Report and dissertation issued by the APDA over hypothetical reactor meltdown accidents. Methods for the determination of the energy release from reactor meltdowns are presented. This report includes tables, and illustrations.

The failure of a fuel element cladding in one of the water-cooled plutonium production reactors permits the erosion of irradiated uranium metal by the cooling water which is normally disposed to the Columbia River. Monitoring systems at both the reactors and at their effluent basin outlets to the river continuously monitor these streams, and if major fission-products release occurs the coolant can be held in retention basins. In addition to these monitoring systems, a river monitor is located at the 300 area which continuously monitors the gross gamma activity of the Columbia River; however, its sensitivity to rupture debris is limited because of the relatively high background'' from the short-lived (n, {gamma}) produced radionuclides in the river. In making hazard assessments and in providing adequate monitoring techniques and equipment at down-river locations, it is essential to know what changes occur in fission and (n, {gamma}) produced radionuclides following release of rupture products to the river.

The following quarterly progress report covers the period of August 15 to November 15, 1962. It summarizes three activities of the group. The first part is the optical study of the absorption band associated with the F-center in RbCl. The second part discusses some elementary calculations of the spin-lattice relaxation times, the primary purpose of this step is to indicate the nature of the theoretical problem faced and show the large gap between the value calculated theoretically and measured experimentally. The last section includes more data on the shape and recovery of the hole in a EPR band associated with the F-center in KCl.

Laboratory studies have been conducted under simulated reactor operating conditions to determine the effect of various chemical additives and coatings on the adsorption of trace elements on aluminum surfaces. Of the materials tested, silicate additives and organic ink coatings were by far the most effective, reducing the adsorption of arsenic and phosphorus tracers by as much as one to three orders of magnitude. The laboratory techniques and results are discussed.

This document details activities of the Irradiation Processing Department during the month of November, 1962. A general summary is included at the start of the report, after which the report is divided into the following sections: Research and Engineering Operations; Production and Reactor Operations; Facilities Engineering Operation; Employee Relations Operation; and Financial Operation.

Assistance was requested in reviewing and comparing certain measures that could be effected immediately with little capital cost to render the plant less vulnerable to self-destruction in case of a war situation that made it impossible to man the water plants. Several courses of action have been considered with the assumptions detailed.

This is the monthly report for the Hanford Laboratories Operation, November 1962. Metallurgy, reactor fuels, chemistry, dosimetry, separation processes, reactor technology, financial activities, visits, biology operation, physics and instrumentation research, and employee relations are discussed.

In recent months, several process tubes installed during 1961 have been removed and examined out-of-pile in connection with Tube Corrosion Monitor Studies.1 Most of the tubes were believed to be uniform-wall .080in.-nominal-rib-height tubes. The ex-reactor dimensional measurements obtained near the inlet flange showed,that the tubes did not have uniform walls or .08011 nominal rib heights. Subsequently, dimensional measurements were obtained on approximately 200 new process tubes in an effort to determine the extent of dimensional variations in new process tubes as received from the vendors. The effects of the variations on tube corrosion and tube life are discussed in this report.

This document contains the results of weekly sampling of various isotope concentrations from effluent water at the 100 area at Hanford from July 1962 to February 1965. Compiled data in microcuries/milliliter are given. Each sampling records the concentrations of iodine-131, phosphorus-32, zinc-65, scandium-46, chromium-51, and cobalt-60. Records prior to October 8, 1962 also contain information on strontium-90, cesium-137, zirconium-95, ruthenium-103, ruthenium-106, and strontium-89. These last records are all from F reactor samples.

The fuel element for the test described in this report has been designed to extend the total exposure capability of metallic uranium fuel by altering the type of cladding deformations produced by uranium swelling. In a tabular fuel element of cylindrical geometry, irradiation-induced uranium swelling can cause splitting of the outer clad or buckling of the inner clad. With a fluted outer surface on a cylindrical element, a large amount of swelling may be accommodated by bending of the exterior cladding without the tensile strains which produce localized necking and failure. In addition, the fluted shape, by reducing the restraint on the fuel may direct the volume increases to the outer surface and decrease the likelihood of inner buckling. For this test, the fluted surface concept has been adapted to a tubular element that nominally fulfills the requirements for N-reactor fuel. It is desired to observe the performance of an element with this geometry at an exposure that will produce about 5 percent swelling. It is requested., therefore, that GEH 10-67 and GEH 10-68 be irradiated to an exposure of about 3000 MWD/T in the 6{times}6 M-3 Loop of the ETR.

The test objective is to determine the effect of radiation and temperature on the outgassing rate of tritium generated in a lithium-aluminum alloy by neutron irradiation.

The test detailed in this report authorizes the installation of sampling tubes in the vacant-positions in one of the two front-to-rear graphite stringers to be installed in KW Reactor in January 1963. These lines will permit withdrawal of a gas sample from the active zone at a point where the graphite temperature is being measured. Analysis of this gas sample on the gas chromatograph and on a new catalytic oxygen-hydrogen instrument is expected to yield valuable information on graphite burnout versus temperature and gas quality.

Normal Pile exposure variations and day-to-day operating reactivity adjustments must be compensated by a combination of in-reactor poison and enrichment. The calculation of current reactivity status and the prediction of future trends is an integral part of the Physicist`s responsibility. This document describes the computer program ``CALHOT,`` which is based upon one-group diffusion theory, and is intended to be used in routine reactivity-enrichment calculations. It offers the advantages over present hand calculations of greater accuracy, more flexibility, and, most important, much less calculational time.

This report investigates potential liability from activities at Hanford. The following topics are discussed: Contained inventory of radionuclides; Released inventory of radionuclides; Meteorological dispersion and deposition; Exposure criteria; Contamination areas; Economic factors; and Apportionment of damage costs in Canada.

The objective of this test is to operate one of the 1706-KE single pass tubes using sodium silicate rather than sodium dichromate as the corrosion inhibitor and to monitor the radioisotope concentration in the effluent. Single pass tube tests carried out under Production Test IP-484-A have demonstrated that when sodium silicate is added to process water the concentrations of significant radioisotopes in the effluent are reduced by a factor of two. At the concentrations investigated., the use of sodium silicate as an additional additive to all Hanford process water would cost in the neighborhood of two million dollars per year. If, however, sodium silicate, an excellent corrosion inhibitor for certain applications, would also serve to replace sodium dichromate, it would provide the added benefits of eliminating Cr{sup 51} and hexavalent chromium from the effluent. While still not economically attractive, the use of sodium silicate would be less unpalatable.

From title page: This report has been prepared at the request of the Government of Germany for consideration under their Atomic Energy Act for a license for the operation of the N.S. Savannah in German ports.

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An effort is made to supply an easily applied formulation of the expanded form of a magnetic field with a median plane. The coefficients up to the 6th degree terms in x and y are explicitly given. (PMA)

A project has been proposed and the funds allocated for the replacement of the central zone aluminum process tubes at both K Reactors with smooth bore zirconium process tubes of approximately the same outside diameter as the original tubes. Associated with this project is the problem of relieving the present graphite stack distortion in the vicinity of the process tube channels and counteracting or prereliving, at this time, the expected graphite stack distortion that, will take place over the next ten years. Such relief becomes increasingly important when it is realized that long reactor life is required for the zirconium tubes in order to justify the cost of the project. This justification is also based upon the ability to charge normal sized, self supported fuel elements during the reactor life of the tubes. Relieving the restrictions in the graphite process channels caused by stack contraction will be done by removing localized portions of the graphite from the tube blocks and trunion blocks with a guided cutting tool. This immediately brings up the question of graphite temperatures and the presently imposed maximum graphite in temperature limits. Combined coring and graphite stark distortion could result in excessive graphite temperatures or localized hot …

This report documents the answers to specific questions posed by management on December 17,1962. The questions asked were: (1) What were the design and construction start and completion dates of project CG-558-600?, what was the percent power level increase design for CG-558-600?, what was the actual power level increase achieved?, what was the construction completion date of DR reactor?, what was the expansion-overbore program initiation date?, on what date was the oral overbore-type proposal made to HOO-AEC?, when was the initial documentation of overbore-expansion program?, on what dates were the budgets submissioned for the Reactor Modification Program?, what is the conversion ratio increase from the RMP?, what is the production capacity increase from the RMP?, and what are the design completion dates for the H, C, DR, and K reactors?. (GHH)

The objective of this production test is to authorize the irradiation of coextruded Zr-2 jacketed thick walled 1.6% enriched tubular elements in KER loops 1 and 2 to evaluate the swelling behavior of fuel elements at high uranium temperatures Coextruded Zr-2 jacketed 1.6% enriched tubular fuel elements 1.79 inch OD, 0.97 inch ID, and 12 inches long will be irradiated KER loops 1 and 2 to exposures no greater than 2500 MWD/T.

This report discusses flow tests of production models of C-reactor outlet replacement hardware.

This document summarizes the results of all special separations made in conjunction with the two E-N core loadings and the single fringe blanket loading irradiated in the H Reactor during 1961 and 1962. Tritium yields obtained at Savannah River from the N target elements have been reported previously. Bulk plutonium yield observations obtained from separation of the E-metal fuel elements in the first core and data from a limited number of small-scale separations were included in a comprehensive interim report. In addition to the above data a detailed sampling program was carried out as a part of the production test, and 18 representative 6--8 tube batches from the B-N core and from the surrounding blanket have recently been separated and analyzed. This document includes this recent information in its treatment of all E-N conversion ratio data from loadings under PT IP-350-C.

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