This report details activities in the Flat Bonded Fuel Element Program for the period of February 11, 1954 through April 10, 1954.

This report details activities in the Flat Bonded Fuel Element program for the period of June 11, 1954 through August 10, 1954.

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A proposed new processing technique for the production of uranium tetrafluoride from uranyl nitrate solution is described. This technique involves the application of the fluidized-bod principle for the contacting of gases with powdered solids. A new application of fluidization developed at this Laboratory and applied to the denitration of uranyl nitrate to produce uranium trioxide is also described. The purpose of this work is to develop a low-cost, continuous process for the denitration of uranyl nitrate hexahydrate, the reduction of uranium trioxide to uranium dioxide, and the hydrofluorination of uranium dioxide to uranium tetrafluoride. Uranium trioxide and uranium dioxide powders can be satisfactorily fluidized over a wide range of particle sizes. The product is a powder having a high bulk density and satisfactory physical and chemioal properties. Production rates of 100 Ib/hr/ft/sup 2/ of reactor cross section were demonstrated. Experimental work is continuing to obtain additional information of the effects of operating variables. Experimental work is now underway to determine the optimum hydrofluorination operating oonditions and to estimate the size and number of stages required for the production of specification-grade uranium tetrafluoride. (auth)

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A scavenging process for the TBP Plant wastes has recently been installed and is expected to result in a considerable reduction in the waste tankage required for storage of TBP Plant Wastes. A similar process has been developed for scavenging the first cycle waste from the BiPO{sub 4} Plants. A study of future requirements and availability of tank storage space indicates that in order to avoid an overall plant critical tank shortage, or the necessity of construction of new tanks, a T-Plant waste scavenging program should provide cribbing facilities by February, 1955. Since tank storage space is critical ad the cost of such storage is a sizable factor in the overall plant operating costs, an investigation of the feasibility of the installation of this waste scavenging process in T-Plant has been undertaken.

Since start-up of the Redox Plant, different types of decontamination difficulties have been experienced and corrective measures taken. Current decontamination performance is superior to that ever experienced before. However, with the apparent need for the for elimination of the permanganate Head-End process for the IAF oxidation, several modifications to the plant flowsheet and equipment have been planned in order to obtain satisfactory overall decontamination without permanganate Head-End. The objectives of the memorandum are: to summarize generally and briefly the decontamination experience of the Redox process operating on IAF oxidized by sodium dichromate; to indicate the decontamination which probably can be obtained with the new Phase 2 equipment and its improved performance; and to re-evaluate the timing and feasibility of the current approaches for solving the long-range Redox decontamination problems arising as a result of oxidation of IAF by sodium dichromate (vice potassium permanganate).

The corrosion rates of slug jackets exposed in the Hanford piles are monitored to determine optimum operating conditions and to evaluate proposed changes in process specifications. Selected process tubes are charged with weighed slugs, and the coolant flow rate and temperature rise through the tubes are recorded until the slugs are discharged. The corrosion rates of these control slugs are computed from weight loss data after discharge. The data obtained in this manner are used to find the relationship between slug jacket corrosion rates and the various conditions of power and temperature that are encountered in the piles. This report covers all of the corrosion data obtained to date for slugs that have been cooled with the currently specified process water, which is alum-coagulated and contains 2 ppm sodium dichromate as an inhibitor (see Appendix II for the water composition). All of the slugs were normal production pieces canned in 2-S aluminum.

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The ability of the atmosphere to disperse and diffuse smoke and gases varies widely with weather conditions. The rate of diffusion is governed mainly by the degree of atmospheric turbulence present. The latter is in itself an extremely complex air motion which acts as the mixing agent in diffusion. This turbulence, which is so fundamental in the diffusion process, depends on such quantities as wind speed, rate of change of wind speed or wind direction with height, and rate of change of air temperature with height. Since these conditions differ widely from hour to hour and day to day, there is a corresponding variation in the diffusing capacity of the atmosphere. The rate of change of temperature with height and the wind speed have the most pronounced effect on the physical appearance of smoke plumes, which in itself provides a clue to the diffusing power of the atmosphere during various atmospheric conditions. The purpose of this note is to present, in semi-technical terms, some of the basic physical concepts related to the behavior of gaseous stack effluents after release into the atmosphere, and to describe certain visible geometrical features of effluent plumes that are directly related to the physical state …

During 1954 interest was maintained in the problem of cooling-by-boiling in a geometry similar to that of a Hanford pile. Operation of present piles and the design of future piles will benefit from basic knowledge of boiling flow. This report presents a brief compilation of data for boiling flow taken during the year on the full scale and short process tube mock-ups in 189-D. Data reported herein consists of burnout conditions for a uniform heat flux in a `C` annulus and a standard annulus and data taken with full cosine and part cosine power distribution. The data for non-uniform power distribution is meager and was taken primarily to obtain an indication of the validity of extrapolating data with uniform heat flux to conditions of non-uniform flux distribution.

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A series of organic reagents for the collection and flotation of several secondary uranium minerals has been developed, this being the mono-alkyl nitrogen substitutions of the dithiocarbamate grouping with a chain length of at least eight carbon atoms. In flotation tests, using the potassium salt of n-decyl dithiocarbamate as collector, high recoveries of autunite have been obtained from mixtures of finely-ground synthetic autunite and silica sand. Certain base-metal salts added as conditioning agents have increased the collecting properties and selectivity of the dithiocarbamates in the flotation of both autunite and carnotite. In single batch and locked tests, using lead as the base metal ion, recoveries of over 95 percent of the uranium have been obtained, with ratios of concentration as high as 13:1. Preliminary tests on natural ores show encouraging results; the problems of liberation and conditioning must be solved for each ore. (auth)

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Techniques for producing as-polished surfaces for inclusion studies and etched surfaces for grain studies are outlined. (D.E.B.)

This report, from the Hanford Atomic Productions Operation, December 10, 1954, presents specifications for a Uranium exposure test in a Hanford Production reactor. Assemblies, canning, and heat transfer are described.

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Prior to fiscal year 1955 waste tank scheduling for Separations Plants included the assumptions that T Plant would cease operations in March, 1955 and B Plant would nto be reactivated. At the beginning of the fiscal year these were changed to the assumptions that T Plant would operate through June, 1958 and B Plant, after reactivation, would operate July, 1955 through June, 1957. It has been necessary to alter waste tank scheduling accordingly. The letter of July 23, 1954, {open_quotes}B Plant Waste Storage Forecast{close_quotes}, outlined the plan for the disposal of wastes from B Plant on the assumption that direct feed of metal waste from B Plant ot the TBP Plant would not be done. On July 30, 1954 this letter was reissued as {open_quotes}Waste Storage for B Plant Reactivation{close_quotes}, with a revision including more details and a provision for the direct feed of metal waste. On August 6, 1954 the letter {open_quotes}T Plant First Cycle Waste{close_quotes} was issued recommending that scavenging of T Plant first cycle waste be started by December 1, 1954. On October 22, 1954 the letter entitled {open_quotes}Justification for T Plant First Cycle Waste Scavenging{close_quotes} gave the detailed economic justification. The present letter summarizes the preceding …

This document details radiation monitoring activities of the Reactor Section during the month of November 1954.