Domestic Water

DOE-HDBK-3010-94

Appendix B; Plutonium Recovery Facility

contamination is present, the liquid in the tank can be diverted to the H-8 Liquid Waste

Treatment Facility.

The reboiler is the source of steam for a separate steam cycle serving vessels in the glovebox

lines. Condensate from this steam is collected in one of two raschig ring tanks in the vessel

vent room where it is sampled. If no detectable contamination is present, it is recycled to

the reboiler for steam generation. If contamination is present, it is diverted to the H-8

Liquid Waste Treatment Facility. Steam lines for dissolvers and evaporators are encased in

sheath housings so as to not come in direct contact with process fluids, therefore, the most

likely source of contaminant would be from the ion exchange line heat exchanger. Steam

pressure is kept greater than dissolver or evaporator pressure so that if any leak does

develop, steam and condensate will flow into the process vessel. Three confirmed

contamination incidents have occurred due to leaks, but contamination of process condensate

has not historically been a major problem.

2.1.5.14 D om estic W ater

The domestic cold water main is supplied from site utilities and is equipped with multiple

redundant backflow preventers at various points in the system. One branch serves general

building needs, a second serves utility needs, and a third serves process needs. The first two

branches are disposed of through the sewage system.

The process water branch consists of three separate headers. The first provides water to

safety showers in the operating and maintenance rooms. The second provides flushing water

for some vessels and is used only in shutdown or maintenance configurations. Both of these

lines lead to the wet line tank farm waste tanks either through normal process flow or

through special drains for the safety showers. The third branch of the process water system

feeds the plant chilled water system that is housed in the vessel vent room.

2.1.5.15 C h illed W ater S ystem s

There are two distinct chilled water systems in H Plant. The first is located in the facility

utility room and serves as the chilled water supply for general use. The second is the

cooling system for process heat exchangers. It consists of a raschig ring tank in the vessel

vent room, which is the initial entry point for process water. This unit serves as the head

tank for a chiller and its associated pump and provides loop flow branching off to specific

heat exchangers. The process system is periodically sampled for contamination and pumped

to the H-8 Liquid Waste Treatment Facility if contamination is found.

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