Final Report of the Plutonium Disposition Red Team
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OFFICIAL USE ONLY Final Report of the Plutonium Disposition Red Team Date: 13 August 2015 Oak Ridge, Tennessee Thom Mason, Chair John W. Krueger/ORNL August 13, 2015 OFFICIAL USE ONLY OFFICIAL USE ONLY This report was prepared as an account of work sponsored by an agency of the United States Government. Neither the United States Government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific, commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or any agency thereof. The views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or any agency thereof. OFFICIAL USE ONLY OFFICIAL USE ONLY Final Report of the Plutonium Disposition Red Team Thom Mason, Chair Oak Ridge, Tennessee 13 August 2015 OAK RIDGE NATIONAL LABORATORY Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831-6283 Managed by UT-BATTELLE, LLC For the U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Under contract DE-AC05-00OR22725 John W. Krueger/ORNL August 13, 2015 OFFICIAL USE ONLY OFFICIAL USE ONLY This page left blank intentionally OFFICIAL USE ONLY OFFICIAL USE ONLY Contents Figures ........................................................................................................................................................... v Tables ............................................................................................................................................................ v Acronyms and Abbreviated Terms .............................................................................................................. vii Executive Summary ...................................................................................................................................... ix Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 1 Executive Considerations .............................................................................................................................. 4 1. Evaluation of Previous Cost Assessments ................................................................................................ 9 1.1 Plutonium Disposition Working Group Report ................................................................................ 10 1.2 Aerospace Report ............................................................................................................................. 11 1.3 High Bridge Report ........................................................................................................................... 14 2. Evaluation of the MOX Approach to Pu Disposition .............................................................................. 16 2.1 The Baseline Approach to MOX-based Pu Disposition .................................................................... 16 2.1.1 Description of the MOX approach ............................................................................................. 16 2.1.2 Technical Viability of the MOX Approach .................................................................................. 18 2.1.3 Ability to Meet International Commitments ............................................................................ 20 2.1.4 Regulatory and Other Issues ..................................................................................................... 20 2.2 Potential Enhancements for Cost Reduction ................................................................................... 21 2.2.1 Staffing ...................................................................................................................................... 21 2.2.2 MOX Fuel Use Revenue and Risk Mitigation .............................................................................. 21 2.2.3 Scope Reduction ........................................................................................................................ 22 3. Dilute and Dispose, and Similar Options ................................................................................................ 24 3.1 The Dilute and Dispose Option ......................................................................................................... 24 3.1.1 The Base Case (D2 from Figure 4) ............................................................................................. 24 3.1.2 Potential Enhancements to the Base Dilute and Dispose Option ............................................. 31 3.2 The Sterilization Approach (Option C on Figure 4) .......................................................................... 33 4. Comparative Analysis ............................................................................................................................. 34 4.1 Attribute Comparison Summary ...................................................................................................... 34 4.2 Cost Comparison Summary .............................................................................................................. 35 References .................................................................................................................................................. 38 Appendix A, Red Team Charge Letter ....................................................................................................... A-1 Appendix B, Participants and Subject Matter Experts ............................................................................... B-1 Appendix C, Biographies of Red Team Members ...................................................................................... C-1 Appendix D, Isotopic Dilution Variant ....................................................................................................... D-1 iii OFFICIAL USE ONLY OFFICIAL USE ONLY This page left blank intentionally iv OFFICIAL USE ONLY OFFICIAL USE ONLY Figures Figure 1. Definition of MOX Program Elements ............................................................................. 4 Figure 2. Impact of Arbitrary $100M and $200M Reductions in Ops Costs on MOX Program Life Cycle Costs ................................................................. 13 Figure 3. Basic Flow Diagram for the MOX Approach .................................................................. 17 Figure 4. Remaining Practical Approaches to Pu Disposition ....................................................... 25 Figure 5. Basic Flow Diagram for the Dilute and Dispose Approach ............................................ 26 Tables Table 1. Comparison of planned budgetary needs to actual appropriations ............................... 5 Table 2. PWG Estimate Summary ................................................................................................ 10 Table 3. Aerospace Estimate Summary ....................................................................................... 11 Table 4. High Bridge Estimate Summary ..................................................................................... 14 Table 5. Attribute Comparison Summary .................................................................................... 35 v OFFICIAL USE ONLY OFFICIAL USE ONLY This page left blank intentionally vi OFFICIAL USE ONLY OFFICIAL USE ONLY Acronyms and Abbreviated Terms ADR Advanced Disposition Reactor AFS Alternate Feedstocks AP aqueous polishing BCP baseline change proposal BWR boiling-water reactor CCO Criticality Control Overpack CD Critical Decision CISAC NAS Committee on International Security and Arms Control COE U.S. Army Corps of Engineers DMO Direct Metal Oxidation DOE U.S. Department of Energy EM U.S. Department of Energy Environmental Management Program ETC estimate to complete HEU highly enriched uranium IAEA International Atomic Energy Agency ICE independent cost estimate IROFS items relied on for safety KAMS K-Area Material Storage LANL Los Alamos National Laboratory LCC life cycle cost LWA WIPP Land Withdrawal Act of 1992 MFFF Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility MIFT MOX Irradiation, Feedstock, and Transportation MOX mixed oxide MT metric ton NAS National Academy of Sciences NEPA National Environmental Policy Act NNSA National Nuclear Security Administration NRC Nuclear Regulatory Commission OPC other project cost ORNL Oak Ridge National Laboratory PDCF Pit Disassembly and Conversion Facility PMDA Plutonium Management and Disposition Agreement PWG Plutonium Disposition Working Group PWR pressurized-water reactor QA quality assurance RCRA Resource Conservation and Recovery Act Red Team Plutonium Disposition Red Team SEIS Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement SFS spent fuel standard SMP Sellafield MOX Plant SNM special nuclear material SRS Savannah River Site TEC total estimated cost TRU transuranic vii OFFICIAL USE ONLY OFFICIAL USE ONLY WIPP Waste Isolation Pilot Plant WSB Waste Solidification Building viii OFFICIAL USE ONLY OFFICIAL USE ONLY Executive Summary The Plutonium Management and Disposition Agreement (PMDA) calls for the United States and Russia to each dispose of 34 metric tons (MT) of excess weapon-grade plutonium by irradiating it