How to dismantle a nuclear reactor (photos)

There are currently 104 nuclear reactors generating electricity in the United States, and most will operate a few decades beyond their design life cycle. A huge engineering challenge to clean up and decommission those reactors lurks over the horizon. Most sites recently re-licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission over the past several years will be ceasing operations around 2030.

Some of the world's biggest engineering companies such as Bechtel Group will be commissioned to do most of the grunt work, and must invent new technologies to scale their operations. Bechtel's PR agency gave SmartPlanet an exclusive look (it provided information for photo captions) at the extreme engineering it has deployed in the clean up of the Hanford nuclear site, a government nuclear facility in Washington state that dates back to the Manhattan Project. Massive volumes of high and low level nuclear waste is processed, tested, and treated; systems are routinely checked for workers' safety.

The scale of the U.S. government's nuclear operations at Hanford was staggering; it produced most of the plutonium for its 60,000 nuclear weapons and had nine operational nuclear reactors at its Cold War peak. Four 375,000-gallon waste feed vessels will hold materials in the Pretreatment facility as they await transport.

Four 375,000-gallon waste feed vessels will hold materials in the Pretreatment facility as they await transport.

Transporting nuclear waste can be dangerous work. Computerized orbital welders produce consistent high-quality welds in hard to reach areas. To test the welds, an Automatic Ultrasonic Testing system was designed for the 30,000 welds that abandoned the old x-ray method of testing welds, eliminating the need to clear worker's out of the area for testing. This cut down the number of scans needed to verify safety and quality from 3 -1…more than a 60% time savings. Other companies are attempting to develop their own automatic testing system, but none have done so successfully to date, Bechtel claims.

Computerized orbital welders produce consistent high-quality welds in hard to reach areas. To test the welds, an Automatic Ultrasonic Testing system was designed for the 30,000 welds that abandoned the old x-ray method of testing welds, eliminating the need to clear worker's out of the area for testing. This cut down the number of scans needed to verify safety and quality from 3 -1…more than a 60% time savings. Other companies are attempting to develop their own automatic testing system, but none have done so successfully to date, Bechtel claims.

Computerized orbital welders produce consistent high-quality welds in hard to reach areas. To test the welds, an Automatic Ultrasonic Testing system was designed for the 30,000 welds that abandoned the old x-ray method of testing welds, eliminating the need to clear worker's out of the area for testing. This cut down the number of scans needed to verify safety and quality from 3 -1…more than a 60% time savings. Other companies are attempting to develop their own automatic testing system, but none have done so successfully to date, Bechtel claims.

The automated pneumatic system collects samples directly from the Pretreatment, High Level Waste and Low Activity Waste facility process lines at various stages of treatment, and transports samples to the Analytical Lab for analysis. The systems tests 10,000 samples a year, ensuring federal and local safety compliance.

The automated pneumatic system collects samples directly from the Pretreatment, High Level Waste and Low Activity Waste facility process lines at various stages of treatment, and transports samples to the Analytical Lab for analysis. The systems tests 10,000 samples a year, ensuring federal and local safety compliance.

The automated pneumatic system collects samples directly from the Pretreatment, High Level Waste and Low Activity Waste facility process lines at various stages of treatment, and transports samples to the Analytical Lab for analysis. The systems tests 10,000 samples a year, ensuring federal and local safety compliance.

Computerized orbital welders produce consistent high-quality welds in hard to reach areas. To test the welds, an Automatic Ultrasonic Testing system was designed for the 30,000 welds that abandoned the old x-ray method of testing welds, eliminating the need to clear worker's out of the area for testing. This cut down the number of scans needed to verify safety and quality from 3 -1…more than a 60% time savings. Other companies are attempting to develop their own automatic testing system, but none have done so successfully to date, Bechtel claims.

Nuclear grade heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems will be essential to maintaining contamination boundaries during operations. This piece of duct work measures 5 ft. in diameter, 30 feet in length and weighs 10 tons.

Nuclear grade heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems will be essential to maintaining contamination boundaries during operations. This piece of duct work measures 5 ft. in diameter, 30 feet in length and weighs 10 tons.

In the WTP Analytical Lab, waste samples that have been converted into a glass disk the size of a quarter will be vaporized with a laser beam. The vaporized sample is then analyzed using a spectrophotometer. Using laser ablation, the chemical composition of waste is determined by analyzing wavelengths of the elements in the sample. This WTP developed method reduces sample preparation and analysis time by more than 75%.

In the WTP Analytical Lab, waste samples that have been converted into a glass disk the size of a quarter will be vaporized with a laser beam. The vaporized sample is then analyzed using a spectrophotometer. Using laser ablation, the chemical composition of waste is determined by analyzing wavelengths of the elements in the sample. This WTP developed method reduces sample preparation and analysis time by more than 75%.

Employing innovative techniques for complex construction work, high-tech laser scanning enables intricate and accurate design and installation of complex configurations such as the Pretreatment facility’s pre-assembled black cell piping modules.

The WTP will have the largest melters used for vitrification in the U.S.  The 330-ton Low Activity Waste melters are twice the size of any previous melter in the country. The High Level Waste melter has three times the capacity of the Defense Waste Processing Facility at the DOE Savannah River site.

Pipe modules are constructed at ground level for safety, accuracy and efficiency. The completed modules are then lifted into the facilities. The Bentley Navigator Pipe Status Modeling System tracks installation progress to give workers the information they need to determine which modules have been installed, and the order of new installations. These specialized techniques were developed to accurately and efficiently install massive structures in space-contained areas.

Pipe modules are constructed at ground level for safety, accuracy and efficiency. The completed modules are then lifted into the facilities. The Bentley Navigator Pipe Status Modeling System tracks installation progress to give workers the information they need to determine which modules have been installed, and the order of new installations. These specialized techniques were developed to accurately and efficiently install massive structures in space-contained areas.

Pipe modules are constructed at ground level for safety, accuracy and efficiency. The completed modules are then lifted into the facilities. The Bentley Navigator Pipe Status Modeling System tracks installation progress to give workers the information they need to determine which modules have been installed, and the order of new installations. These specialized techniques were developed to accurately and efficiently install massive structures in space-contained areas.

Pipe modules are constructed at ground level for safety, accuracy and efficiency. The completed modules are then lifted into the facilities. The Bentley Navigator Pipe Status Modeling System tracks installation progress to give workers the information they need to determine which modules have been installed, and the order of new installations. These specialized techniques were developed to accurately and efficiently install massive structures in space-contained areas.

Pipe modules are constructed at ground level for safety, accuracy and efficiency. The completed modules are then lifted into the facilities. The Bentley Navigator Pipe Status Modeling System tracks installation progress to give workers the information they need to determine which modules have been installed, and the order of new installations. These specialized techniques were developed to accurately and efficiently install massive structures in space-contained areas.

The Pretreatment Engineering platform successfully demonstrated integrated process testing for caustic and oxidative leaching, washing and filtration/concentration, as well as the efficacy of pretreatment capacity modifications implemented in 2007.

The Pretreatment Engineering platform successfully demonstrated integrated process testing for caustic and oxidative leaching, washing and filtration/concentration, as well as the efficacy of pretreatment capacity modifications implemented in 2007.

The Pretreatment Engineering platform successfully demonstrated integrated process testing for caustic and oxidative leaching, washing and filtration/concentration, as well as the efficacy of pretreatment capacity modifications implemented in 2007.

Pulse jet mixers are used at various points in the waste transport process to ensure the radioactive sludge remains well mixed, preventing a build-up of radioactive materials in the piping modules.

The WTP project has led the development and qualification of resorcinol formaldehyde resin, which is needed to remove large amounts of cesium before the Low-Activity Waste Facility feed can be sent to the melters. This resin has superior operational properties and costs less than the resin that was originally planned at the onset of the project, the company says.

Large bundles of ultrafiltration modules are used in the Pretreatment Facility to separate low-activity waste feed stream from the high-level waste solids feed.