ML20133J357
| ML20133J357 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | 07000036 |
| Issue date: | 06/18/1956 |
| From: | Belmore F MALLINCKRODT, INC. |
| To: | Johnson L US ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION (AEC) |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20133G976 | List:
|
| References | |
| FOIA-96-343 NUDOCS 9701170495 | |
| Download: ML20133J357 (7) | |
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f l'r. Lyall Jol nson Licensing Division U. S. Atomic Er.crgy Co:uaission 1901 Constitution Avenue Washington 25, D, C.
Dear F'r. Johnson:
Reference is ude to our application for a special nuclest material license f
covering our plant at Hematite, Missouri, transmitted with ou l appli-May 15, 1956.which 'r.nke it necessary for us to request amendments to the orig cation.
to oxide beginn-076 We now have requirements for processingIn processing this material, we plan to use ing about September 1, 1956.
l as in the case of the other enrichments, "always saf# batch sizes as w as equipment of "always safe" geometry, equipment is attached as Appendix T Ve also have a requirement for producing a small quantity of 20% enriched Since this order amounts to only about 1 kg.
oxide by September 1,1956.
of contained U235 and since other commitments prevent our producing it in the Hematite plant, we would like to process this material in our p plant located in St. Louis.ial we propose to process in our St. Louis f Our plans for the conversion of the 5[ kg, approximately (U content) to UO Appendix II.
ities Ve have been advised of the necessity _ of-having adeqqa Our nev f
for special nuclear material before a license my be issue.
August.
storage facilities at Hematite are Teheduled-for completion early in Although ve have no plans to receive any special nuclear material until
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is completion of these facilities, we vould like to knew th l
We propose, therefote, that a concrete floored, hollow-tile valled build i
e.vaihble en mir He-Mite property be designated as a temporary stor-ly.
age facility in order that the storage requirement can be met i=edinta us You vill not A description of this building is attached as Appendix III.
that the criticality problem is handled in storage by maintaining al stored material in " bird eages".
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Fr. Lysil Johaaaa June 18, ]?j6 In vie. 30 t he inforration contained in the nLove paragrapia, we rewest that our applic: tien for a special nuclear mterici license for cur Heretite facility be anerded to:
(1) cover processing of UF6 of all enrichments to UO. (Seee,1so 2
Appendix IV which cutlines prcposed methala.)
(2) designate the former dair/ barn described in Appendix III ao a temporary storage facility.
We alao request that we be granted a "one shot special nuclear material license to permit us to process U?6 containing approximately 1 kilogram of U 35 to UO2 in our pilot plant facilities at Fallinckro3t's main plant 2
located at 3600 North Second Street, St. Louis, Missouri. Processing of thla material is desired during the month of August,1956, and would be under the direct supervision of qualified technical personnel named in our basic application of May 15, 1956.
Should you require additional information in order to permit your action on the itema mentioned above, we shal] attempt to supply it ir: mediately upon notification from you.
Very truly yours, Frederick Be$ ore Special Asst. to the President FMB/cak City of St. Louis State of Missouri Subscribed and swom to befom me this 18th day of June,1956.
mv Notary Prshlic
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My commission expires December 10, 1958.
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The hexafluoride n ll be received in "always safe" cylinders as specified by the AEC. These cylinders will be transported in bird carea which will maintain "always safe" spacing between ad.iacent cylinders. At Hematite, concrete block vaults will be used for storage of the cylinders of uraniur. hexafluoride still in bird cages prior to use.
A. cylinder in the bird cage will be noved by dolly from storage to the hydrolysis hood. At this point the cylinder will be removed from the bird cage, placed on a scale and connected to a 1/h" line leading to the hydrolysis equipment. As indicated on the attached flow cheat, the hydrolysis operation will be carried out in an "alwaya safe" geometry cylindrical' tank, 5" in diameter and L' deep. As an added precaution, processirff will be done in "always safe" sized batches of 0.7 pounds uranium /The solution in the tank will be pumped through the aspirator to create suction on the cylinder. The entire operation will be carried out in the hood which will be curbed for cp a depth of h", and the curbed area will have sufficient capacity to hold the entire contents of the hydrolysis system in case a break in the line g[
should occur. Following hydrolysis the material will be transferred to y
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icylindrical tanks of similar dimension for settling. After the settling deep X 12" diameter to maintain "always safe" geometry in the filtration operation, a supernate liquid will be air lif ted to a nutsche filter h" h[,
equipment. Following filtration the product will be removed from the filter g, M in batches containing 0.7 pounds uranium each and placed in drying trays which are half of a 5" diameter cylinder. These trays containing the moist filter cake will be placed in a forced air drying oven. The exit gas will e
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be filtered through n Dust Foe space filters. Subsequent operations in the process will be carried out on 0.7 pound batches in dry boxes. Trays of dried ammonium diuranate are removed from the drying oven and transferred to a high temperature furnace with an inside diameter of 5".
In this step of the process, ammonium diuranate is thermally decomposed to U 0. The exhaust gases from this step of the process are also filtered. 3 3 3/, Trays of U 03 3 are transferred to a dry box where the material is loaded into similar sized trays for the reduction step. These trays, having a depth 4
of about h" and a width of 5" are heated in a hydrogen atmosphere in a tube h
furnace. Cooled UO is removed from the reduction furnace and transferred to a dry box for nding. Orinding is done in a 1" tray using a rolling pin type grinder. Material from the grinding tray is transferred to sieves which are stacked to make a 5" cylinder. Sieves are kept and used at a distance greater than 2' from the grinding tray. After sieving, UO2 is poured through the bottom of the dry box into a 5" shipping container which is positioned below the floor of the dry box. The UO2 for recycle from this step of the process is loaded back into the reduction trays and re-turned to the reduction furnace for recycle.
Three bottles of UO2productwillbeplacedinabirdcagedesignedto nainMir e spacing. The center ef the bird enre vill censist of a steel pipe in which the polyethylene bottles are firmly positioned. It
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shoula be recccnized, however, that this mode of shioment is subject to agreenent with our customers. In all cases of storage and shipnent it is our intention to naintain a sinrle layer of bird cages on trucks or in storace vaults. It should also be pointed out that in handling high enrichnent uranium our design provides for all dust:r type operations to be carried cut in dry boxes to clininate the potential hazard from the alpha radiation of uraniun l
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,4 It is proposed that this material be processed from UF6 to UO2 in our It would bp present pilot plant at 3600 N. Second Street in St. Louis.
our intention to receive a single cylinder of UF6 from Oak Ridge. This would be the "always safe" cylinder uhich is standard for use by the Atomic Enerry Commission. If shipped by common carrier this cylinder would be conveyed in an "altrays safe" bird cage. If the cylinder were transported in a private vehicle, it is possible that it might be more expedient to handle it without a bird cage. A walk-in safe protected by a burglar alarm system (Potter Signal System) is available for storage of the The first phase of the process is 4 prior to putting it in the process.
To accomplish UF hyarolysis and precipitation to prepare ammonium diuranate.
this, the single cylinder of product would be connected directly to a
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line which in turn will discharge into an "always safe" geometry slab h'g i Following hydrolysis and precip3tation s
l \\ ~ tank h" thick, 5' high and h' long.of the entire contents of the cylinder, the slurry wo j
to an "always safe" type settling tank h" thick, $' high and h' long.
FollowinC a suitable settling period the slurry would be filtered through "always safe" nutsche filters, h" deep X 12" diameter. The product at this point, while still moist, will be loaded into 2" deep trays and dried, In this manner it is expected the entire batch can one tray to an oven.
be handled as one "always safe" geometry batch.
l Following the drying, the product will be ground and transferred to smaller trays where the depth will not exceed 1".
This "always safe" geometry is maintained throughout thermal decomposition and reduction Calways safe" operations. The finished product will be packaged in reometry polyethylene bottles of 5" diameter and transported to the customer in bird cages designed to accept these polyethylene bottles and maintain "always s,pfe" geometry even in case of a bottle rupture.
It should be pointed'out that these bottles have been chosen for ship-ment of enriched uranium dioxide only after a 2h hour immersion test has indicated they are water proof. Pending actual usage or shipment, this one lot of 20% assay uranium material would be stored in the safe described above.
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Apoendiz III D3SC:CFTIN O? TM'0HARY iPO?.1GE VAULT AT h3tATIT3 V0:t W3APOliS Gi' ADS U%IDI liSXE#LUORIDE I
The proposed production facility at Henatite, Missouri now has on the preperty a dairy barn. It is proposed that this dairy barn be designated-a te.mperary storage facility for special nuclear material pending com-pletion of special storage vaults immediately adjacent to the production building. The barn is built on a concrete main floor. The walls are of hollow tile construction to an elevation of approximately 128 above the concrete slab. The roof is a corrugated sheet metal. The floor space available is h5' wide by 100' long. We are proposing that one end of this building will be chained off to act as a temporary storage facility, until the storage vaults for the plant are completed in August. It is our intention and agreement with Union Carbide Nuclear Corporation in Oak Ridge, Tennessee that the shipping containers for the transportation of UF will remain with the bird cages at all times. We would, therefore, rece19e a truck shipment of cylinders contained in "always safe" bird cages, remove the cylinder and the bird cage as a unit and place them in our storage facility. When the product is ready for use, the bird cage and the cylinder would be transported as a unit to the production plant. We have also agreed with our customer for uranium dioxide that the shipping bottles and the bird cages will be maintained as a unit through shipment and storage both at our plant and at the customer's plant. The bird cages and the bottles would be transported as a unit to the production facility for filling and the filled containers so labeled would then be returned to the storage vault awaiting a truck shipment to our customers. Bird cages of product and raw material will be stored in a single layer in'this storage area.
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