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Serco Waste Characterisation Services

Advise | Design | Integrate | Deliver

Overview of Waste Characterisation and Related Services

LLW Repository Ltd Customer Forum

Rheged Centre, April 2012

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Presentation Structure

Serco overview and relevant capability

Background to Waste Characterisation Services frameworks

Case studies

Service delivery

Key messages

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Technical Services

Independent advice to nuclear propulsion

Serco Materials Testing Laboratory, Risley

Serco Radioactive Handling Facility, Risley

LLWR: Tier 1

Civil Nuclear

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Relevant Nuclear Competence

Project Management

Radioactive Waste Management

Optioneering

Radiological Dose Assessment

Radiation Protection

Computer Modelling

Waste Characterisation

ANSWERS software

Sellafield Contaminated Land & Groundwater Management Programme

IRAS Contamination Survey

Gamma Spectrometry

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Serco and LLWR

Integrated sub-contractor to UKNWM Ltd

– Technical and financial understanding of LLWR business

– Aligned with securing cost effective management of UK waste streams

2011 ESC understanding:

– Derivation of the radiological capacity for the LLWR

– Development of WAC

– Key radionuclides during Period of Authorisation

UKRWI understanding

– Existing and planned waste streams Cost effective consultancy

NDA Strategic LQM understanding

– Current and future land quality waste arisings on all NDA sites

LLWR Vault 9

“We understand the need to extend the lifetime of our national repository”

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Services Available via LLWR Framework

Objective:

– To improve LLWR confidence that waste streams are: Appropriate, Minimised and WAC compliant

Means:

– Make available to waste consignors a high quality, consistent characterisation service

– Assist/augment/integrate with existing teams

Physical, chemical and radiochemical characterisation

– In-situ measurements– Sampling and analysis

Undertaken by people who understand:

– Waste Hierarchy– Segregation and treatment of waste– Maximisation of the use of excluded, exempt and VLLW– Occupational and environmental radiation protection

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To Assist LLWR Ltd in its own Waste Assurance Programme

Provide independent verification of customer’s wastes

– Confirmation that waste received complies with the repository’s Waste Acceptance Criteria requirement under Environmental Permit

Services:

– Verification monitoring

– Verification sampling and analysis

– Equipment and process verification

Our Role in the LLWR Framework

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Verification Monitoring, Sampling and Analysis

To assess activity in waste packages for comparison against customers’ own radioactivity content measurement

Methodology

– Examine customer data– Produce container activity/dose mathematical model

Geometrical and physical container properties Non-homogenous density and radioactivity Calculate total detection efficiency

– In-situ dose-rate and High Resolution Gamma Spectrometry measurements

– Compare in-situ measurements against model

– Verification of consignment Gamma fingerprint Declared activity

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To include provision of test items for deployment to customer sites

To verify and assure the customer assay processes and equipment

Calibrated test items to be provided by NPL

– Previously conducted waste drum inter-site comparison exercises

– Readily transferable verification methodology

Will include witness of customer methodologies and their data interpretation

Deliverables include written report

Equipment and Process Verification

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To support auditing of waste consignors by providing suitably qualified and experienced auditors

Serco Environment & QA manager supported by:

– Additional experienced Serco auditors

– Experienced NPL auditors UKAS assessors experienced in auditing laboratory compliance under ISO17025

standard

Deliverables will include written Audit reports

Audit Support

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Radiological Safety and Compliance

DURING CHARACTERISATION AND ASSURANCE WORK

IRR 99

– Co-operation with client RPA to determine who is “Radiation Employer”, so the duties can be assigned to each party

– Serco is an HSE recognised RPA body

RMT Notification

– Ensuring, prior to consignment, that consignee is willing and able to accept the consignment under their Permit

Consignment and Carriage

– Samples etc. normally consigned in Excepted Packages (UN 2910)

– Serco has an “all classes” DGSA, who specialises in Class 7 dangerous goods

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Case Study 1: JRC ISPRA, Italy

IN-SITU ASSAY AND SAMPLING

The problem

– Components of a legacy test rig contained 0.5 – 4 kg DU in 1100 kg sodium.

– Distribution of the DU key factor in waste treatment and disposal options

The solution

– High sensitivity gamma flux surveys of the massive components to identify locations where DU was concentrated

– Quantification by in-situ HRGS with mathematical calibration

The outcome

– Strategy decided to segregate DU, treating the small quantity of sodium by WVN

– Supported by subsequent sampling and laboratory analysis, once it was practicable to open up the components

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Case Study 2: Pile 1 Chimney

OPTIMISATION OF WASTE MANAGEMENT STRATEGY

The problem

– 4500 tons of concrete

– High activity concentration contamination on inner near surface, rapidly reducing with depth to high volume VLLW

The opportunity

– Effective segregation would significantly reduce the quantity of waste sent to LLWR

Our contribution to BPEO process

– Use of a number of innovative in-situ and ex-situ techniques, and modelling to describe contamination distribution

– Model development to predict effect of different segregation options on waste quantities and operator dose

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Example 1:

– Pile Chimneys’ Free Release Monitoring System

– Windscale Pile 2 Chimney concrete represented a HVLA waste

– Waste segregation optimised by a 3-stage monitoring system

Initial screening Conveyor for particle 1m3 bulk bag monitor

– 3000t of 4300t of concrete transported

as ‘free release’

– Saved capacity at LLWR and site VLLW facilities

Innovation in Measurement Services

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Example 2:

– IRAS Depth Profiler ™

– Delivers 1-mm resolution depth profile without the errors introduced by mechanical core sectioning

– Collimated gamma spectrometer

– Analysis of drilled cores, either on site or in lab

– Pile 1 Chimney at Sellafield 30 cores 95% goodness of fitting

Innovation in Measurement Services

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NDA DRP Frameworks

Recently reappointed on the Direct Research Portfolio

– For example, Lot 3, Site Restoration

– Earlier rapid characterisation research

– Contaminated material that does not have a reliable gamma fingerprint

– Demonstration of technologies

– Proposed forward programmes Collation of data from site licence holders Proposals and prioritisation of tasks Dissemination of information

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Waste Characterisation Service Delivery

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Geographical Distribution

Excellent Coverage

Rapid Response

Reduced Carbon Footprint

1. Westlakes

2. Risley

3. Quedgeley

4. Harwell

5. Winfrith

6. Egremont

7. Barrow

8. Malton

9. Leyland

10. Queensferry/Deeside

11. Worcester

12. Sittingbourne

13. Dounreay

Additional Service Capability

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Safe Delivery

2011: RoSPA awarded President’s Award

– 10 successive years achieving their Gold Award standard for Occupational Health & Safety

Embedded learning from 5 decades experience

– Continuously developing operational, behavioural and observational safety processes and procedures

Excellent record of safe delivery

– Engaged in on-site activities on UK nuclear licensed sites

– For example, 93,000+ man hours on a complex project at Sellafield without a Lost Time Accident

Safety remains our number one priority as we continue to work towards our Zero Harm goal

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Key Messages

Organisation with an impeccable nuclear safety and assurance pedigree

Appointed as a LLWR framework contractor, providing a full range of waste characterisation services

Understand LLWR and its objectives through our ESC and RWI work

Understand the diverse range of LLWR customers

Research and Innovation

– Proven track record of waste characterisation research

– Ideas for the future

We are experienced, capable and committed to ensuring successful delivery of these services

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Nick Stone

Waste Characterisation Framework Manager

Tel: 01946 518702

Mob: 0771 819 4877

E: nick.stone@serco.com

Web: www.serco.com/tcs

Key Contact for the Waste Characterisation Service