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492+?(74 LOS AL AMOS NAT ION AL LAB ORATOR Y DO NOT CIRCULATE iiELE= PERMANENT RETENTION E ‘.”.::. .,—-L.+:.A..—-..Z.=. ~+. T . .... -;;--+>.-:: . .. - ..- .: - <>,:: 1~.~- ——---- --2= - . ..-..:..- —- . .--zuke&d COVER Eric Vigil of Information Services Division created the aerial view drawing of TA-55, using Alias software on a Silicon Graphics work station. i Nuclear Materials Technology Divk.lonAnnual Review N U C LEAR MATE RIALS TECH NO LOGY W EAPONS COMPLEX 21 R E C O N F I G U RAT I O N Annual Report 1992 LALP-92-41 issued: June 1992 Nuclear Materials Technology Division Mail Stop E500 Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545 LosAlamos NATIONAL LABORATORY ii ... U1 Nuclear h4ateriaLsTechnology Division Annual Rdcw CONTENTS Foreword .....................................................................................................4 Preface Weapons Complex Reconfiguration: The Future of PlutoniumTechnology ..................................................8 Overviews:Site-ReturnDisassembly . 13 Automationand IntegrationofSite-ReturnProcessing ....................18 Advanced CIeaningTechnologies . 20 Plasma Chemical Processing . ...............26 Overviews: Advanced ManufacturingTectiolo~ . .34 PlutoniumCastingand Forrning ........................................................38 PlutoniumDryMachining . ....42 Overviews:NitrateRecovery . .....44 Prm=shdyticdCheti~ . ........................49 Process MeasurementandControl . .52 ProcessChemishy ................................................................................56 SystemsIntegration..............................................................................61 Overviews:ChlorideRecovery . ..........63 lnSitu ChlorinationofPlutonium Metal ......................67 OpportunitiesforMagnetic SeparationApplications in Complex21 .......................................................................................69 [email protected] . 74 MaterialsDevelopmentforPyrochemical Applications in the Weapons Complex Reconfiguration ........................................78 PyrochemicalINtegratedActinideChlorideLine (PINACL) ...........82 Overviews:Waste Management..............................................................85 DestructionofHazardousWastesby SuperCritical WaterOxidation . .........................87 Waste StreamMonitoring... ..................99 WasteTreatmentiChelatingPolymers forRemovalof Heavy MetalsfromAqueous WasteS&em . .......101 contentscontinuedonnext page Contents 1 CONTENTS Group Profiles .........................................................................................107 Nuclear MaterialsTechnologyDivisionOrgtition Chart .........108 NuclearMaterialsTechnologyDivision ...........................................109 Nuclear Fuels Technology .................................................................110 Nuclear MaterialsProcessing:NitrateSystems................................112 NuclearMaterialsProcessing:ChlorideSystems.............................114 Nuclear MaterialsMeasurementand Accountability......................116 PlutoniumMetallurgy .......................................................................117 ActinideMaterialsChemistry ...........................................................119 Nuclear MaterialsManagement........................................................120 TA-55 FacilitiesManagement............................................................121 Heat SourceTechnology ....................................................................122 Awards, Honors, and Patents ................................................................123 Publications.............................................................................................127 NuclearFuels Technology ................................................................128 Nuclear MaterialsProcessing:NitrateSystems................................129 Nuclear MaterialsProcessing:ChlorideSystems............................. 130 Nuclear MaterialsMeasurementand Accountability......................134 PlutoniumMetallurgy .......................................................................134 Actinide MaterialsChemistry ...........................................................136 NuclearMaterialsManagement........................................................140 Heat SourceTechnology ....................................................................141 Credits......................................................................................................143 2 Nuclear h4aterialsTdnology Divtslon Annual RAw F o R E w o R D FOREWORD + - -. .. -“\l s —..*Y . “+ +-J s ~ ~ ‘)1 Division Leader by Delbert R. Harbur ‘?. Delbert R. Harbur Most of the nuclear materi- To remain at the forefront In the national defense arena, als activities at the Los Alamos of important areas of actinide we support nuclear weapon National Laboratory are done chemistry and materials science, design, development, and test- in the Nuclear Materials Tech- we maintain a strong and vital ing programs by developing nology Division. The Division base of scientific research. Our safe, efficient, and environmen- is responsible for the Plutonium materials research is directed tally acceptable technologies for Facility located at Technical at understanding the relation- manufacturing and processing Area 55 (TA-55). With our ships among processing, compo- of plutonium in the nation’s expert research and develop- sition, structure and properties production complex. In addition, ment in the fields of metallurgy, of materials and ultimately at the division’s energy programs chemistry, engineering, and discovering how these materials focus on nuclear reactors for solid state physics, we examine respond to external environ- space power and radioisotope the complex chemistry associ- ments. Our chemical processing heat sources. ated with plutonium and other research is aimed at understand- The Laboratory’s technology actinides in various physical ing the basic chemistry involved leadership role for the nation’s states. together with the complex plutonium production complex interactions found in real has been well established over systems. the last decade. Rapid, signifi- cant changes in world events and within the nation’s weapons production complex indicate a strengthening of this role. The nation’s nuclear materials pro- duction complex is widely perceived as at the end of its useful life and as no longer sized nor technologically equipped to meet future needs. 4 Nuclear Materials Technology Division hnuai Rdcw “Technologiesthat we researchedand demonstratedas prototypesat TA-55willmakeup thebasetechnologiesfor the futurePlutoniumManufacturingPlantin the Wmpons ComplexReconfiguration(Complex21).” For the last decade, we have Technologies that we re- This year focuses on the been upgrading the manufactur- searched and demonstrated as processing technologies that we ing and processing technologies prototypes at TA-55 will make have developed for Complex 21. developed at TA-55 to meet the up the base technologies for the Most of these technologies are proessing need to decommission future Plutonium Manufacturing quite mature, and the associated and decontaminate older facili- Plant in the Weapons Complex metallurgy and chemistry are ties and to reconfigure the Reconfiguration (Complex 21). well understood. We are now weapons complex into properly Fortunately, many of these emphasizing process integration, equipped facilities for their technologies will also be the real-time sensors, and process- future missions. Using the ones required to decommission control systems. Automation is Laboratory’s strong research and older facilities and to stabilize applied only to mature, fully- development base, we initiated residues. integrated, and optimized these upgrades to address prob- process systems. lems inherent in the inability of This publication provides a the older technologies to prop- brief review of the scientific and erly deal with the growth of technical activities in each of our regulatory, compliance, and operating groups, as well as a waste issues confronting the compilation of our accomplish- Department of Energy. ments during the past 18 months, including awards, patents, and publications. + Fomwod 5 6 Nuclear Materials Technology Division Annual Rcvlew PREFACE Weapons Complex Reconfiguration: The Future of Plutonium Technology by Dana C. Christensen Deputy Division Leader Dana C. Christensen Weapons Complex As to the existing production Finally, the future production Reconfiguration Concerns and supply infrastructure, the and supply infrastructure re- Recent unforeseen changes in nation currently owns a signifi- quires technical support for the the global balance of power have cant quantity of plutonium; it stockpile (at whatever level it prompted a reevaluation of the exists in the form of weapon finally reaches), the capability to entire nuclear weapons complex, components, oxides and metals, fabricate improved components including research and develop- miscellaneous lean residues, and and upgrades of the stockpile, ment in the area of nuclear contaminated equipment. How- and the means to survey the materials technology. National ever, most of the production stored inventory of material to defense concerns related specifi- facilities are more than 35 years ensure accountability and safety. cally to plutonium processing old and have reached the end of The primary concern will con- include their useful lives. tinue to be the minimization of Of utmost concern is manag- hazardous