Figure 8-1. Ultimate disposition of tritiated material

DOE-HDBK-1129-99

Tritiated Material

Radioactive?

Yes

Reactor-Produced Tritium

Accelerator-Produced Tritium

Mixed?

Hazardous?

Yes

This pathway appears

Mixed

unlikely to exist in

Yes

DOE; however, final

Naturally-Occurring and Accelerator-

determinations are

Disposition

Produced Radioactive Material

always subject to

(NARM) mixed with hazardous is

local regulatory

treated the same as radioactive mixed

authority and

with Source, SNM, or a byproduct

interpretation.

Solid

Elemental

Liquid

material, per 5820.2A, even though

Disposition

the Federal Facility Compliance Act of

1992 may not require this treatment.

Recover

Regenerate

Store Stack

Store

Waste

Treatment

Disposal

Waste disposal

Return gas to RTF

Pay others to

take and

process

Liquid release

Vaporize

Pay others

(see Section

Storage

Solidification

to environment

8.2.3)

to take

evaporate stack

Light Water

Heavy Water

Soil

Sanitary

River or

e.g., into cement,

With other

Commercial

column

sewer

stream

clay, LANL

radionuclides

Canadians

nuclear

discharge

torpedoes

power plants

FIGURE 8-1. Ultimate disposition of tritiated material

The reports agree with the fact that burial costs are a function of volume, not concentration.

However, the costs associated with Canadian detritiation services, which are an alternative to

discard via burial, are a function of concentration. The mode of transportation and the number of

packages per shipment are dependent upon concentration, thereby affecting costs. There are

issues associated with paying for foreign disposal of hazardous wastes; however, these issues do

not exist if the foreign (e.g., Canadian) services consist of detritification and return of the other

constituents to the sender or to a U.S. waste processor.

Both reports referenced assign a relatively high value for the recovered tritium based on the cost to

produce tritium in a new production source or the current market price. Although the current

market price established by the Canadians is $3.30 per Ci, it is irrelevant to the value of the

recovered tritium. The Canadian price is arbitrary, and is based on selling only about 100 g/yr,

with its supply of over 2,500 g/yr. For DOE to obtain customers to buy its tritium, it would have to

drop the price substantially, and there is nothing to prevent the Canadians from further

undercutting these lower prices. Likewise, the average cost of tritium in the new production source

is irrelevant. Although the average cost to produce a Ci of tritium in DOE's new production source

will be substantially higher than it was in the past, it is the marginal cost that is germane. The

marginal cost to produce another 100 g/yr given the existence of a new production source is a

small fraction of the average cost with both options (APT and CLWR). [37-38] Although an