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NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.
This study was supported by Contract/Grant No. DEFC0199EW59049 between the National Academy of Sciences and the Department of Energy. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the organizations or agencies that provided support for the project.
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THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES
National Academy of Sciences
National Academy of Engineering
Institute of Medicine
National Research Council
The National Academy of Sciencesis a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts is president of the National Academy of Sciences.
The National Academy of Engineeringwas established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. William A. Wulf is president of the National Academy of Engineering.
The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Kenneth I. Shine is president of the Institute of Medicine.
The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy's purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts and Dr. William A. Wulf are chairman and vice chairman, respectively, of the National Research Council.
COMMITTEE ON RADIONULIDE SEPARATION PROCESSES FOR HIGH-LEVEL WASTE AT THE SAVANNAH RIVER SITE
MILTON LEVENSON,
Chair,
Bechtel International (retired), Menlo Park, California
GREGORY R. CHOPPIN,
Vice-Chair,
JOHN E. BERCAW,
California Institute of Technology, Pasadena
DARYLE H. BUSCH,
University of Kansas, Lawrence
JAMES H. ESPENSON,
Iowa State University, Ames
GEORGE E. KELLER II,
Union Carbide Corporation (retired), South Charleston, West Virginia
THEODORE A. KOCH, E.I.
du Pont de Nemours and Company (retired), Wilmington, Delaware
ALFRED P. SATTELBERGER,
Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico
MARTIN J. STEINDLER,
Argonne National Laboratory (retired), Downers Grove, Illinois
Staff
ROBERT S. ANDREWS,
Senior Staff Officer,
Board on Radioactive Waste Management
CHRISTOPHER K. MURPHY,
Program Officer,
Board on Chemical Sciences and Technology
LAURA LLANOS,
Senior Project Assistant,
Board on Radioactive Waste Management
TONI GREENLEAF,
Administrative Associate,
Board on Radioactive Waste Management
BOARD ON RADIOACTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT
JOHN F. AHEARNE,
Chair,
Sigma Xi and Duke University, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina
CHARLES MCCOMBIE,
Vice-Chair,
Consultant, Gipf-Oberfrick, Switzerland
ROBERT M. BERNERO,
Consultant,
Bethesda, Maryland
ROBERT J. BUDNITZ,
Future Resources Associates, Inc., Berkeley, California
GREGORY R. CHOPPIN,
Florida State University, Tallahassee
RODNEY C. EWING,
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
JAMES H. JOHNSON, JR.,
Howard University, Washington, D.C.
ROGER E. KASPERSON,
Clark University, Worcester, Massachusetts
NIKOLAY P. LAVEROV,
Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow
JANE C.S. LONG,
Mackay School of Mines, University of Nevada, Reno
ALEXANDER MACLACHLAN, E.I.
du Pont de Nemours & Company (retired), Wilmington, Delaware
WILLIAM A. MILLS,
Oak Ridge Associated Universities (retired), Olney, Maryland
MARTIN J. STEINDLER,
Argonne National Laboratories (retired), Argonne, Illinois
ATSUYUKI SUZUKI,
University of Tokyo, Japan
JOHN J. TAYLOR,
Electric Power Research Institute (retired), Palo Alto, California
VICTORIA J. TSCHINKEL,
Landers and Parsons, Tallahassee, Florida
Staff
KEVIN D. CROWLEY,
Director
ROBERT S. ANDREWS,
Senior Staff Officer
BARBARA PASTINA,
Staff Officer
GREGORY H. SYMMES,
Senior Staff Officer
JOHN R. WILEY,
Senior Staff Officer
SUSAN B. MOCKLER,
Research Associate
TONI GREENLEAF,
Administrative Associate
LATRICIA C. BAILEY,
Senior Project Assistant
LAURA D. LLANOS,
Senior Project Assistant
SUZANNE STACKHOUSE,
Project Assistant
ANGELA R. TAYLOR,
Senior Project Assistant
JAMES YATES, JR.,
Office Assistant
BOARD ON CHEMICAL SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY
KENNETH N. RAYMOND,
Co-Chair,
University of California, Berkeley
JOHN L. ANDERSON,
Co-Chair,
Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
JOSEPH M. DESIMONE,
University of North Carolina and North Carolina State University, Raleigh
CATHERINE C. FENSELAU,
University of Maryland, College Park
ALICE P. GAST,
Stanford University, Stanford, California
RICHARD M. GROSS,
Dow Chemical Company, Midland, Michigan
NANCY B. JACKSON,
Sandia National Laboratory, Albuquerque, New Mexico
GEORGE E. KELLER II,
Union Carbide Company (retired), South Charleston, West Virginia
SANGTAE KIM,
Eli Lilly and Company, Indianapolis, Indiana
WILLIAM KLEMPERER,
Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts
THOMAS J. MEYER,
Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico
PAUL J. REIDER,
Merck Research Laboratories, Rahway, New Jersey
LYNN F. SCHNEEMEYER,
Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill, New Jersey
MARTIN B. SHERWIN,
Chem Ven Group, Inc., Boca Raton, Florida
JEFFREY J. SIIROLA,
Chemical Process Research Laboratory, Kingsport, Tennessee
CHRISTINE S. SLOANE,
General Motors, Troy, Michigan
ARNOLD F. STANCELL,
Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta
PETER J. STANG,
University of Utah, Salt Lake City
JOHN C. TULLY,
Yale University, New Haven, Connecticutt
CHI-HUEY WONG,
Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, California
STEVEN W. YATES,
University of Kentucky, Lexington
Staff
DOUGLAS J. RABER,
Director
RUTH MCDIARMID,
Program Officer
CHRISTOPHER K. MURPHY,
Program Officer
SYBIL A. PAIGE,
Administrative Associate
Acknowledgement of Reviewers
This report has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the National Research Council (NRC) Report Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making the published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank the following individuals for their participation in the review of this report:
Robert M. Bernero, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (retired)
J. Brent Hiskey, University of Arizona
Lawrence Kershner, Dow Chemical Company
James W. Mitchell, Bell Labs/Lucent Technologies
Kenneth N. Raymond, University of California, Berkeley
Edwin L. Zebroski, Elgis Consulting
Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations nor did they see the final draft of the report before its release. The review of this report was overseen by Royce W. Murray, University of North Carolina, appointed by the NRC's Report Review Committee, who was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the authoring committee and the institution.