ML20153F873

Insp Rept 99990001/98-13 on 980807.No Violations Were Noted. Major Areas Inspected:Reviewed Origin of Radioactive Matls in Waste on 980807

ML20153F873
Person / Time
Issue date:	09/16/1998
From:	Kinneman J, Oberg C NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION I)
To:
Shared Package
ML20153F849	List: ML20153F845 ML20153F873
References
REF-QA-99990001-980916 99990001-98-13, NUDOCS 9809290278
Download: ML20153F873 (11)

Text

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U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

! REGION I

, INSPECTION REPORT J

, Report No.- 99990001/98-013 4.

i Docket No. 99990001 Ucense No. General Licensee e

Licensee: Reading Alloys, Inc Location: Old Penn Avenue Robesonia, PA 19551-0053 e

inspection Dates: August 7,1998 Inspector:

C. Thor Oberg o N / /JQ- _ I(6

/ dhte Health Physicist Approved By:

9/6 79 John nnemar(Chief 7 ba~te" Nu Materials Safety Branch 2 Divi of NucleacMaterials Safety

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RETURN ORlalNAL TO 9009290278 900916" ' REGION l NNoNI***Efd*

o  : G:%KVNWMNONUCE.NSA l?

23929739 4

EXECUTIVE

SUMMARY

i l

Reading Alloys,Inc.

NRC Inspection Report No. 999-9001/98-013 On August 7,1998, Region I was advised by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental l

Protection (PADEP) that about 3 weeks prior to that date, Philips Services, Republic Division,  ;

Hatfield, PA, (Philips), a hazardous waste facility, received a shipment of hazardous waste l consisting of forty-seven 35 gallon drums and a B-25 container. Three of the drums and the '

B-25 box were determined to be radioactive during characterization prior to waste processing.

The shipment was picked up by Philips from Reading Alloys, Inc., Robesonia, PA. Philips determined that one of the drums contained 651 picocuries of thorium per gram of material (pCi Th/gm) and that the B-25 box container 20 pCi Th/gm. Philips contacted the PADEP on July 20, 1998.

NRC Region I dispatched an inspector to the Reading Alloy, Inc., site to review the origin of the radioactive materials in the waste on August 7,1998. The inspector was informed by Reading Alloys, Inc., personnel that the hazardous waste shipped to Philips was from clean-up efforts at the Reading Alloys warehouse in Robesonia, PA. The waste was from a 45 year accumulation of ores and other unused material some of which could no longer be identified because the labeling was not legible. Thus, Reading Alloys, Inc., didn't realize that some of the waste material was radioactive.

I Calculations show that Reading Alloys presently possesses about 6.8 pounds of uranium and 0.05 pounds of thorium in stored ZrO2 ore.

The NRC inspector was informed by the Vice President and Manager of Operations of Reading ,

Alloys, Inc., that Philips Services plans to dispose of the contents of the B-25 box to a BFI land-fill and will return the three drums containing the radioactive material to Reading Alloys, Inc., by August 15,1998.

Possession and use of less than 15 pounds of source material (uranium and/or thorium) is authorized by the general license in 10 CFR 40.22. No violations were identified.

1 Inspection Report No. 999-90001/98-013 G:\DNMSOOCWORK\lNSPRPT\RNoNLICE.NSA

REPORT DETAILS

1. Material Receipt, Use, Transfer, and Control

a. Inspection Scope To determine what radioactive materials and quantities are received by Reading Alloys, Inc., how these materials are used and controlled, and their final disposition.

b. Observations and Findinas Reading Alloys, Inc., manufactures quality alloys for various purposes and customers.

An aluminum-vanadium (Al-V) high quality alloy is presently under production at the plant.

Reading Alloys, Inc., maintains a well organized warehouse containing many metal ores, metal oxides, and various other salts and materials used in alloy production. Among these are baddeleyite ore (an unrefined zirconium oxide (ZrO2) ore) and refined ZrO 2.

l each of which contain natural uranium and thorium. With the exception of the Al-V alloy, l most of the metal ores, oxides, and other materials used for production purposes, are l not consumed in large quantities. For example, between 15 and 50 pounds of the baddeleyite ore may be used in the production of an alloy at any one time. A total of 68

pounds presently remains from a purchase of 2,200 pounds of baddeleyite ore in May of 1997 (P.O. No. 32396) from Applegate Group, Inc., Waldwick, NJ. The inspector

i. surveyed this ore in its container, a 30-35 gallon steel drum, and measured 250 micro-l roentgens per hour (pR/hr) at about one centimeter (cm) and 30 pR/hr at about 70 cm using a Ludlum Measurements, Inc., Model 19 Micro R Meter, calibrated May 29,1998.

On November 25,1997, a lot totaling 8,820 pounds of baddeleyite was purchased (P.O.

No. 34292) from the same supplier and is presently still unused and stored in the warehouse. A radiation survey of one of four super-bags containing this lot of ore, (each bag contains about 2,200 pounds), measured 460 pR/hr on contact with the bag and 54 pR/hr at about one meter from the bag. Reading Alloys, Inc., possesses no other ores containing detectable amounts of radioactivity with the exception of a lot consisting 12 to 15 fiber drums containing 430 pounds each of refined ZrO2 in which the amounts of l

natural radioactive element were below the limits of detection by the supplier (NEL l Chemicale, Ltd., England). The surface radiation level from one of these drums l measured ~30 pR/hr when surveyed with the Micro R Meter.

l The company recently completed a thorough house cleaning to collect and dispose of unneeded ores and oxides that accumulated in the warehouse over a period of 45 years.

'All material collected was packaged in forty-seven 35 gallon drums and a B-25 container l box for transfer to a hazardous waste company (Philips Services, Republic Division, l Hatfield, PA) for characterization and processing as hazardous waste because i' chromium oxide was mixed with the material. Some of the items collected could no longer be identified because the labeling was not legible and Reading Alloys, Inc., didn't realize that some of the waste contained radioactive material. During characterization  !

and waste processing, Philips determined that three drums and the B-25 box contained I l

thorium, a naturally occurring radioactive material. One drum was determined to contain  !

1 Inspection Report No. 999-90001/98-013 G:ONMSOoCWoRKVNSPRPTRNoNUCE.NSA i

p -

, - ~ , , - . . - , . - . - , - .

. 651 picocuries per gram {pCl/gm) of thorium and the B-25 box contained 20 pCi/gm.

The waste facility advised Reading Alloys, Inc., and PADEP of the radioactive material they found in the three waste drums and the box. On August 7,1998, PADEP advised NRC Region I of the radioactive material in the waste from Reading Alloys, Inc., and an ,

NRC inspector was dispatched to the Reading Alloys site. ]

At the Reading Alloys site, the inspector obtained copies of the analytical reports i supplied with each lot of baddeleyite ore possessed (attached). The ores contain about i 0.09 % triuranium octoxide (U30.) and 55 to 72 parts-per-million (ppm) of thorium l dioxide (ThO,). Based on this information, Reading Alloys, Inc., possesses 6.8 pounds j of uranium (U) and 0.05 pounds of thorium (Th), source material. i The inspector was informed by the Vice President and Manager of Operations that Philips will dispose the B-25 box in a BFI land fill. They plan to return the three drums containing the radioactive material to Reading Alloys, Inc..

c. Conclusions No violations were identified.

The quantities of source materials used by Reading Alloys, Inc., are authorized by the general license in 10 CFR 40.22(a) : "A general license is hereby issued authorizing commercial and industrial firms, research, educational and medical institutions and Federal, State and local govemment agencies to use and transfer not more than 15 pounds of source material at any one time for research, development, educational, ,

commercial or operational purposes. A person authorized to use or transfer source I material, pursuant to this general license, may not receive more than a total of 150 pounds of source material in any one calendar year " Material used under this general license may be disposed without regard to its radioactivity.

2 Inspection Report No. 999-90001/98-013 G:ONMSOoCWORKVNSPRPTVtNONLICE.NSA

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l PARTIAL LIST OF PERSONS CONTACTED l

Licensee l Brian J. Higgins, Vice President and Manager, EB Operations

' Fay A. Moyer, Purchasing Manager, Raw Materials Leo Johnson, Vice President of Production i-i i

1 I

l 1

3 Inspection Report No. 999-90001/98-013 G:DNMSDoCWORKVNSPRPTRNONUCE.NSA l

l l

l 1

EXECUTIVE

SUMMARY

! Reading Alloys,Inc.

j NRC Inspection Report No. 999-9001/98-013 On August 7,1998, Region I was advised by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental I Protection (PADEP) that about 3 weeks prior to that date, Philips Services, Republic Division,

! Hatfield, PA, (Philips), a hazardous waste facility, received a shipment of hazardous waste i

consisting of forty-seven 35 gallon drums and a B-25 container. Three of the drums and the

B-25 box were determined to be radioactive during characterization prior to waste processing.

! The shipment was picked up by Philips from Reading Alloys, Inc., Robesonia, PA. Philips determined that one of the drums contained 651 picocuries of thorium per gram of material (pCi j

Th/gm) and that the B-25 box container 20 pCi Th/gm. Philips contacted the PADEP on July 20,

, 1998.

l \

j NRC Region I dispatched an inspector to the Reading Alloy, Inc., site to review the origin of the i radioactive materials in the waste on August 7,1998. The inspector was informed by Reading .

Alloys, Inc., personnel that the hazardous waste shipped to Philips was from clean-up efforts at I the Reading Alloys warehouse in Robesonia, PA. The waste was from a 45 year accumulation i of ores and other unused material some of which could no longer be identified because the i labeling was not legible. Thus, Reading Alloys, Inc., didn't realize that some of the waste

{; materialwas radioactive.

, Calculations show that Reading Alloys presently possesses about 6.8 pounds of uranium and 4

0.05 pounds of thorium in stored ZrO2 ore.

3 The NRC inspector was informed by the Vice President and Manager of Operations of Reading i Alloys, Inc., that Philips Services plans to dispose of the contents of the B-25 box to a BFI land-

! fill and will retum the three drums containing the radioactive material to Reading Alloys, Inc., by August 15,1998.

{

j Possession and use of less than 15 pounds of source material (uranium and/or thorium) is authorized by the general license in 10 CFR 40.22. No violations were identified.

i l

l 1 inspection Report No. 999-90001/98-013 G:ONMSmoCWoRKVNsPRPTVtNoNUCE.NSA i  ;

r,-

REPORT DETAlla '

l. Material Receipt, Use, Transfer, and Control

a. Insoection Scooe To determine what radioactive materials and quantities are received by Reading Alloys, l Inc., how these materials are used and controlled, and their final disposition.

i

b. Observations and Findinas Reading Alloys, Inc., manufactures quality alloys for various purposes and customers.

An aluminum-vanadium (Al-V) high quality alloy is presently under production at the plant.

Reading Alloys, Inc., maintains a well organized warehouse containing many metal ores, metal oxides, and various other salts and materials used in alloy production. Among these are baddeleyite ore (an unrefined zirconium oxide (ZrO2 ) ore) and refined ZrO,, j each of which contain natural uranium and thorium. With the excephon of the Al-V alloy, '

most of the metal ores, oxides, and other materials used for production purposes, are not consumed in large quantibes. For example, between 15 and 50 pounds of the I

baddeleyite ore may be used in the production of an alloy at any one time. A total of 68 pounds presently remains from a purchase of 2,200 pounds of baddeleyite ore in May of 1997 (P.O. No. 32396) from Applegate Group, Inc., Waldwick, NJ. The inspector surveyed this ore in its container, a 30-35 gallon steel drum, and measured 250 micro-roentgens per hour (pR/hr) at about one centimeter (cm) and 30 pR/hr at about 70 cm using a Ludlum Measurements, Inc., Model 19 Micro R Meter, calibrated May 29,1998.

On November 25,1997, a let totaling 8,820 pounds of baddeleyite was purchased (P.O.

No. 34292) from the same supplier and is presently still unused and stored in the warehouse. A radiation survey of one of four super-bags containing this lot of ore, (each bag contains about 2,200 pounds), meamred 460 pR/hr on contact with the bag and 54 pR/hr at about one meter from the bag. Reading Alloys, Inc., possesses no other ores containing detectable amounts of radioactivity with the exception of a lot consisting 12 to 15 fiber drums containing 430 pounds each of refined ZrO2 in which the amounts of natural radioactive element were below the limits of detection by the supplier (NEL  !

Chemicale, Ltd., England). The surface radiation level from one of these drums measured ~30 pR/hr when surveyed with the Micro R Meter.

The company recently completed a thorough house cleaning to collect and dispose of unneeded ores and oxides that accumulated in the warehouse over a period of 45 years.

All material collected v.as packaged in forty-seven 35 gallon drums and a B-25 container box for transfer to a hazardous waste company (Philips Services, Republic Division, Hatfield, PA) for characterization and processing as hazardous waste because chromium oxide was mixed with the material. Some of the items collected could no longer be identified because the labeling was not legible and Reading Alloys, Inc., didn't realize that some of the waste contained radioactive material. During characterization and waste processing, Philips determined that three drums and the B-25 box contained thorium, a naturally occurring radioactive material. One drum was determined to contain l

1 Inspection Report No. 999-90001/98-013

. G:ONMSOoCWoRulNSPRPTVtNoNUCE.NSA

?

4

) 651 picoeuries per gram (pCi/gm) of thorium and the B-25 box contained 20 pCl/gm.

. The waste facility advised Reading Alloys, Inc., and PADEP of the radioactive material i they found in the three waste drums and the box. On August 7,1998, PADEP advised

, NRC Region I of the radioactive material in the waste from Reading Alloys, Inc., and an NRC inspector was dispatched to the Reading Alloys site.

At the Reading Alloys site, the inspector obtained copies of the analytical reports

) supplied with each lot of baddeleyite ore possessed (attached). The ores contain about 0.09 % triuranium octoxide (U30.) and 55 to 72 parts-per-million (ppm) of thorium

, dioxide (Th0 3). Based on this information, Reading Alloys, Inc., possesses 6.8 pounds l of uranium (U) and 0.05 pounds of thorium (Th), source material.

' The inspector was informed by the Vice President and Manager of Operations that Philips will dispose the B-25 box in a BFI land fill. They plan to return the three drums containing the radioactive material to Reading Alloys, Inc..

l c. Conclusions l No violations were identified.

i i

The quantities of source materials used by Reading Alloys, Inc., are authorized by the general license in 10 CFR 40.22(a) : "A general license is hereby lesued authorizing -

commercial and industrial firms, research, educational and medical insututions and l Federal, State and local govemment agencies to use and transfer not more than 15 pounds of source material at any one time for research, development, educational, commercial or operational purposes. A person authorized to use or transfer source material, pursuant to this general license, may not receive more than a total of 150 pounds of source material in any one calendar year." Material used under this general license may be disposed without regard to its radioactivity.

1 l

j 2 Inspection Report No. 999-90001/98-013 G:DNMSOoCWoRKVNSPRPTVtNoNucE.NSA

PARTIAL LIST OF PERSONS CONTACTED l l

Licensee  !

Brian J. Higgins, Vice President and Manager, EB Operations Fay A. Moyer, Purchasing Manager, Raw Materials Leo Johnson, Vice President of Production i

i l

i l

1 3 Inspection Report No. 999-90001/98-013 G:ONMSDOCWORKMNSPRPTRNONUCE.NSA y

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A N.CDO8CC a 5 " ~d-s-aa-Woodcidf Lake, New Jersey 07675 12- '

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(2 I) 652-Certificate of Analysis-Daddeleyite DC 99S BatchNo:k113h.) j

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Fe2O3 0.08 %

TiO2 0.15 %

S102 0.38 4 U308 0.09 %. a 076 fo CcO2 0.03%

TitO2 72 PPM j P205 328 PPM '

Ca0 S00 PPM l MgO SOO PPM l CuO 326 PPM

'Al203 500 PPM Average Particle Size (D 50) : 7.8 Micron Loss On Ignition: 0.14%

SHIPMENT IS COMPRISED OF 4 SUPERSACS.

EACH SUPERSAC IS PALLETIZED AND'CONTAINS 40-25 KG DAGS.

THEREFORE YOU llAVE A TOTAL OF 160-25 KG DAGS IN 4 SUPERSACS.

LOT NUMBER FOR THE SHIPMENT IS 1131.

READIEG ALLOYS P.O. 34292 es

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V Mene. (2o1) 652-8000 Fax: (201) 652-2906 C,4 BADDELEYITE'BC 998 (ZIRCONIUM OXIDE)

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