Review and Evaluation of Alternative Technologies for Demilitarization of Assembled Chemical Weapons (1999) / Chapter Skim
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6 General Atomics Technology Package
6 General Atomics Technology Package
Pages 88-101
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From page 88... ...
TABLE 6-1 Summary of the General Atomics Approach General Atomics' technology package is designed to treat the following materials: · projectiles and mortars containing explosives and agent · rockets containing explosives, propellant, igniters, and agent · land mines containing explosives and agent · dunnage, including pallets, metal banding, and DPE, some of which may be contaminated with agent DESCRIPTION OF THE TECHNOLOGY PACKAGE Disassembly of Munitions and the Removal of Agent/Energetics General Atomics proposes using baseline disassembly methods with the modifications described below. Major Demilitarization Operation Approach(es)
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From page 89... ...
The mine bodies and energetic materials may, still be con 89 l Hydrolyze agent Hyd rolyze explosives Decontaminate metal parts Treat agent hydrolysate with SCWO Treat explosives hydrolysate with SCWO -| 5X metal parts | laminated with residual agent and energetics, at this stage. They are gravity fed through the discharge chute of the explosion-containment room to the hydrolysis step.
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From page 90... ...
9o ~ E ra I ~ ~ o _ _ I __ -- -- 1 l -2°9 l ~ I ~ L _ _ i_ _ _ 9 ~ ~ o I___ ___ -- - o~_~ A_ -- ~g~5~ T ~zing l _ __.
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From page 91... ...
The AHR effluent gas, mostly nitrogen, is passed through activated carbon filters and released to the plant ventilation system, which is vented through additional activated carbon filters prior to release to the environment. The hydrolysate from the AHR is pumped to a storage tank where it is sampled and analyzed for agent.
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From page 92... ...
Treatment of Energetics Energetic materials removed during the disassembly process are conveyed through the explosion-containment room discharge chute into the energetics rotary hydrolyzer (ERH)
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From page 93... ...
. Treatment of Metal Parts The metal parts that collect on the screen at the exits of the ERH and PRH are deposited on electrically heated discharge conveyors, which raise the metal temperature to more than 1,000°F for at least 15 minutes, thereby meeting the 5X decontamination criterion.
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From page 94... ...
Liquid nitrogen is required for the cryocooling processes and for inert blanketing of reactors and tanks. Waste Streams The following waste streams leave the plant: · dried salts from SCWO that probably contain traces of organic materials and potentially hazardous metals - gases from process vents and from the SCWO systems that are passed through HEPA and activated carbon filters (Table 6-3 shows the air emissions from the process and indicates their general type)
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From page 95... ...
Although improving access to the agent cavity is desirable, the committee found no data to indicate that cryofracturing would provide better access to liquid agent than more conventional approaches, such as shearing. The ACW Committee then investigated whether the cryofracture process might improve safety or operability over the baseline process for accessing agent in projectiles and mortars.
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From page 96... ...
However, as is pointed out in Appendix F and in Using Supercritical Water Oxidation to Treat Hydrolysate from V7( Neutralization (NRC, 1998) , although there is a keen interest in using SCWO for treating a variety of wastes, very little production experience is available.
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From page 97... ...
General Atomics proposes developing a scheduled maintenance and replacement program based on anticipated corrosion rates, but these rates have not been established. Therefore, materials of construction remains a critical issue that must be resolved.
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From page 98... ...
· a modified (from baseline) induction-heated MPF and electrically heated discharge conveyors · commercial hydropulping equipment modified to shred, mascerate, and form a slurry containing contaminated dunnage · SCWO reactors for the destruction of the hydrolysates of agent and energetics Based on the consequences of failures in both the low- and high-pressure systems, the committee concluded that there were no unusual or intractable process safety problems.
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From page 99... ...
Fuze bodies and booster pellets that are not dissolved in the caustic solution also represent an explosive hazard in the rotary hydrolyzers and heated discharge conveyors. The technology provider intends to demonstrate a technology that will reduce size mechanically to facilitate full dissolution.
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From page 100... ...
Environmenta/ Compliance and Permitting The combination of technologies in the General Atomics technology package is not expected to lead to environmental compliance or permitting problems. All process waste streams except the SCWO off-gas will be evaluated prior to release to confirm that they are either free of regulated substances or that they are at acceptably low concentrations.
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From page 101... ...
While General Atomics claims to have developed a proprietary pump capable of pumping the slurry at high pressures, but it has not been tested under the intense solids loading anticipated. Furthermore, the injection of large amounts of solid material, including wood shreds, cut-up nails, and complex organic materials, such as pentachlorophenol and other wood preservatives, into the SCWO system has not been demonstrated.
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