Environmental Health and Remediation Capabilities
Meeting the environmental challenges of the future
Resolving the nation's nuclear cleanup legacy requires the integration and application of many scientific disciplines.
Advanced Computer Science, Visualization, and Data
This capability facilitates predictive modeling, a key component for solving subsurface contamination. Modeling provides the ability to "see" the subsurface, as well as predict the long-term performance of remediation approaches. PNNL is building its process modeling capabilities through the ParaFlow advanced computational model—which is providing new insights into waste processing—and also is developing subsurface fate and transport modeling with the Subsurface Transport Over Multiple Phases (STOMP) code. Concepts from PNNL's GS3 modeling interface, which supports carbon dioxide sequestration modeling, also are being used in the Advanced Simulation Capability for Environmental Management (ASCEM) initiative's platform.
Applied Materials Science and Engineering
PNNL is widely recognized for its applied materials science and engineering capabilities. PNNL expertise includes materials theory, simulation, design, and synthesis; materials characterization, and materials performance in hostile environments. This capability is central to PNNL's efforts to formulate, fabricate, and qualify radioactive and hazardous waste storage mediums for safe, long-term storage.
Applied Nuclear Science and Technology
The applied nuclear science and technology capability is broad-based and flows out of PNNL's historic role at Hanford. PNNL taps these capabilities, particularly radiochemical process engineering, to address a wide variety of waste-related issues. For instance, PNNL is improving waste "loading" through methods that strip less dangerous elements that are detrimental to glass performance, such as aluminum and chrome, from waste. As the Hanford Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant begins converting tank waste to glass, this approach will allow larger amounts of radioactive substances to be loaded into the glass formulations, significantly reducing the overall amount of glass produced, and thus reducing storage space needs and costs.
Chemical Engineering
PNNL is recognized internationally for its chemical engineering capability. This resource applies chemical research and engineering across multiple scales, from molecular to beaker to pilot, connecting fundamental science to application. PNNL's strength in chemical engineering derives from its scientific foundations in molecular, biological, and material sciences and engineering. Within this capability, we are taking advantage of disciplines including nuclear waste separations, thermodynamics, kinetics, interfacial sciences, and fluid dynamics. Proper integration of these disciplines enables enhanced design, commissioning and optimization for the nation's complex of waste processing plants.
Subsurface Science
PNNL's subsurface capability, internationally recognized, builds upon 30 years of subsurface transport modeling with integrated experimental platforms from micron to field scale. This capability provides new knowledge about the fate and transport of subsurface contaminants and informs the design and operation of in-ground environmental remediation processes. PNNL leads three eminent DOE projects that are contributing new knowledge and strengthening capabilities and understanding in subsurface science:
- Integrated Field Research Challenge at Hanford: The IFRC project at Hanford consists of a subsurface experimental system containing nearly three dozen monitoring wells equipped with sophisticated instrumentation. The experiment enables a full accounting of the processes that occur beneath the surface that contribute to persistent uranium groundwater contamination.
- Integrated Field Research Challenge at Rifle, Colorado: At Rifle, IFRC efforts focus on examining the stimulation of microorganisms to reduce and immobilize uranium in the subsurface.
- Deep Vadose Zone Applied Field Research Initiative: The deep vadose zone extends roughly from 15 feet below the surface down to the groundwater—too deep for remediation by typical soil removal processes. The DVZ-AFRI, launched in 2011 at Hanford, is developing innovative remediation alternatives for deep vadose zone challenges in characterization, prediction, remediation and monitoring.
Radiochemical Processing Laboratory (RPL)
This laboratory and its research teams serve as a cornerstone of PNNL research and development. In addition to broadly supporting the capabilities listed above, the RPL is a vital resource for addressing Hanford tank waste, subsurface contamination, and other environmental challenges. A Hazard Category II Non-Reactor Nuclear Facility, RPL's capabilities are employed to develop, test and implement innovative processes for environmental cleanup and other needs. RPL has been a significant contributor to the Hanford Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, providing evaluation and testing of WTP's pretreatment and vitrification processing approaches. RPL capabilities also have provided improved understanding of tank waste composition, created methods for separating certain elements from waste, characterized soils and sludges across Hanford, and addressed many other cleanup needs.
Applied Process Engineering Laboratory (APEL)
APEL features engineering and manufacturing scale space and research laboratories, and its glass and materials labs are particularly vital to waste form research. The facility offers crucible-to-large scale experiments, allowing research teams to comprehensively test and analyze waste characteristics, processing, and forms in the same facility.
Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory (EMSL)
EMSL, a DOE national scientific user facility located at PNNL, provides the fundamental science that serves as a basis for technology advances in environmental science and related fields. By inquiring at a fundamental level and transposing that information into a model or simulation, it is possible to develop and test potential new solutions for a range of technical challenges. Further integration of this approach with capabilities at the Radiochemical Processing Laboratory has produced unique equipment and techniques for conducting research in the fields of radiological surface science, actinide chemistry, and analytical chemistry.
Process Development Laboratory (PDL)-East and West
PDL-East, a high-bay facility, houses pilot scale test equipment for environmental cleanup and industrial waste recycle processes. PDL-West, also a high-bay facility, most recently has housed the Pretreatment Engineering Platform (PEP), an engineering-scale demonstration of Hanford Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant pretreatment processes. The PEP project included chemical process demonstration work with non-radioactive Hanford tank waste simulants.
