Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS) and the Department of Energy plan to ramp up production of plutonium oxide feed to support the nation’s MOX method of plutonium disposition. The feedstock, which will be produced using the Savannah River Site’s H Canyon and HB-Line facilities, is a diluted version of plutonium and would be used to feed 34 metric tons of weapon-grade plutonium into the Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility (MFFF). The MFFF will convert the material into commercial nuclear fuel. – a mission the nation pledged to complete in an agreement with Russia that requires both countries to dispose of the same amount of weapon-usable plutonium.
The issue was discussed during a Dec. 1 committee meeting of the SRS Citizens Advisory Board (CAB), according to SRS Watch Director Tom Clements. Jimmy Winkler, an SRNS senior technical adviser, gave an update on the status of SRNS-operated facilities that were previously under an operational safety pause after a plutonium sample headed to the Savannah River National Laboratory was improperly stored in a container that was not fit for transport.
The incident, among other safety issues, pushed SRNS to enter into a safety pause on all nonessential missions, including the production of plutonium feedstock. Last week, HB-Line joined H Canyon and other facilities in exiting the safety pause and is now in deliberate operations – a phase in which workers pay extra attention to detail and planning. During deliberate operations, SRNS will prepare the HB-Line to resume production of plutonium oxide. Once the facilities are ready, production will "eventually increase," said SRS spokesman Jim Giusti.
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