TRUPACT-II gas generation test program summary, status, and applications

The Transuranic Package Transport-11 (TRUPACT-11) is a Type B packaging designed for the shipment of contact-handled transuranic (CH-TRU) wastes for permanent emplacement and disposal at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in southeastern New Mexico. CH-TRU wastes are produced by various Department of energy (DOE) facilities located across the United States. Certificate of Compliance (C of C) No. 9218 for the TRUPACT-11, granted by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in 1989, defines the allowable payload and lists the conditions applicable for waste shipments in the TRUPACT-11. One of the critical parameters governing the shipment of CH-TRU waste in the TRUPACT-11 is the potential generation of hydrogen and other flammable gases during transportation. The primary mechanism for the generation of these gases is radiolysis of the waste or packing materials. Therefore, specific limits are set on the amount of radioactive material per waste container (quantified by the decay heat) that can be shipped in the TRUPACT-11. The purpose of the TRUPACT-11 Gas Generation Test Program is to obtain real-time gas generation rate data from experiments on containers of CH-TRU waste. These experiments consist of monitoring gas generation from 55-gallon drums of CH-TRU waste under conditions that simulate the expected thermal conditionsmore » in the TRUPACT-11 during transportation. The data will allow the establishment of decay heat limits based on actual gas generation values, and will facilitate the shipment of larger quantities of waste in the TRUPACT-11. This paper describes the status of the TRUPACT-11 Gas Generation Test Program and its potential applications to related TRU waste management issues in the DOE system.« less