This report, from the Chemical Processing Department at HAPO, discusses the following: production operation; purex and redox operation; finished products operation; maintenance; financial operations; facilities engineering; research; and employee relations.

The rate of fission product inventory release to the environment as a result of exposure of uranium fuel to high temperatures should be known to more realistically assess the consequences of a credible accident. To obtain an acceptable experimental evaluation of releases it is necessary to have similar conditions to those which would exist in the reactor. Fission product release rate experiments exploring temperatures below the uranium melting point were performed for Douglas United Nuclear by D. L. Reid of Battelle-Northwest. Data and some conclusions from the initial tests are presented in this report. The intent of distributing this information is to make known results and to record data transmitted in correspondence from Battelle-Northwest to DUN.

The pile power level curve, which includes data from PT 528 High Tank Drawdown Test and heat decay test, represents allowable power level for a given average High Tank temperature.

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The WPE progress report for September, 1962 documents reasons for suspecting nitrogen as a possible cause of weapons fabrication difficulties and loss of production caused by radio-graphic rejects. This is a summary and documentation of the ``Nitride Problem`` and related subjects concerning fabrication metal. It contains the background information leading to details published in the Weapons Process Engineering Progress Reports. This summary may provide a better understanding of the problem, since little of the background was suitable for publication in the WPE progress reports.

In the High-temperature Gas-cooled Reactor (HTGR), structural metals will be required to operate at temperatures of 1000 to 1400 deg F in an impure- helium environment for extended periods of time. Six candidate materials for such applications, including nickel alloys and stainless steels, were subjected to simulated reactor environments for times up to 3000 hr to evaluate the extent of corrosion and the changes in mechanical properties occasioned by I such exposures. Under the experimental exposure conditions (helium containing 200 to 300 ppm CO and 200 to 300 ppm H/sub 2/, or helium containing 2000 to 3000 ppm CO and 2000 to 3000 ppm H/sub 2/, at temperatures of 1200 or 1400 deg F), oxidation rather than carburization appears to be the major corrosion process; however, in some cases alternating carburization and decarburization were observed. Measurements of weight gains are described. None of the materials studied exhibited a large change in their mechanical properties after exposures at 1200 deg F. After exposures at 1400 deg F, moderate changes in mechanical properties were observed for all materials except Type 321H stainless steel, which exhibited a large decrease in ductility after l500-hr exposure to the higher impurity concentration. In general, the control …

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This document details activities of the irradiation processing department at the Hanford Reservation during the month of February, 1960. A general summary is included at the start of the report, after which the report is divided into the following sections: Research and Engineering Operation; Manufacturing Operation; Facilities Engineering Operation; Relations Practices Operation; Financial Operation; and NPR operation.

Metals and alloys germane to thermionic energy converter usage were screened for embrittlement by liquid cesium. Techniques are described for more detailed studies of ceramics and susceptible metals. Definite reductions in tensile ductility were observed for 302 stainless steel and molybdenum. Bend ductility was lowered in titanium, titanium-8 aluminum-4 vanadium alloy, niobium, tantalum, and silver-- copper eutectic solder. Some difficulty in reproducibly wetting samples was evident. Slightly contaminating the cesium with oxygen (or water) was observed to increase cesium wettability. (auth)