Uncontrolled tailings piles are mobile sources of fugitive dust that may produce a practically uncleanable adjacent environment. A practical procedure for managing solid tailings is addition of surface moisture, mechanical and gravitational separation of slimes, and storage of slimes below solution tailings. Presently practical alternatives for tailings management are variations of two basic methods - surface below-ground disposal. Isolation of tailings by natural materials such as clay lenses and combinations of overburden, top soil, vegetation and rip-rap may provide both minimization of exposure and stability. Experimental measurement of radon flux over two inactive tailings, acid and carbonate leached tailings resulted in average specific flux values of phi infinity approx. = 0.64 and phi infinity approx. = 0.30 (pCi Rn-222/m/sup 2/ sec) / (pCi Ra-226/g), respectively. The average diffusion coefficient for these tailings were, respectively, 2.4 x 10/sup -3/ and 5.7 x 10/sup -4/ cm/sup 2//sec. Tailings covered with native soil of clay-silt-sand mixture to a depth of 225 cm resulted in attenuation of flux with diffusion coefficients of 3.69 x 10/sup -3/ and 3.60 x 10/sup -3/ cm/sup 2//sec for ACID and ALKO sites, respectively. By means of the UDAD code dose commitments were estimated for inhalation of particulates and …

From abstract: This report summarizes data of the uraniferous phosphate resources of the United States in detail and of the rest of the Free World more generally (Volume 1). It also evaluates the technical, economic, and environmental feasibility of production of uranium as a by-product, co-product, or single product from the uraniferous phosphate resources (Volume 2).

The occupational health and safety impacts are assessed for domestic underground mining, open pit mining, and milling. Public health impacts are calculated for a population of 53,000 located within 88 km (55 miles) of a typical southwestern uranium mill. The collective annual dose would be 6.5 man-lung rem/year, 89% of which is from /sup 222/Rn emitted from mill tailings. The dose to the United States population is estimated to be 6 x 10/sup 4/ man-lung rem from combined mining and milling operations. This may be comparedd with 5.7 x 10/sup 5/ man-lung rem from domestic use of natural gas and 4.4 x 10/sup 7/ man-lung rem from building interiors. Unavoidable adverse environmental impacts appear to be severe in a 250 ha area surrounding a mill site but negligible in the entire potentially impacted area (500,000 ha). The contemporary uranium resource and supply industry and its institutional settings are described in relation to the socio-economic impacts likely to emerge from high levels of uranium mining and milling. Radon and radon daughter monitoring techniques associated with uranium mining and milling are discussed.

Commercial nuclear power has grown to the point where 13 nations now operate commercial nuclear power plants. Another four countries should join this list before the end of 1980. In the Nonproliferation Alternative Systems Assessment Program (NASAP), the US DOE is evaluating a series of alternate possible power systems. The objective is to determine practical nuclear systems which could reduce proliferation risk while still maintaining the benefits of nuclear power. Part of that effort is the development of a data base denoting the energy needs, resources, technical capabilities, commitment to nuclear power, and projected future trends for various non-US countries. The data are presented by country for each of 28 non-US countries. This volume contains compiled data on Mexico, Netherlands, Pakistan, Philippines, South Africa, South Korea, and Spain.

The basis for qualification of aluminum as a material for use as tubing in Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion heat exchangers is reviewed. Reference is made to compendia of data from tests of aluminum alloys in natural sea water and to applicable service records. Data from these sources were found to be inadequate to either qualify or disqualify aluminum. They serve only to identify the 5052 alloy and Alclad 3003 or 3004 as being worthy of additional testing under conditions more directly related to what will be encountered in OTEC heat exchangers. The principal deficiency of data from long-time tests in natural sea water is that in almost all of these tests the specimens were exposed under static conditions that caused the surfaces to be covered by marine fouling organisms that would not be present in heat exchanger tubes. The tests did not take into account possible effects of periodic mechanical or chemical treatments to remove fouling or chemical treatments (chlorination) to prevent fouling. A current testing program sponsored by the Department of Energy through Argonne National Laboratory is designed to provide the needed data. Limited tests in high velocity sea water have indicated that aluminum tubes would tolerate the velocities …

In the year 2000, the US will consume about 3.2 x 10/sup 15/ Btu to produce the seven major nonferrous metals Al, Cu, Zn, Pb, Ni, Mg, and Ti. Of this amount, 82% will be used in the production of Al. It is projected that 0.6 x 10/sup 15/ Btu will be saved by the recycle of secondary metals. Major opportunities for increasing the extent of recycle and thereby increasing the energy savings are discussed. An inherent feature in the energistics of recycle is that physical processes such as magnetic separation, density separations, melting, and in some instances vaporization are far less energy intensive than are chemical processes associated with dissolution and electrowinning. It is in the domain of scrap of complex composition and physical form, difficult to handle by existing technology, that opportunities exist for new chemical recycle technology. Recycle of scrap metal of adequate grade is currently achieved through pyrometallurgical processes which, in many cases, are not very energy intensive as compared with hydrometallurgical processes. Preliminary flowsheets are presented for the recovery of value metals from batteries considered for use in vehicular propulsion and load leveling applications. The battery types examined are lead/acid, nickel/zinc, nickel/iron, zinc/chlorine, lithium-aluminum/iron sulfide, …

Weekly student newspaper from McMurry College in Abilene, Texas that includes local, state and campus news along with advertising.

Coal beneficiation is a generic term used for processes that prepare run-of-mine coal for specific end uses. It is also referred to as coal preparation or coal cleaning and is a means of reducing the sulfur and the ash contents of coal. Information is presented regarding current and potential coal beneficiation processes. Several of the processes reviewed, though not yet commercial, are at various stages of experimental development. Process descriptions are provided for these processes commensurate with the extent of information and time available to perform the evaluation of these processes. Conceptual process designs, preliminary cost estimates, and economic evaluations are provided for the more advanced (from a process development hierarchy viewpoint) processes based on production levels of 1500 and 15,000 tons/day (maf) of cleaned product coal. Economic evaluations of the coal preparation plants are conducted for several project financing schemes and at 12 and 15% annual after-tax rates of return on equity capital. A 9% annual interest rate is used on the debt fraction of the plant capital. Cleaned product coal prices are determined using the discounted cash flow procedure. The study is intended to provide information on publicly known coal beneficiation processes and to indicate the relative costs …

The types of solid wastes and effluents produced by the southwestern coal and uranium mining and milling industries are considered, and the current methods for the disposal and reclamation of these materials discussed. The major means of disposing of the solid wastes from both industries is by land fill or in some instances ponding. Sludges or aqueous wastes are normally discharged into settling and evaporative ponds. Basic reclamation measures for nearly all coal and uranium waste disposal sites include solids stabilization, compacting, grading, soil preparation, and revegetation. Impermeable liners and caps are beginning to be applied to disposal sites for some of the more harmful coal and uranium waste materials.

The following report is the second volume on the evaluation of uranium resources and plant siting. This bibliography contains 471 references pertaining to the study described in Vol. 1.

Weekly student newspaper from McMurry College in Abilene, Texas that includes local, state and campus news along with advertising.

Impacts from Morton Ranch Uranium Mill will result in: alterations of up to 270 acres occupied by the mill facilities; increase in the existing background radiation levels; socioeconomic effects on Glenrock and Douglas, Wyoming. Solid waste material (tailings solids) from the mill will be deposited onsite in exhausted surface mine pits. Any license issued for the Morton Ranch mill will be subject to conditions for the protection of the environment.

This bibliography contains 471 references pertaining to the evaluation of U.S. territorial ocean waters as a potential uranium resource and to the selection of a site for a plant designed for the large scale extraction of uranium from seawater. This bibliography was prepared using machine literature retrieval, bibliographic, and work processing systems at Oregon State University. The literature cited is listed by author with indices to the author's countries, geographic areas of study, and to a set of keywords to the subject matter.

A greenhouse experiment was performed to determine the uptake of trace elements and radionuclides from uranium mill tailings by native plant species. Four-wing saltbush and alkali sacaton were grown in alkaline tailings covered with soil and in soil alone as controls. The tailings material was highly enriched in Ra-226, Mo, U, Se, V, and As compared with three local soils. The shrub grown in tailings had elevated concentrations of Mo, Se, Ra-226, U, As, and Na compared with the controls. Alkali sacaton contained high concentrations of Mo, Se, Ra-226, and Ni when grown on tailings. Molybdenum and selenium concentrations in plants grown in tailings are above levels reported to be toxic to grazing animals. These results indicate that the bioavailability of Mo and Se in alkaline environments makes these elements among the most hazardous contaminants present in uranium mill wastes.

Yearbook for McMurry College in Abilene, Texas includes photos of and information about the college, student body, professors, and organizations. Name index starts on page 210.

The history of the AL-6X alloy is reviewed and its credentials as a candidate for use as tubing in Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion Heat Exchangers are examined. Qualification is based on results of accelerated tests using ferric chloride for resistance to crevice corrosion and pitting, long-time crevice corrosion and pitting tests in natural sea water and anticipated resistance to attack by ammonia and mixtures of ammonia and sea water. Since the alloy has no natural resistance to fouling by marine organisms, it must be able to accomodate action to prevent fouling by chlorination or to remove it by mechanical cleaning techniques or appropriate chemical cleaning methods. The satisfactory behavior indicated by the various accelerated and long-time corrosion tests has been confirmed by excellent performance of several million feet of tubing in condensers in coastal power plants. Early evaluation tests demonstrated the need for proper heat treatment to avoid the presence of a sigma phase, which promoted severe pitting of some, but not all, specimens in tests in natural sea water. The available data qualify the AL-6X alloy as being a satisfactory alternate to titanium for tubes in OTEC heat exchangers.

This report presents 14 conceptual flow sheets and major equipment lists for coal handling and preparation operations that could be required for future, commercial coal conversion plants. These flow sheets are based on converting 50,000 tons per day of clean coal representative of the Pittsburgh and Kentucky No. 9 coal seams. Flow sheets were used by Union Carbide Corporation, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, in a survey of coal handling/preparation equipment requirements for future coal conversion plants. Operations covered in this report include run-of-mine coal breaking, coarse coal cleaning, fine coal cleaning, live storage and blending, fine crushing (crushing to top sizes ranging from 1/4-inch to 20 mesh), drying, and grinding (70 percent minus 200 mesh). Two conceptual flow sheets and major equipment lists are also presented for handling ash or granulated slag and other solid wastes produced by nine leading coal conversion processes. These flow sheets provide for solid wastes transport to an environmentally acceptable disposal site as either dry solids or as a water slurry.

A field study is reported, showing that for a carbonate-leach-process mill tailings pile in the Grants, New Mexico region much of the residual radioactive constituents in the tailings is found associated with particles 7 ..mu..m in diameter and smaller. As the tailings material dries, particle attachment and aggregation occurs with the result that radioactive constituents become associated more with larger particles. Soil samples taken at surface and subsurface on radial lines extending from the tailings pile for 5 miles showed the distribution of radium-226 and other radionuclides in the soil. The radeium-226 deposited on the soil was distributed in such a manner that about 1.6 Ci of randon-222 per day enters the atmosphere from this secondary source. The suspension and transport of particles were studied using an array of sampling towers and wind speed and velocity instrumentation that signaled designated samplers at upwind and downwind locations to operate when wind direction and speed criteria were satisfied. Flux of particles in various size ranges was determined as a function of wind speed. The radionuclide content of airborne particles as a function of particle size was measured for some samplers. A significant fraction of airborne radioactive material is associated with respirable particles. …

Assessments of inactive uranium mill tailings sites in the United States led to the designation of 25 processing sites for remedial action under the provisions of Section 102(a) Public Law 95-604. The Department of Energy assessed the potential health effects to the public from the residual radioactive materials on or near the 25 sites; and, with the advice of the Environmental Protection Agency, the Secretary established priorities for performing remedial action. In designating the 25 sites and establishing the priorities for performing remedial action, the Department of Energy consulted with the Environmental Protection Agency, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Department of the Interior, governors of the affected States, Navajo Nation, and appropriate property owners. Public participation in this process was encouraged. During Fiscal Year 1980, Department of Energy will be conducting surveys to verify the radiological characterization at the designated processing sites; developing cooperative agreements with the affected States; and initiating the appropriate National Environmental Policy Act documentation prior to conducting specific remedial actions.

Results of a radiological survey that was conducted at the inactive uranium-mill site at Monument Valley, Arizona, in March 1976, in cooperation with a team from Ford, Bacon and Davis Utah Inc., are presented. Consideration of these data and of previously published information on radiological conditions at the site lead to the conclusion that potential health effects from exposure to radionuclides in the mill tailings are relatively small. The occupants of three residences within 0.8 km (0.5 mile) of the tailings constitute the principal population at risk, but direct gamma-exposure rate measurements near the two residences closest to the tailings and calculations of radon dispersion indicate that the tailings do not raise either pathway of radiation exposure significantly above the background level. Data are not available to evaluate fully other possible exposure pathways, but the available information indicates that it is unlikely that doses through these pathways will add significantly to the total population dose. The low estimates of potential health effects from exposure to direct radiation and to exposure to radionuclides in the Monument Valley tailings piles are ascribed to the low /sup 226/Ra inventory, to almost complete absence of small particles that are readily moved by wind and …

Results indicate that the salinity of retort water, the principal wastewater generated by shale oil recovery operations, will be too high in most cases for irrigation of cover crops needed for effective stabilization by land disposal. Furthermore, large storage lagoons would be required to hold the retort water during the long winters encountered in the oil shale regions of Colorado, Wyoming and Utah. Land disposal cannot be carried out during prolonged periods of freezing weather. Additional problems which may arise with land disposal include air pollution from volatile constituents and groundwater pollution from refractory organics and dissolved salts in the retort water. Pretreatment requirements include the removal of ammonia which is present at toxic concentrations in retort water. Underground injection of retort water may be permitted in regions possessing favorable geological characteristics. It is anticipated that this method would be used as a last resort where effective or resonably priced treatment technology is not available. Regulatory restraints are expected to limit the use of underground injection for disposal of highly polluted shale oil wastewaters. Proving the confinement of injected wastes, a frequently difficult and expensive task, will be required to assure protection of drinking water resources.

This essay presents elements of the processes used in the fuel cycle steps and gives an indication of the types of equipment used. The amounts of radioactivity released in normal operation of the processes are indicated and related to radiation doses. Types and costs of equipment or processes required to lower these radioactivity releases are in some cases suggested. Mining and milling, conversion of uranium concentrate to UF/sub 6/, uranium isotope separation, LWR fuel fabrication, fuel reprocessing, transportation, and waste management are covered in this essay. 40 figures, 34 tables. (DLC)

Information was developed on potential applications of Fluidized-Bed Waste Heat Recovery Systems (FWHRS) in US industries that will assist the DOE in their decision to plan and participate in a demonstration project of the FWHRS. The study included a review of the literature and personal contacts (via telephone) with industry personnel with the objective to identify a limited number of applications. Technical and economic assessments for specific applications were accomplished by developing generalized design, performance, and cost parameters that could be applied based on selected critical characteristics of each potential application of the FWHR system. Waste energy streams identified included flue gas and off-gas from boilers, furnaces, and kiln. Utilization of the waste energy recovered included electric power generation, preheating combustion air and boiler feedwater, and drying. A course of action is recommended to DOE regarding generic users for demonstration projects.

The following topics are covered: thermodynamic instability of brine, injectivity loss during regular production and injection operations, injectivity loss caused by measures other than regular operations, heat mining and associated reservoir problems in reinjection, pressure maintenance through imported make-up water, suggested solutions to injection problems, and suggested solutions to injection problems: remedial and stimulation measures. (MHR)