Disposal - doe-std-1128-98

DOE-STD-1128-98

Monitoring is used to determine if current conditions are within expected

parameters and to initiate corrective action if they are not. For monitoring, the

system design should conform to ANSI N42.18, Specification and Performance of

On-site Instrumentation for Continuously Monitoring of Radionuclides in Effluents

(ANSI, 1974b). The choice of the filter medium will depend on the analysis that

will be done on the sample. For samples containing only plutonium particulate, a

non-absorbing filter such as a membrane filter will have the highest efficiency for

alpha counting. In all cases, the final count must be done after any residual radon

has decayed because it will often result in a large amount of alpha on the filter that

is not plutonium. If there are other radionuclides in the waste stream that cannot be

decayed in a reasonable time, either alpha spectroscopy or chemical separation

must be done. Chemical analysis must also be done if there are stable contaminants

of interest such as beryllium or heavy metals. The nature of these procedures is

beyond the scope of this document.

8.2.5

Disposal

Airborne effluents are not stored. Disposal of the airborne effluent, possibly

containing traces of plutonium, is generally arranged by the design of the facility

and the existing air quality permits. Normally, the design of the facility is such that

the method of disposal of the cleaned effluent should be unimportant during normal

operation. However, the facilities are designed to minimize the impact of a filter

failure or operational difficulty that results in a release. Disposal of airborne

effluents is handled at the design, environmental impact assessment, and safety

analysis stages of facility construction. Disposal of secondary waste from air

cleaning is covered in the sections that follow.

8.3

SOLID WASTE

Solid waste will come from all phases of operation and from decommissioning of

plutonium facilities. Because most plutonium solid waste will be TRU (containing more

than 100 nCi/g), disposal in the near future is uncertain. Thus, it is highly desirable to

minimize the generation of solid waste in the design, operation, maintenance, and

decommissioning of plutonium facilities.

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