississippi Prof. D. McCain 2/0 NAA of plant tissue in a study of effects of stress on plant growth.

, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Prof. Helwig 2/*

Provide neutron survey meter for required local surveys; assist with leak tests of gamma and neutron sources; repair and calibrate survey meters.

• Number of students benefited cannot be accurately stated, since

! the support to the program in the physics department l

indirectly benefits all students in their instructional units which involve radiation and radioactivity.

o UWNR ANNUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 6 of 20 fiscal year 1995-96 Pre-College Groups:

Boy Scouts Blackhawk Council 2/9 j Reactor tour, nuclear power discussion, shielding 1 experiment, and neutron activation analysis  !

demonstration for scouting merit badge credit. l I

Engineering Tomorrow's Careers 5/49 l Reactor tour and nuclear power discussion with High l School junior and senior women. This program '

introduces women to career possibilities in engineering disciplines.

I ESTEAM 3/90 j Reactor tour and nuclear power discussion for minority l high school students. Part of a program to interest l minority students in technical education.

Four Lakes Girl Scouts 1/9 Reactor tour, nuclear power discussion, shielding  ;

experiment, and neutron activation analysis demonstration to satisfy requirements for completing an j

" interest area". l l

i High School Science Teachers 25/0 l Tour and nuclear power discussion with teachers group l interested in broadening knowledge of nuclear power. l Mount Horeb High School 2/20 Reactor tour, nuclear power discussion, shielding experiment, and neutron activation analysis demonstration to supplement academic unit on nuclear power.

New Glarus High School 1/18 Reactor tour, nuclear power discussion, shielding experiment, and neutron activation analysis demonstration to supplement academic unit on nuclear j power.  !

Randall School 1/8 Reactor tour, nuclear power discussion, shielding l experiment, and neutron activation analysis demonstration to supplement academic unit on nuclear power.

Society of Women Engineers 0/68 Reactor tour and nuclear power discussion for senior high school women considering technical careers

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l UWNR ANNUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 7 of 20 l fiscal year 1995-96

( Verona High School 2/4 Reactor tour, nuclear power discussion, shielding )

experiment, and neutron activation analysis 1 demonstration to supplement academic unit on nuclear i power.

USER SU) 'aRY:

Educational Institutions: 17 Students: 317 Faculty / Instructors: 51 '

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3. SAMPLE IRRADIATIONS AND NEUTRON ACTIVATION ANALYSIS SERVICES There were 1752 individual samples irradiated during the year. Of these samples, 666 were irradiated for 15 minutes or less. Samples accumulated 975.89 irradiation l space hours and 3148.87 sample hours. Many samples were l irradiated and then counted at the Reactor Laboratory as part of our neutron activation analysis service. In the listing below the notation (NAA) indicates that the samples were processed by our neutron activation analysis service.

Animal Health and Biomedical sciences Department (NAA) 214 samples, 326 sample hours, 9 irradiation space hours.

Professors Albrecht, Darian, and Kruse-Elliott, two staff members, and 1 graduate student used the NAA service to trace processes by colloidal gold transport in animal metabolism.

Green Park Gems, NY 32 samples, 768 irradiation space hours, 768 sample hours.

Irradiation of topaz to induce color change. Industrial support.

Hazelton Laboratories, Madison, WI (NAA) 159 samples, all less than 15 minute irradiations, 15.9 i sample hours, 15.9 irradiation space hours. Determination of I F content of oils; determination of leaching of impurities l from food packaging materials. Industrial support.

M4 Environmental, TN (NAA) 493 samples, 146 less than 15 minutes, 600.93 sample hours, 37.33 irradiation space hours. Three staff members used the l

neutron activation analysis service. All involved i

UWNR ANNUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 8 of 20 fiscal year 1995-96 measurement of segregation of specific elements in a waste-recovery process. Industrial support.

Nutritional Sciences Department 2 samples, 12 sample hours, 6 irradiation space hours.

Professor H. Ganther and 1 additional staff member used the reactor isotope production service to produce organoselenium compounds for cancer research. Supported by NIH/NCI.

Nuclear Engineering and Engineering Physics, UW-Madison NEEP 427 and 428 Laboratory Courses 118 samples, 86 less than 15 minutes, 137.8 sample hours, 37.45 irradiation space hours. Irradiations in support of teaching laboratory courses.

Reactor Laboratory 20 samples, 4 less than 15 minutes, 8.55 sample hours, 1.05 irradiation space hours. Irradiations for flux measurements and instrument calibrations.

Neutron Radiography 115 samples, 690 sample hours, 36 irradiation space hours.

Prof. Corradini and one graduate student member made flux measurements using activation foils.

Soil science Department 135 samples, 13 less than 15 minutes, 100.93 sample hours, 6.77 irradiation space hours.

Prof. Phil Helmke and four graduate students performed irradiations for neutron activation analysis of soil samples.

In addition, they used reactor-produced radioisotopes to study the behavior of materials in laboratory soil-water-plant systems. Supported by Hatch Act and USDA.

University of Minnesota-Duluth (NAA) (RSP) 301 samples, 159 less than 15 minutes, 324.25 sample hours, 9.5 irradiation space hours. Prof. George Rapp, two additional staff members, and three graduate students continue their use of NAA for characterization of copper artifacts and pottery samples, primarily to determine provenance. Supported by DOE Reactor Sharing Program.

University of Southern Mississippi (NAA) (RSP) 38 samples, all less than 15 minutes irradiation, 9.5 sample hours, 0.5 irradiation space hours Prof. D. McCain continues his studies of stress on plants.

Supported by DOE Reactor Sharing Program.

a UWNR ANNUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 9 of 20 fiscal year 1995-96 University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (NAA) 60 samples, 35 less than 15 minutes, 58.75 sample hours, 5 irradiation space hours.

Prof. Naik and one graduate students from the Center for Byproduct Utilization used neutron activation analysis to investigate incorporation of waste materials into construction materials (primarily concretes). Industrial support.

4. OTHER MAJOR RESEARCH USE Development of the neutron radiography facility continued.

Principle investigations during this fiscal year included l flux mapping, internal radiation dose measurements, )

imaging of cracks in refractory brick, and installation of l a new imaging system.

The neutron beam at the face of the collimator has a thermal neutron flux of 2.98E6 ny, epithermal flux of 7.85E5 ny, and a cadmium ratio of 1.83. The effective flat flux area of the beam is 23.8 in 2, i

Molten Metal Technologies was interested in determining the existence of cracks in refractory brick by use of neutron radiography. Preliminary studies show such an investigation is possible.

A new imaging system was purchased and installed for the  ;

neutron radiography facility. This included a CCD camera with PC compatible hardware and software for digitally  ;

imaging neutrcn radiographs from the Precise Optics Image l Intensifier.

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l UWNR AWNUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 10 of 20 fiscal year 1995-96 The neutron radiography facility was temporarily dismantled at the end of this fiscal year to make space  ;

for installing temporary water storage pool.

CHANGES IN PERSONNEL, FACILITY AND PROCEDURES

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Any changes reportable under 10 CFR 50.59 are indicated in section E of this report.

In the early 1960s a manufacturer's modification resulted in an increase in electronic scram delay time which caused SAR values to be exceeded. As part of the fix to restore the delay time to the limit, stainless steel studs were implanted into the scram magnet faces to insert about a 0.060 inch air gap between the magnet face and the armature. Subsequent to refueling with TRIGA fuel the electronic scram requirement was removed, and thus the electronic scram delay time was not specified in new Technical Specifications. The air gaps greatly reduced the holding force of the magnets, and have led to numerous control element drops from vibration or slight misalignment, as well as difficulty in picking up the control elements during startup. A safety analysis was presented to the Reactor Safety Committee, and removal of the air gaps was authorized. During the annual maintenance shutdown the stainless steel studs were machined flush with the surface of the magnet face,

restoring the holding force. No measurable increase in scram times resulted, but the control element drops and difficulty in withdrawing control elements was eliminated by the modification.

A new pump and filtration capability for the liquid waste disposal facility was installed and tested during the

! year. All liquids discharged to the sewer system now must 4 pass through filters rated at 0.5 microns in order to

preclude discharge of particulate material to the sewer.

Personnel changes during the year were as follows:

Professor Gerald L. Kulcinski was appointed to the Reactor i

Safety Committee vice Professor George Maxwell, who retired.

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UWNR ANNUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 11 of 20 l fiscal year 1995-96 The following operators completed degree requirements and left the university.

Heather MacLean Dirk Raebel Lavonne Todd William Keller In addition, licensed operator Carin Flint was removed from licensed activities when her Cooperative Education program left her too little time to continue to maintain a license.

6. RESULTS OF SURVEILLANCE TESTS I

The program of inspection and testing of reactor l components continues. Inspection of underwater components showed no deterioration or wea'r.

Soon after the completion of the annual maintenance activities in January, 1996, leakage of pool water around the thermal column case was discovered by visual inspection. Further information on the leak is contained elsewhere in this report. l l

l B. OPERATING STATISTICS AND FUEL EXPOSURE l Critical Ooeratina Period Hours MW Hours Startups Pulses l I

fiscal year 1995-96 612.13 527.68 133 29 i FLIP Core 11585.74 9624.60 3248 724 TRIGA 18850.73 14612.78 5238 2035 Core I23-R10 was operated throughout the year. The excess reactivity of this core with cadmium-lined irradiation positions loaded increased by 0.075% reactivity (to 2.433%) during the ye.ar as burnout of Erbium poisoning exceeded U-235 burnout.

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1 UWNR ANNUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 12 of 20 fiscal year 1995-96 C. EMERGENCY SHUTDOWN 8 AND INADVERTENT SCRAM 8 There were two automatic scrams or inadvertent shutdowns during the year. Each is described below in chronological sequence below.

11/07/95 Control blade #2 dropped without loss of magnet current. There were four such rod drops during the previous year, and numerous occasions both

, this year and in previous years in which the magnet would not pick up the control element until the magnet was carefully realigned with the armature. See the modifications section of this report for the change made to end these nuisance drops.

4/23/96 Drop of all scrammable control elements due to loss of electrical power to west end of the campus.

D. MAINTENANCE 3 Routine preventive maintenance continued to maintain 3

equipment operability, with the exceptions noted below. l Removal of a modification of the control rod drive magnets is discussed under section C 5. CHANGES IN l PERSONNEL, FACILITY AND PROCEDURES.

The following section concerning a pool leak includes I events that took place in July, 1996. This information is included for completeness.

On January 12, 1996 water was observed in the east track of the thermal column door. The water appeared to be exiting from the shield between the thermal column (TC) case and the concrete at the bottom east corner of the thermal column. This occurred during the annual maintenance shutdown while the pool was at about 72 degrees F. The position of the leak, and the fact that it occurred while the pool was in an unusually cool condition was similar to that in the previous leak first observed in August 1986. The previous leak had been due to a crack in the pool liner about 1 cm above the top west corner of the thermal column.

The previous crack had been welded shut, and further leakage had not been observed in the interim.

UWNR ANNUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 13 of 20 fiscal year 1995-96 The leak. rate appeared to be about 3 gallons per day (evaporation rate is about 17 gallons per day) .

.The chair of the Reactor Safety Committee was informed. NRC Region III was notified that a leak existed, even though notification was not required.

In order to quantitize the leak it was necessary to correct for temperature changes and evaporation rate. The pool level changes 0 .071 inches / deg F when at normal level (over the normal operating temperature range of 75-125 degrees F).

Evaporation rate varies with temperature, humidity, and flow rate, so the pool was covered in order to reduce evaporation rate. The loss rate with the pool covered, corrected for temperature change, was determined to be 16 gallons per day, some of which was still evaporation. After discussion with the chair of RSC, it was determined that operation could continue, since the leak rate was much less than for the previous leak. Operation was resumed while further invcatigation of the leak rate took place in order to meet instructional requirements and to maintain fuel self-protection. Operation continued by performing the power calibration, ,

which raises the temperature of the pool, assuming that the rate would decrease when we were at higher temperatures. The following weekend, January  ;

19-22, with the pool uncovered, loss rate was  !

18.85 gallons / day, or about 1.7 gallons / day above

" normal". The weekend, January 26-29, the ,

uncovered pool loss rate was 12 gallons / day, much  !

lower than the normal loss rate. l To better measure actual leak rate, a polystyrene I view box was partially filled with water and 1 floated on the pool surface to maintain temperature equilibrium. Subsequent leak rate measurements were made by assuming evaporation rate in the view box was the same as that in the pool. A spreadsheet was prepared to calculate the leak rate, calculating the difference in change of view box and pool level and correcting for temperature change. Leak rate varied from less than zero up to a maximum of 9 gallons / day over the next 5 months. (Note: a 1/64 inch measurement error would cause about 0.9 gallons / day error in leak rate.

An underwater video camera and traversing mechanism was used to inspect the pool walls. Particular attention was paid to the area around the TC. A crack, very similar in size and relative position,

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UWNR A30tUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 14 of 20 fiscal year 1995-96 was found on the east top of the TC. One other j " suspicious" indication was found on the east vertical weld, but closer examination showed it not to be a crack. No evidence of corrosion was noted on remaining surfaces.

On February 16, 1996 the current status of the leak was reported to the Reactor Safety Committee, along with and indication of our intent to continue operation through the semester for instructional and thesis research needs. The committee was informed that the leak rate would be closely monitored until equipment and procedures for repair were completed. The repair required that the pool be drained, which required that the neutron radiography shield be removed to allow for installation of the portable swimming pool which would store the pool water as the pool was drained.

The RSC approved use of the procedure from the l previous pool repair for dealing with the current  !

leak at the May 15, 1996 meeting.

The reactor was shut down from normal operations on May 30, 1996, and unloading of the core to the j storage pit was begun on May 31. The regulating blade was also placed into the pit, while instrumented fuel elements were installed in the transfer shielding cask which was placed on the bottom of the pool after the pit cover was placed over the pit. (The pit was covered after pool level had been lowered 4 feet from normal.)

Pool level was lowered in 1 to 2 foot steps. Jacks were placed to prevent pool wall collapse as air pressure was increased in the gap between the pool liner and the concrete shield. Pressures of 0.5 to 2.5 psig were used for pressurization, and visual inspection for bubbles was used to look for leak sites. By June 17 only 1.5 feet of water was left in the pool, and no leakage of air was discovered when the pool was pressurized, even at the suspected leak site. This was not unexpected, however, since the leak was in a cylindrical section of pool and pressurization compresses the metal and tends to seal the leak.

Dose rate at the pool curb with minimum level in the pool was 2 millirem / hour maximum. In order to further investigate the suspected leak site, the pool was refilled to a level at which the suspected crack was only 4 inches above water level. Dose

UWNR ANNUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 15 of 20 fiscal year 1995-96 rate at the work position was just under 100 millirem / hour, while dose rate at the edge of the grid box (top was slightly under water) was 160-180 millirem / hour.

The crack was examined and probed. The conclusion reached was that it was indeed a crack. The crack was ground out, with indications during the grinding that the crack went all the way through the liner thickness. The ends of the crack were drilled out (0.25 inch) to prevent further crack propagation. Finally, the crack was MIG welded shut.

After the weld was completed, level was raised above the weld. It leaked again, with the water exiting where it had initially. This time, the air pressure leak test showed the location of the leak in the weld. The portions of the weld that appeared to have inclusions were ground out again and re-welded. Upon flooding and pressure testing 1

again, another small leak was found in the part of the original weld that was not ground out. The remainder of the original weld was ground out and rewelded. This time there were no leak indications.

The refill of the pool was completed on July 12,

. 1996. The demineralizer had been temporarily connected to the swimming pool on the floor, and the resins were exhausted so that regeneration was required on July 12. Organic content of the water had increased significantly during the shutdown, and the demineralizer pre-filter required 4 replacement several times. Water clarity was poor, even though the resistivity was within SAR limits.

1 The pit was uncovered on July 15, 1996. The regulating blade, instrumented elements, and the

. transient rod were reinstalled. Drop time J measurements conducted on July 15 were within specifications, and the demineralizer was producing 2.5 megohm-cm water by the end of the day.

The core was reassembled on July 15, 1996. Clarity i .of the pool water was restored once power operation removed excess air from the water. Reactor operation resumed on July 18, 1996. There is now no apparent leakage from the pool, although the pool liner appears to still be relaxing back against the concrete shield.

l UWNR ANNUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 16 of 20 fiscal year 1995-96 E. CHANGE 8 IN THE FACILITY OR PROCEDURE 8 REPORTABLE UNDER 10CFR 50.59 There were no changes in the facility of procedures reportable under 10CFR Part 50.59.

F. RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL

1. SOLID WASTE 1 i

No solid waste was transferred from the facility during the year.

2. LIQUID WASTE >

Table 1 details discharge of radioactive material to the sewer system. The release is somewhat larger than usual, since no waste was discharged during the previous fiscal year due to the need to change the filtration on the waste disposal system to meet revised 10CFR Part 20.2003 requirements. Although the Part 20 reference provides for averaging over one month intervals, facility policy is to meet the monthly average maximum concentration on a daily basis.

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3. PARTICULATE AND GASEOUS ACTIVITY RELEASED TO THE ATMOSPHERE Table 2 presents information on stack discharges during the ,

year.

4. RELEASE OF RADIOACTIVITY TO THE ENVIRONMENT VIA POOL LEAK Table 3 shows the radioactivity released as a result of the pool leak.

G.

SUMMARY

OF RADIATION EXPOSURE OF PERSONNEL (1 July 1995-30 June 1996)

No personnel received any significant radiation exposure for the above period. The highest doses recorded were 90 mrem to the whole body and 80 mrem to extremities.

H. RESULTS OF ENVIRONMENTAL SURVEYS The environmental monitoring program at Wisconsin uses Eberline TLD area monitors lccated in areas surrounding the reactor laboratory. Table 4 indicates the dose a person would have

UWNR ANNUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 17 of 20 fiscal year 1995-96 received if continuously present in the indicated area for the full year.

I. PUBLICATIONS BASED ON REACTOR USE Bland, W.L., P.A. Helmke, and J.M. Baker. 1996. High-resolution snow-water equivalent measurement by gamma-ray spectroscopy.

Agric. Forest. Meteorology. (In Press).

Braum, S.M. and P.A. Helmke. 1995. White lupin utilizes soil phosphorus that is unavailable to soybean. Plant Soil.176:96-100.

Buzetti, R.H. Silva, J.A.G. Santos, and P.A. Helmke. 1996.

Response and critical level of seven crops to zinc. Proceedings of the International Conference on Acid Soils. Brazil, March, 1996. Plant and Soil. (In Press)

Chen, T., G. Rapp, Jr, Z. Jing, and N. He, " Provenance Study with Neutron Activation Analysis on the Ceramics from Jingnansi Bronze Age Site, Hubei, China", Proceedings of the Symposium: Chineese Archaelogy Enters the 21st Century, Peking University (in press)

B. J. Darien, P. A. Sims, K.T. Kruse-Elliott, T. S. Homan, R. J.

Cashwell, A.J. Cooley, and R. M. Albrecht, "Use of Colloidal Gold and Neutron Activation in Correlative Microscopic Labeling and Label Quantitation", Scanning Microscopy, Vol 9, No. 3, 1995 (pages 773-780)

Helmke, P.A. and R. Naidu. 1996. Fate of contaminants in the soil environment: Metal contaminants. In Proceedings of the First Australasia-Pacific Conference on Contaminants and Soil-Environment. R.Naidu et al., (Eds). Kluwer Academic Publishers. Dordrecht, The Netherlands. pp.69-94.

Rothe, R. And G. Rapp, Jr. ," Trace-Element Analyses of Egyptian Eastern Desert Tin and Its Importance to Egyptian Archaeology",

pp. 229-244 in Proceedings of the Egyptian-Italian Seminar on the Geosciences and Archaeology in the Mediterranian Countries, ed. b A.A.A Hussein, M. Miele, & S. Riad, Special Publication #70 of the Geological Survey of Egypt Vempati, R.K., R.V. Morris and P.A. Helmke. 1995. Reflectivity and other physicochemical properties of Mn-substituted goethites and hematites. J. Geophysical Res. Planets. 100:3285-3290.

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! UWNR ANNUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 18 of 20 l fiscal year 1995-96 l l

Table 1 LIQUID RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISCHARGED TO SEWER Date 7A5/95 7/10/95 4/3/96 5/30/96 Total

]

, Total pCi - 341.02 81.07 601.28 292.01 1315.38 j

j Gallons 1650 700 1600 600 4550 I

{ isotope / MPC Co-57

{ 6.00e-04 pCl 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 l pCi/mi 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 0.00e+00

, Fraction of MPC 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 Co-58 pCi 19.87 4.26 31.84 18.61 74.58 l 2.00e-04 pCi/ml 3.18e-06 1.61e-06 5.26e-06 8.19e-06 4.33e-06 j Fraction of MPC 1.59e-02 8.04e-03 2.63e-02 4.10e-02 2.17e-02 i Co-60 pCi 14.29 4.26 23.61 2.68 44.84 3.00e-05 pCi/ml 2.29e-06 1.61e-06 3.90e-06 1.18e-06 2.60s-06 l

l Fraction of MPC 7.63e-02 5.36e-02 1.30e-01 3.93e-02 8.68e-02 l Cr 51 pCl 12.30 3.71 38.79 48.00 102.80 l 5.00e-03 pCi/mi 1.97e-06 1.40e-06 6.41e-06 2.11e-05 5.97e-06 Fraction of MPC 3.94e-04 2.80e-04 1.28e-03 4.23e-03 1.19e-03

{

Fe-59 pCi 0.00e+00 0.00e+00  :

j 1.00e-04 pCi/ml 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 0.00e+00

! Fraction of MPC 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 I l Fe-55 pCl 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 j i 1.00e-03 pCi/mi 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 Fraction of MPC 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 K-40 pCi 3.94 1.47 5.41

} 4.00e-05 pCL/mi 6.31e-07 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 6.47e-07 3.14e-07 i Fraction of MPC 1.58e-02 0.00e+00 0.00e+00 1.62e-02 7.85e-03 Mn-54 pCi 37.87 9.08 66.22 18.27 131.44 l 3.00e-04 pCi/ml 6.06e-06 3.43e-06 1.09e-05 8.04e-06 7.63e-06 l Fraction of MPC 2.02e-02 1.14e-02 3.64e-02 2.68e-02 2.54e-02

! Ru-106 pCi 57.51 13.02 98.28 48.30 217.11

3.00e-05 pCi/mi 9.21e-06 4.91e-06 1.62e-05 2.13e-05 1.26e-05 Fraction of MPC 3.07e-01 1.64e-01 5.41e-01 7.09e-01 4.20e-01

Zn-65 pCi 195.24 46.74 342.54 154.68 739.20 4 5.00e-05 pCi/ml 3.13e-05 7.48e-06 5.48e-05 2.48e-05 4.29e-05 l Fraction of MPC 6.25e-01 1.50e-01 1.10e+00 4.95e-01 8.58e-01 l TOTAL l No dilution Fraction of MPC 1.06 0.39 1.83 1.33 1.41 Daily dilution Fraction of MPC 0.07 0.01 0.12 0.03 0.06 Average concentration at point of release to sewer = 7.64e-05

Average fraction of release limit without dilution = 1.41 i Maximum fraction of release limit without dilution =1.83 i Average daily sewage flow for dilution = 2.37e+04 gallons

! Maximum fraction of MONTHLY release limit wnh DAILY dilution flow = 0.12 i Maximum fraction of MONTHLY release limit with MONTHLY dilution flow = 0.01

UWNR ANNUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 19 of 20 fiscal year 1995-96 TABLE 2 EFFLUENT FROM STACK i 1. Particulate Activity There was no discharge of particulate radioactivity above background levels.

2. Gaseous ActMty- All Argon-41 4 Maximum Average Activity Discharged Concentration Concentration Month (Curies) pCi/ml x 1 E-6 pCi/ml x 1E-6 July 0.01519 1.7 0.0041 August 0.02211 1.5 0.0127 September 0.02211 1.5 0.012 October 0.02057 1.6 0.0118 November 0.03305 2.3 0.019 December 0.11952 2.1 0.0667 January 0.11958 2.3 0.0676 February 0.16148 2.2 0.0963 March 0.13975 2.1 0.0779 April 0.16673 75* 0.0961 May 0.09827 3.1 0.05481 j June 0 0.4 0 Total Maximum Average 0.91836 75 0.0432508 Above normalinstantaneous release due to opening Thermal Column to accomplish an instrumentation checkout required by Technical Specifications.

TABLE 3 LIQUID RADIOACTIVE RELEASES TO THE ENVIRONMENT Fraction of Na-24 Tritium Gallons 10CFR 20 Month pCi/mi pCl/ml lost ml lost pCi Na-24 pCl H-3 Limit Jan 96 0.00000012 0.0000703 88.3 2.64e+05 3.03e-02 1.85e+01 0.0725703 Feb 0.00000012 0.0000703 82.6 2.42e+05 2.79e-02 1.70e+01 0.0725763 Mar 0.00000048 0.0000703 88.3 2.64e+05 1.26e-01 1.85e+01 0.0798103 Apr 0.00000014 0.0000703 85.4 2.53e+05 3.47e-02 1.78e+01 0.0730103 May 0.00000005 0.0000703 88.3 2.64e+05 1.43e-02 1.85e+01 0.0713503 Jun 0.00000005 0.0000703 85.4 2.53e+05 1.37e-02 1.78e+01 0.0713503 Total 518.2 1.54e+06 2.47e-01 1.08e+02

UWNR AsNUAL REPORT August 15, 1996 Page 20 of 20 fiscal year 1995-96 TABLE 4 ANNUAL DOSE DATA - Environmental Monitors Anr.ual Dose in mrem Location fiscal year 1995-96 Control- kept in lead shield except for shipment from and to processor 102.0 Inside Wall of Reactor Laboratory 545.6 Inside Reactor Laboratory Stack 127.0 Highest Dose Outside Reactor )

Laboratory (Reactor Lab roof Ladder: monitor adjacent )

i to stone surface) 164.8 Highest Dose in Occupied l Nonrestricted Area (second floor j classroom) Room 247 126.6 j Average Dose in all Nonrestricted l Areas (27 Monitor Points) 108.8 l

l

.