Environmental Health & Remediation Highlights
Latest Highlights
Specialized Ultrasound Technique Inspects Hanford Tank Integrity
This sensor could be deployed under a Hanford tank in 2019October 2018
Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS) and PNNL researchers just completed testing of an adapted Ultrasonic Volumetric nondestructive examination process on a 12-by-20-foot mock Hanford waste tank bottom. With this novel sensor technology, it may now be possible to inspect the physically inaccessible tank bottom plates. This has never been possible before because about 90 percent of the tank bottom is blocked by insulating concrete.
Surrogate Waste Tests at Field Lysimeter Test Facility
LAW waste storage forms to be testedMay 2018
A project to assess the integrity of low-activity waste (LAW) waste forms will use the Hanford Site Field Lysimeter Test Facility. The study will produce surrogate waste forms and monitor their wastewater streams for evidence of degradation. The study aims to improve stakeholder confidence in the safe disposal of LAW.
- NPSI Uses Show-and-Tell Video for Particle Study Method
Scanning Electron Microscopy method for in-situ imaging of boehmite particles explained in video that accompanies journal articleFebruary 2018 - PNNL's Sue Clark to Help Evaluate DOE's Environmental Cleanup Technology Development
Internationally renowned nuclear scientist serving on National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine committeeFebruary 2018 - New Dose Reconstruction Method Supports Radiation Exposure Limits for Human Health
Long-term, low-level plutonium exposure linked to increased cancersFebruary 2018 - IDREAM Meeting Nets Insights and Ideas
PNNL scientists brainstormed with peers from Georgia Institute of Technology, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, University of Notre Dame, University of Washington, and Washington State UniversityFebruary 2018 - Getting the Inside Out: Waste Retrieval Approach Shows Promise
Low-water, high-pressure retrieval device vacuums up hardened Hanford tank wasteJanuary 2018