From objectives: "The objectives of this investigation were to evaluate the hydraulic forces in the pulse column, and determine their effects on pulse column design."

The objective of this investigation was to determine the feasibility of centrifugal casting to produce fuel element plates suitable for use in a power reactor. Preliminary investigations involving the centrifugal casting of metal plates suitable for use in a power reactor proved to be successful. Lead plates cast at medium speeds contained very few voids and exhibited a surface which conformed very closely to that of the mold.

The letter E. R. Irish/W. H. Swift to R.E. Burns and H. H. Hopkins, dated August 15, 1956, subject Plutonium Concentration Problems, requested information on corrosion of stainless steel, titanium, and tantalum in plutonium nitrate-nitric acid solution, with and without sulfate ion. Experimental conditions and results of tests designed to yield the requested information are given below.

Ultrasonic testing has been investigated as a possible non-destructive method for checking the bond integrity of certain type fuel elements. Equipment has been developed to inspect experimental fuel elements for various research programs. Circuits have been devised to discriminate the size of defects and to map the areas which are unbonded.

The desirability of employing leakproof process pumps for handling the corrosive and radioactive process solutions in the H.A.P.O. separations plants has led to the establishment of a program for the development and testing of packless pumps with particular emphasis on evaluation of commercially available units. One such pump, its operating characteristics and behavior, are described in this report.

Cluster fuel elements meet many of the requirements of high temperature recirculating water reactors and have several advantages over solid fuel elements. Operation at higher specific power levels for a given temperature limit are attainable because of the larger heat transfer surface. Failure of a single rod in cluster does not restrict coolant flow as severely as failure of a solid fuel element, hence the number and severity of stuck charges can be reduced.

Several studies of power recovery from Hanford pile effluents have been made, from which the conclusion can be drawn that, while recovery of power is feasible, it is costly because of the large volume of vapor which must be handled per kilowatt-hour of energy provided. This note is to call attention to the possibility of developing cheaper machinery than the conventional low-pressure turbine stages considered in previous studies through use of a water expansion cycle.

The following remarks are intended primarily to assist in the orientation of the PRP reactor control development program in a direction consistent with the basic objectives of the program as a whole, and to discuss certain aspects of particular control systems which have a bearing on the capabilities of the reactor with respect to these objectives.

Radiobiological studies were made to determine effects of radioactive effluents from the Hanford reactors upon the aquatic biota of the Columbia River and to evaluate related hazards. Data from studies completed between September, 1945, and December, 1955 are presented and interpreted. All forms of life were many times more radioactive than the water they inhabited. Some radioisotopes were much more readily accumulated than others in living organisms. Differences in the concentration of certain radioisotopes by various species of organisms and kinds of body tissue are described; and geographical, seasonal and annual fluctuations in the concentration of radioisotopes in organisms are discussed.

There is a continuing high interest in the development of organic coolant technology for application to future Hanford reactors. In addition to the HAPO organic program, two other programs are being sponsored by the Atomic Energy Commission. These include the Naval Reactor program, aimed at a reactor for ship propulsion, and the Civilian Power Reactor program. Because of the similarity of the technical efforts in the three programs, an attempt is being made to establish effective liaison among the programs. To this end, a visit was made to several sites actively engaged in organic development work. These sites and their primary functions are detailed in this report.

During this quarter, the Hanford Atomic Products Operation reorganized with the elimination of the Radiological Sciences Department as a separate organizational entity. The new structure which was effective on September 1, 1956, is outlined in this report to indicate the new relationships.

Transfer operations of highly radioactive solutions by the normal transfer pipette leads in most instances to a spread of contamination in the shielded facility. In the dripless pipette, the solution is held in the reservoir by the use of the siphon principle.

The object of this study was to determine the effects of several annealing treatments and aging treatments on the tensile test behavior of Zircaloy-3b.

In the Columbia River downstream from Richland, Washington there is a gradual decrease in concentration of radioactive isotope. At any one location there are fluctuations due to factors such as dilution and decay time. During this period at all locations the concentration of alpha particle emitters in water averaged below the detection limit. Beta particle emitters in water upstream of McNary Dam decreased slightly due to increased river flow this quarter, with averages at various locations. Downstream from McNary Dam, beta particle emitter average concentrations in water were about the same as the past three quarters.

Hydrogen peroxide has been used to reduce plutonium (VI) in nitric acid solution to the (IV) valence state. However, reduction of plutonium (VI) solutions containing iron has often been incomplete when hydrogen peroxide was used as the reducing agent. Since reduction of plutonium (VI) has been applied in plant solutions containing iron, a study of the plutonium (VI) reduction with hydrogen peroxide was undertaken. Variables tested included plutonium, nitric acid, and iron concentrations.

This document covers work done in 3- and 4-inch-diameter glass columns directed toward the development of improved cartridges for the Purex Plant final uranium cycle extraction column, the 2D column. A nozzle plate cartridge for the extraction section and a mixed plate cartridge containing both stainless steel and fluorothene sieve plates for the scrub section were developed. In 3- and 4-inch-diameter glass columns these cartridges have a uranium extraction efficiency as good as or better than the present cartridge; and a scrubbing efficiency, based on the transfer of chloride ion, about the same as the present cartridge.

In the fall of 1952, a pilot plant batch dissolution study was carried out to obtain the data required for the design of the Purex Plant dissolvers. Particular emphasis was placed on the rate of dissolution and the efficiency of nitrogen oxide recovery from the dissolver off-gas. The results are presented in this report.

The heat generated by reactor fuel elements create thermal gradiants which cause thermal stresses of considerable magnitude. An elastic solution for these thermal stresses can be calculated with the equations given in Timoshenko's and Goodier's book (1) on elasticity if the fuel element is assumed infinite in length. An exact elastic solution for a finite cylindrical fuel element is given in this report in order to evaluate the effects of fuel element length on the thermal stresses and the effects of having the free end material distorting the end closure.

The information in this report is based on experience with a similar unit installed on experimental pule columns in the 321 Building. These installations were made to demonstrate the feasibility of the system. In one case, the installation on the 2A Prototype Column, the differential pressure cell (D/P cell) bottom interface control system was monitored by a capacitance-type instrument. The other installations were made on glass columns and were monitored visually.

A two and one-half year period of extreme caution where titanium and nitric acid are involved has passed since the occurrence of the last and most serious uncontrolled incident involving titanium and nitric acid. During this period controlled explosions involving titanium and nitric acid have been routinely reproduced, additional laboratory and pilot plant experience has been gained and successful industrial applications have been appraised. Based on laboratory data and the known industrial experiences, it is concluded that titanium can be safely employed in systems handling nitric acid that contains more than two (2) percent water. It is recommended that the titanium heat exchanger recently fabricated by the Technical Shops be installed in the Purex Plant plutonium concentrator when replacement of the stainless steel unit now in service becomes necessary.

This document presents a set of machine-computed curves involving a wide range of Kb and Kc, from which both thermal and resonance values of (E-1) may be obtained.

The Redox solvent extraction process for the separation of uranium and plutonium from their fission products and from each other has operated on an over-all basis very successfully for more than four and one-half years. During this time, there have been occasional periods of high product losses and/or poor separation of fission products from uranium or plutonium as well as periods of poor operability due, among other things, to emulsification and entrainment. The search for the cause of these various process troubles has resulted in almost continuous testing of the process solvent in attempting to determine its contribution, if any, to these difficulties. This report documents the history of the Redox Plant solvent.

A method is described whereby many types of flaws lying close to the surface of a metal can be ultrasonically detected, regardless of the time duration of the interrogating pulses. Lamb waves are established in the metal between a flaw and the surface by an ultrasonic beam which impinges at the proper angle of incidence. A suitably positioned receiver transducer picks up the waves to reveal the flaw. In this method the usually troublesome surface echo is eliminated from the receiver by an acoustic barrier, making it well suited for routine and automatic testing. Results of applying the technique to several testing problems are discussed.

This paper is a preliminary report of experiments being carried out on the compaction of UO₂ powders by swaging within a restraining tube. Various types of UO₂ have been tried with resulting apparent densities as great as 9.89 grams per cubic centimeter.