Remediation of the K-65 Silos : a legacy waste of World War II

The Department of Energy (DOE) is confronted with the remediation of a legacy waste of World War II which has been stored in the K-65 Silos at the Feed Materials Production Center (EMPC) in Fernald, Ohio. The K-65 waste not only contains chemically hazardous waste but is contaminated with radioactive constituents which further complicates waste handling when treatment, storage, and disposal operations are pursued. This legacy waste is now part of a National Priority Listed Superfund cleanup site governed by the environmental statutes pursuant to the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). The objective of this thesis is to select a preferred state-of-the-art method of remediating the K-65 Silo waste which will satisfy the governing environmental criteria and can be performed immediately to prevent the migration of contaminants. To accomplish this objective, a conceptual design is presented in this thesis that will provide three primary 1 of defense against the migration of contaminants into the environment by utilizing the following:

1) A stabilized and solidified waste.

2) Macroencapsulation of the waste.

3) An engineered disposal facility. The K-65 waste will undergo a stabilization/solidification treatment process and be placed in specially designed containers. These modular containers will be closely packed in an array which is designed to form a structural monolith and become an integral part of an above ground engineered disposal facility that employs the concept of retrievability. This design is intended to assure protection of the waste from outside influence and prevent the migration of radionuclides and other hazardous constituents for a period of 1000 years.