Cover Sheet for a Hanford Historical Document Released for Public Availability

Released 1994

Prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy under Contract DE-AC06-76RLO 1830

Pacific Northwest Laboratory Operated for the U.S. Department of Energy by Battelle Memorial Institute

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I

DISCLAIMER

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(CLASS IF i CAT ION)

- 1-

24, 1967

DUN-2509 Hanford Code C-44

Thi s document consi at s of

K REACTOR LOW ALUM FEEXl TEST

BY

R. G. Geier Research and E&neering Section

DOUGLAS UN/T.€D NUCL€AR, /Ne. R I C H L A N D . W A S H I N G T O N

NOTICE T H I S R E P O R T W A S P R E P A R E D F O R U S E W I T H I N D O U G L A S U N I T E D N U C L E A R , I N C . I N T H E C O U R S E OF W O R K U N D E R A T O M I C E N E R G Y C O M M I S S I O N CON- T R A C T AT(45-I) - 1857, A N D A N Y V I E W S O R O P I N I O N S E X P R E S S E D I N T H E R E P O R T A R E T H O S E OF T H E A U T H O R O N L Y . T H I S R E P O R T IS S U B J E C T TO R E V I S I O N U P O N C O L L E C T I O N OF A D D I T I O N A L DATA.

LEGAL NOTICE T H I S R E P O R T W A S P R E P A R E D A S A N A C C O U N T OF G O V E R N M E N T S P O N S O R E D W O R K .

N E I T H E R T H E U N I T E D STATES, N O R T H E C O M M I S S I O N , NOR A N Y P E R S O N A C T I N G O N B E H A L F OF T H E C O M M I S S I O N :

A. M A K E S A N Y W A R R A N T Y O R R E P R E S E N T A T I O N , E X P R E S S E D O R I M P L I E D , W I T H R E S P E C T T O T H E A C C U R A C Y , C O M P L E T E N E S S , O R U S E F U L N E S S O F T H E I N F O R M A T I O N CON- T A I N E D IN THIS R E P O R T , O R T H A T T H E U S E O F A N Y I N F O R M A T I O N , A P P A R A T U S , M E T H O D , O R P R O C E S S D I S C L O S E D IN T H I S R E P O R T M A Y N O T I N F R I N G E P R I V A T E L Y O W N E D R I G H T S ; O R

B. A S S U M E S A N Y L I A B I L I T I E S W I T H R E S P E C T T O T H E USE OF. O R F O R D A M A G E S R E S U L T I N G F R O M T H E U S E OF A N Y I N F O R M A T I O N , A P P A R A T U S , M E T H O D , O R P R O C E S S D I S - C L O S E D I N T H I S R E P O R T .

AS USED I N THE ABOVE, "PERSON ACTING ON BEHALF OF T H E COMMISSION" INCLUDES A N Y E M P L O Y E E O R C O N T R A C T O R O F T H E C O M M I S S I O N , O R E M P L O Y E E OF S U C H C O N T R A C T O R , TO T H E E X T E N T T H A T S U C H E M P L O Y E E O R C O N T R A C T O R O F T H E C O M M I S S I O N , O R E M P L O Y E E O F S U C H C O N T R A C T O R P R E P A R E S , D I S S E M I N A T E S , O R P R O V I D E S A C C E S S TO, A N Y I N F O R M A - TION P U R S U A N T T O H I S E M P L O Y M E N T OR C O N T R A C T W I T H T H E C O M M I S S I O N , O R H I S E M - P L O Y M E N T W I T H S U C H C O N T R A C T O R .

54-5000-241 (12-65) AK-RLOO RICHLAND. W A S H .

DISTRIBWION

AEC-RLOO

Willim Bevi.ne, Jr.

T. W. Ambrose

R. 9. C r u m R. E. D u m J. W. F'rymkr R. G. Gcizr

R e S o &Xi.

G o D e Gei.~e R e 3" 3d-1 R. W, E d L E t , Jr. 6 . 6. Xarkins C. D. Earrington Po c. Jeman c. w. K m s n A . R. Magidre J. C. McLaughlin Fo Eo Wen Do W. Peacock R. W. P i t m a r : R. W. R e i 3 0. C. Schrceser G. W. Wells DUN Record DUN file

-3- DW-2509

X REACTOR LOW ALLN FBZD TEST

ITSTRODW~ICX?J

The productioc r9actors operate? 5y Douglas T-kitad Nxlear, Inc., use t rea ted Colrunbia River water as the coolant oc a once through basis. Ths, radionuclides fcrmed largely by the nmtron ac%ivation of r ive r salts are discharged t o the r ive r . method of r d - a c i r ? the q z m t i t y of radfsnuclides i n the e f f luent i s t o increase the efficiency of parent isotoge rmoval during the water treatment proces.3.

One

Prior t o 1361 the water treatment process for preparing reactor coolant had been improved t o the point t h a t reackor qualf ty coolant could be produced using an a-gerage Gum flocculant feed ra$e cf 6 ppm Laboratory experiments carr ied out i n 1959 a d 1960 demonstrated that a markedly increased removal of parent isotopes resulted when d u m Teed r a t s s i n t h e neighborhood of 20 p m wpre used. were confirmed by two half-plant tests of short duration. I n July, 1961, a l l water treatment p lan ts beg= t o xse a la i a t a samewhat a r b i t r a r i l y selected rate of 18 ppm. The K Reacfor alum fe fd has Seen l imited tc: a ncmind 15 ppm because of the high f i l t e r e d water reqxiremnts

The results

The pract ice zcr i t inxs t o date a t a31 p l a t s except a t t h e K Reactors.

The use of the high a l m feed r a t = d id r e d u e the quantity of radionuclides i n the reactor eff luent . out a t the K Reactors t o deternine the xagnitude of the in?provement.q2) report summarizes t h s r ts-dts of tha5 test .

However, ear ly i n 1965 it vas reqcested that a t e - t be car r ied This

S W R Y

The a l u m feed r a t e a t XE Rzactor was held a t 16-18 p p ~ . feed rate was held a t 3 ppm, 6 ppm, 9 ppm, and 12 pprn f o r periods of +,wo t o th ree months. of 3 and 6 ppm very substant ia l ly higher As-76 a d Np-239 concentrations were present i n the KW effluenC,. concentrations were observed a t XM and a$ a 3 ppm a2.m feed rate even the Cr-51 concentration w a s higher a t W. ac t iv i ty penal2y was observed a t KW. r a t i o of 1 a t betveen 13 ana 15 ppm i n d i c a t i w litfle if any benefi t from higher alum feed rates.

-4t Reactor the alum

Radionuclide consentra3ioc ra t ios , W/XE,showed that a t alum feed rates

At; fhe same IQI a.lm fe rd rates moderately higher P-32

At an alum feed rate of 9 ppm some eff luent radio- The data appeared t o converge tc a concentration

DISCUSSION

A. OPERATING CONDITICHS

1. A l u m Feed

A n f n i t i a l reduction I n a l m fsed r a t e a t XN ReacC,or was made ear ly i n FefirTEary, 1965 e Rowever, chmgirzg water conditions did not psrmit stabi- l i a a t i c n of the f~?d rate f o r s d f i c x n t lengths of 5 i m e t o cbtain val id

DUN-2509

t s t data. As a ma%f,cr 2f in te res t the a lum feed ra%e a t KE R a t o r averaged 13.6 ppm over the period February through July, 1%5.73! The &xi feed rate at XI4 Beactor averaged 8.9 ppm during the same time ;period. (3 1 &ginning in Alugust, the alum feed rate at XW Reactor was progressively reduced unt i l a fee6 rate of 3 ppm was reached on August 20, 1965. This w a s considered t o be the s t a r t of the test. Periods of stable alum feed r a t e are shown 3elow.

Time Alum Feed, ppm - August 20, 1965 - Qctober 14, 1965

Janlary 12, 1946 - Marsh 26, .1966 March 27, 1966 - June 30, 1966

3 6 9

Qctober 15, 1965 - January 11, 1966

12 The alum feed ra%e a t 3hE Reactor was increased t o 16-18 ppm early in August. Over the period August 20, 1965, through June 30, 1956, the alum feed ra te averaged 16.3 ppm.

2 , p H and! Sodium i)ichromat,e

A sodium dichromate feed r a t e of 1 ppm and a coolant pH of 6.6 were maintained at both K Reactors throughout the test .

Samples of reactor efflueat are taken every week day during operation from each effluent riser. The two riser samples are combined and the resultant sample analyzed f o r phosphorus-32, arsenic-76, neptunium-239, and chromium-51. The resi(lts of the daily analyses which are reported routinely on a quarterly basL~( '~2 were used i n evaluating the test. divided io half on a calendar basis and the daily resu l t s were averaged fo r the t i m e periods involved. The averages are shown in Tables I through I V , each being for a specific W a.lm feed rate. tha t the ccmcentration of the radionuclides i n the ICE Reactor remained remarkably constant throaghout the en t i re test averaging :

Each of the t e s t periods was '

It i s of in te res t t o note

Chromium-51 125

Spl i t t ing the t e s t periods permits an examination of the approach t o equili- brium which has been known t o be lengthy. A t a KW Reactor alum feed rate of 3ppci e p i l i b r i u n w a s approached i n the direction of increasing effluent

-5- DUN-2509

ac t iv i t i e s . The concentration ra t ios , W/KE, f o r the two halves of the 3 ppz allw period are shown i n Table V. It i s Cbvious t h a t t k r e w a s a difference i n the concentration r a t i o s with those i n the l a t t e r half being higher. S i m i l a r l y during th? 6 p ~ m feed period i n which equilibrium was approached i n the d i e c t i o n of decr?asing eff luent radioactivity, the concentration ratio's shown In Ta31e V f o r the second half of the period were lover than i n the first half . the 3 Ror the 6 ppm a l m fCed rate pr2 .od had equilibrium t r u l y been reached. Eowever, i n view of the magnitude of the -W Reactor eff luent concentrations, it did not seem prudent t o extend the t e s t pcriods Inordinately t o insure equilibrium.. halves are also presen3 i n the 9 md 12 ppm alum feed periods. are not as l a rge due t o t h e re latevely smaller ccncentration changes which are taking place.

If, is quite pcssibl? t h a t i n ne i ther

Differences i n the concentration r a t i o s between the tes t period Eowever, they

The concentration r a t i o s ic the seccnd half of iaeh al-m feed rate period are shGwn i n Table VI and have 3em plotted against alum feed rate i n Figure 1. It i s apparent t h a t a t ala^ feed rat?s cf 3 and 6 ppm the concentrations of AS-76 and ~ p - 2 3 9 are very substant ia l ly higher that a t a 16-18 ppm ahi i feed rate, There Is a modsra%e increase In P-32 concentraticn a t both 3 and 6 and even an increase i n Cr-51 coacentratfon a t a 3 ppm alum feed rate. A t an a l u m feed rate of 9 ppm there s t i l l appears t o be an eff luent radioact ivi ty penalty associated with the use of the lower feed rate . However, the c u v e s . appear t o converge toward a concentratisr r a t i o of one, i .e., EO iil2ference between the KE and tk.3 XFb carcer,tration, a t 13 t o 15 ppn alum feed. 'ELUS, no becef i t w a s being obtained frcm the a&ditional alum b-lng used a t I(E Reactor.

The -reduction

data

i n eff luent radioac%ivIty produced by a l m feed r a t e s above possible feed r a t e is generally consistent with S i lke r ' s o r ig ina l

mz 13 t o 15 pprn d.knn feed rate i s zozsistent with the feed rats! required t o keep the e lec t rokine t ic po3ential (ze+,a p o t m t i a l ) of the f l o c a t zero. ( 5 )

1.

2.

30

4.

5.

€IWSA-2l92, "The Effectiveness of High Coagulant Feed i n Reducing Hanford Reactor Effluent Radioisotope Conetntratfons, I t

UNCLASSIFIED W. B. E l k e r , July 14, 1961

Let ter , A . T. Gifford 20 A. B. Greniwer, "Lcw A l u m Water Treatment," Jan~~ary 22, 1965 (0R:Rss)

"Power S ta<is t lcs , " R. Go Spencer, February, 1965# report 8 COXFIDENTIAL

DUN-119, "Reactor Ef,"k.ent Ar,aly',ica, Data," F. E" Owen and slhsequect quartzr ly rpports SZCRET

UMCLASSIFI~~D .

a d sub sequent monthly

November io, 1965

DtX-2&lO, "YaZZ-i??actcr Zeta Poten?2.L Test, I' Re G o Geier, April, 1967 SECRET

-6-

EFFLLIF,NT FADI0ACTIVITY RESULTS

KW A l u m Feed Rate = 3 ppm

Radionuclide CCmcentratlon, pCi/ml

August 20, 1965 - September 16, 1965 Kw - E3

Phosphorus- 32 7.6 11.4

Arseni c- 7'6 42. 232

Beptunim- 23 9 33 138

I

Chromium-51 120 161

Pho sphoms- 32

Arsenic-76

Neptunium-239

Chromium- 51

September 17, 1965 - 0cl;ober 14, 1965 m - m -

6~

40

32

121

17.0

394

168

'178

- 7- DUN-2509

TABLE I1

K REACTOR ALUM FEED TEST

EFnuENT RAI)IOACTIVI!L'Y RESULTS

KW A l u m Feed Rate = 6 ppm

Radionuclide Cmcentration, pCi/ml

October 15, 1965 - November 27, 1965 xw - m -

Pho sphorus- 32

A r seni c-76

Neptunium-239

Chromium-51

Pho sphor~s-32

Arsenic-76

Neptunium-239

Chromi~m-51

7.7

59

35

132

13.0

280

133

149

November 27, 1965 - January u, 1966 7.0 9.4

48 226

32 ll0

131 128

-8- OW-2509

TABLE I11

X REACTOR ALUM 3'EZ.I) TEST

EFE'LUENT RADIOACTIVITY RESULTS

KW A l u m Feed Rate = 9 ppm

Radionuclide Concentration, pCi/ml

Pho sphorus-32

Ar seni c-76

Neptunium- 239

Chromium-51

Phosphorus-32

Arsenic-76

Neptunium-239

ChrOmi ~ m - 51

January 12, 1966 - February 17, 1966 Kw - KE -

6.7 8.1

44 134

34 107

122 131

February 18, 1966 - March 26, 1966 KE Kw -

7.6

57

42

116

9.0

322

78

100

- 9-

TABLE Iv

K REACTOR ALW FEED TEST

EFFLUENT RADIOAClPIVITY RESULTS

KW Alum Feed Rate = 12 ppm

Radionuclide Concentration, pCi/rpl

March 27, 1966 - May 13, 1966 Kw - rn

Pho sphorus- 32 7.2 8.5

-

Arsenic-76 59 113

Neptunium-239 50 87

Chromium- 51 125 112

May 14, 1966 - June 30, 1966 Kw - KE -

Phosphorus-32 4.1 6.6

DUN-2509

Ar senic-76 61 91

Neptunium-239 43 68

Chromium-51 13 2 119

-10- DUN- 2509

TABLE V

K REACTOR ALUM FEED TEST

EFFLUENT RADIOACTIVITY RATIOS

KW A l u m Feed R a t e = 3 ppm

Phosphorus- 32

Arseni c-76

Neptunium-239

chromium- 51

Conc. KW Ratio tonc. a

8/20 - 9/18 9/17 - w 1 4

Kw Alum Feed Rate = 6 ppm

Ratio Cone. KW Conc. KE

io/15 - u/28 11/27 - 1/11 Phosphorus- 32

Arsenic-76

Neptunium-239

Chromium- 51

1.7 1.3

4.7 4.7

3 08 304

1.1 1.0

-11-

TA33f;E VI

K REACTOR ALUM FiBD TEST

EFFLUENT RADIOACTIVITY RATIO

SUMMARY

Kw A l u m Feed Rate, ppm

Phosphorus- 32

Arsenic- 76

Neptunium- 239

Chromium- 51

DUl!T- 25G9

Conc. XW Conc. KE Ratio

3 6 s 12

2.8 1.3 1 , 2 1.6

9.8 4.7 2.1 1.5

5.2 3.4 1.9 1.6

1.5 1.0 0.9 0.9

n L

10

8

-12-

K R%ACTOR ALUM FEED RATE TEST

DUN-2509

0 3 6 9 12

I(w A l u m Feed Rate, pprn

XE A l u m Feed Ra%e = 16-16 ppm

The Effec t of Alum Feed Rate on Ef luenf Radioactivity

FIGL! 1