The Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site has newly implemented an initiative aimed at streamlining spent fuel operations and cut costs in the process.
Workers with Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS), the site’s management and operations provider, are making better use of the transfer bay in L Area, according to the latest edition of SRNS Today, a monthly newsletter detailing the contractor’s work.
The transfer bay is used to load and ship spent nuclear fuel casks on-site, and to receive material from domestic and foreign locations. The spent fuel is sent to H Canyon, where it is processed and converted to a form suitable for permanent disposition or for commercial use.
SRNS environmental management (EM) personnel recently cited concerns about spent fuel scheduling, according to the newsletter. In short, shippers prefer to transport casks in warmer months during better weather conditions. However, heavily relying on warmer months could cause several issues, Geoff Hendrick, the SRNS L Area deputy facility manager, said in the newsletter. Those issues could include a backlog of casks, which would impact delivery times to H Canyon and increase the cost to complete work. The contractor did not provide details on the potential expense spikes.
An SRNS-led team was charged with developing ways to prevent a backlog of casks destined for H Canyon. The personnel identified places for improvements, including modifying maintenance schedules so that multiple repairs at L Area are made at the same time, instead of spreading them out over a longer period. The change maximizes the availability of the transfer bay, according to the monthly report. Other improvements include eliminating redundant procedures that take up too much time, and using a better absorbent to dry the casks before shipment.
