A report discussing an experiment conducted to determine the effect of radiation on the melting point of Tempilaq, a commercially available, temperature-indicating liquid.

Report discussing the procedures and experimental data of various plutonium waste recovery methods. The report elaborates on the different methods of collection necessary for different wastes.

This report discusses properties and data regarding the neutralized and concentrated aqueous waste produced during studies of the tributyl phosphate (TBP) solvent extraction process.

Report discussing progress in research and development by the Health Instrument Divisions, Hanford Works, for the term from January through March, 1951.

The basic scheme for processing power reactor fuels at Hanford includes the removal of inert endfittings ("hardware") from the active sections of the fuels. Within Hanford Laboratories, research and development studies have been in progress on various types of saws which might be used for hardware cutoff. In the initial phase of the program, high-speed saws were investigated; more recently, studies on low speed saws have been conducted. This report summarizes the high speed saw studies and includes information on abrasive wheels, diamond wheels and metal "friction" blades which cut by actually melting metal ahead of the saw blade. At the completion of the low speed saw testing program currently in progress, basic saw types will be compared and the saw type to be included in the reprocessing complex will be selected.

At the present time, cerium-144 and premtheium-147 are the two fission product rare earths that appear most promising for use as the heat source in isotopic power units. Under proper conditions, cerium and the trivalent rare earths can be extracted from the Purex fission product waste stream as an insoluble sodium-rare earth double sulfate. A reprecipitation as the double sulfate, dissolution of the hydroxide, serves to give almost complete separation from the corrosion products, inert constituents of the waste, and from most of the fission products. The cerium and the trivalent rare earths must then be separated from each other. In the case of cerium recovery, it is necessary to remove the trivalent rare earths in order to maximize the specific activity of the cerium. If promethium is the desired product, a preliminary cerium separation is desirable to protect the ion-exchange resin (used for separating promethium from its adjacent rare earths) from the intense high-energy radiation from cerium.

This study was initiated to determine the minimum safety requirements for safe anchorage of electric pole lines. The objectives were to investigate the suitability of manufactured concrete pole line anchors for use at the Hanford Atomic Products Operation, to design a concrete anchor slug of optimum shape and size for manufacture, to determine by field tests the resistance pullout of the concrete anchor when buried at various depths under the most favorable condition, and to develop a safe design load for the anchors at various depths of burial and angle of pull based on test results.

Extremely radioactive particles result from the abrasive wheel cutting of irradiated fuel elements in the cut-off cell located in the 327 Building. Due to the use of water during the cutting operation these particles are in suspension and must be removed before the liquid can be discharged to the liquid waste tanks in the 340 building. The filters presently employed in the cell total activity discharged to the 340 Building tanks is attributed to the particles which pass these filters. With the start-up of a new, larger cut-off cell the cutting is expected to increase considerably, thereby increasing the amount of radioactive cuttings requiring disposal. The installation of equipment which would more efficiently remove the suspended particles would (1) reduce the activity level of wastes disposed to ground, (2) reduce the radiation exposure level to drivers who truck the wastes to the 200 Area, and (3) prevent the forming of localized high radiation zones due to the deposition of particles in the waste line in the 327 Building.

The PRP Critical Facility is an experimental reactor for use in determination of basic nuclear constants of heterogenous reactors recycling plutonium, and exponential and criticality studies at power levels up to 100 watts and neutron fluxes of about 109 nv. Provision is made for changing reactor lattices using irradiated and unirradiated fuel elements with either a light or heavy water moderator.

In connection with different seals for C & D equipment it appears advantageous that many parts could be made of rubber or other elastic polymers. However, data on the deterioration rate of these materials under irradiation are somewhat scant in the available literature. It appears that for neutrons and pure gamma radiation that a good grade of natural rubber stands up best in all the test reported and because the results of the neutron irradiation are so closely correlated with results from gamma it has been proposed that the principal source of damage is caused by secondary irradiation generated within the rubber by the neutrons.

Recently proposals for justifiable additions to the Plutonium Recycle Test Reactor Complex were presented to the Atomic Energy Commission at their request. In addition to a critical reactivity measuring facility in the fuel element storage basin, the following in-reactor loops were proposed: 1. A high pressure, H2O cooled fuel test loop. 2. A rupture loop to investigate fuel element failures. 3. One or more materials testing loops.

A two-etchant surface preparation treatment has been found which insures good adhesion between the zirconium and the nickel or copper electroplate. The etching process requires 1 1/2 minutes.

In connection with the development of in-line analytical equipment for monitoring pH, gamma activity and uranium concentration in process streams, experiments and tests were carried out during the past year and a half in the Metal recovery Plant on a pH monitor for the hydrogen ion concentration in neutralized waste, a continuous gamma activity monitor on the RCU, an automatic photometer for uranium in RAF, and an automatic polarograph for uranium in RAW. This letter is written to present up-to-date diagrams of the equipment used, outline briefly the studies conducted and the main conclusions regarding design and operability of the equipment, and present material which will supplement that included in the previous reports on theses instruments.

A metallurgical examination of several resistance thermometers for 105-KW were examined before startup (1). This examination revealed that the silver brazes joining the type 305 stainless steel blades to the type 416 stainless steel nuts were defective. The braze metal did not penetrate into the joint; the brazes were porous and appeared to be inadequately bonded to the type 416 nuts. After startup of KW, many of the thermometers became inoperative, and several were visually examined to determine the integrity of the units. The presence of corrosion products at the junction of the braze and the nut led to further metallurgical examination of the brazed joints. Twenty units from 105-KW, 12 prototype units from 105-H, and two "new model" units were included in this examination. The examination was conducted to determine the cause and nature of the failures observed on units under service conditions.

A series of experiments has been conducted during the past eighteen months with the objective of degerming the accuracy with which precision parts can be duplicated using a castable tooling plastic as a test shape to be reproduced. A precision ground ground 1/4 inch-thick, 90° steel sector of 4'' radius was chosen. The plastics used in the experiments were the die surfacer mixes of the Devon Cooperation and Ren Plastics, Inc. These were selected for use in the test because of their dimensional stability and wear resistance. Ordinary paste type floor wax was used as a mold release. The first series of tests were primarily intended to gain facility in handling this material. After achieving some familiarity with the use of these castable plastics a technique was devised which seemed to hold promise of precision duplication.

The decontamination of the present Hanford reactors involves a once-through cleaning operation. Considerable interest has been shown in determining the feasibility of this once-through technique for cleanup of certain portions of the NPR system. This is the second interim report of a series that covers tests performed in the 242-B Single Pass Flow Facility. The first was distributed in January, 1960.

The majority of two-phase flow problems involving equations of state are solved by use of point-wise utilization steam table values. In this manner, problems involving the use of the various flow equations of continuity, momentum and energy are generally forced into iterative solutions. Considerable effort towards the development of an analytical expression for the state equation seems indicated so as to simplify the analysis of two-phase problems, particularly the transient cases. The question of instability of state and mixture condition is particularly apparent in the analysis of systems undergoing phase transformation as demonstrated by the significant difference between simple theory and experimental critical flow determinations. The assumption of homogeneous, equilibrium mixtures is indicated as a first attack upon the problem.

On July 31, 1959, an autoclave ruptured while being used for thermal cycling studies of Plutonium Recycle Test Reactor (PRTR) plutonium-aluminum fuel elements. Since stand-in materials were being used in this test, no contamination was involved. This accident could lead to inference of greater hazards associated with PRTR fuel designs than had previously been postulated. An ad hoc technical investigation committee was appointed by the Manager Reactor and Fuels Research and Development, to study the autoclave failure. The committee was charged with developing a sound technical explanation of the accident and/or recommending experimental programs to test hypotheses of the physical and chemical processes leading to the rupture of the autoclave.