Publications

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This document contains a description of the verification and validation process used for the RADTRAN 5.5 code. The verification and validation process ensured the proper calculational models and mathematical and numerical methods were used in the RADTRAN 5.5 code for the determination of risk and consequence assessments. The differences between RADTRAN 5 and RADTRAN 5.5 are the addition of tables, an expanded isotope library, and the additional User-Defined meteorological option for accident dispersion. 3

This document provides a detailed discussion and a guide for the use of the RadCat 2.0 Graphical User Interface input file generator for the RADTRAN 5.5 code. The differences between RadCat 2.0 and RadCat 1.0 can be attributed to the differences between RADTRAN 5 and RADTRAN 5.5 as well as clarification for some of the input parameters. 3

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This User Guide for the RADTRAN 5 computer code for transportation risk analysis describes basic risk concepts and provides the user with step-by-step directions for creating input files by means of either the RADDOG input file generator software or a text editor. It also contains information on how to interpret RADTRAN 5 output, how to obtain and use several types of important input data, and how to select appropriate analysis methods. Appendices include a glossary of terms, a listing of error messages, data-plotting information, images of RADDOG screens, and a table of all data in the internal radionuclide library.

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A multi-attribute utility analysis is applied to a decision process to select a treatment method for the management of aluminum-based spent nuclear fuel (Al-SNF) owned by the US Department of Energy (DOE). DOE will receive, treat, and temporarily store Al-SNF, most of which is composed of highly enriched uranium, at its Savannah River Site in South Carolina. DOE intends ultimately to send the treated Al-SNF to a geologic repository for permanent disposal. DOE initially considered ten treatment alternatives for the management of Al-SNF, and has narrowed the choice to two of these: the direct disposal and melt and dilute alternatives. The decision analysis presented in this document focuses on a formal decision process used to evaluate these two remaining alternatives.

This study models the incremental radiological risk of transporting NARM to the Hanford commercial LLW facility, both for incident-free transportation and for possible transportation accidents, compared with the radiological risk of transporting LLW to that facility. Transportation routes are modeled using HIGHWAY 3.1 and risks are modeled using RADTRAN 4. Both annual population doses and risks, and annual average individual doses and risks are reported. Three routes to the Hanford site were modeled from Albany, OR, from Coeur d'Alene, ID (called the Spokane route), and from Seattle, WA. Conservative estimates are used in the RADTRAN inputs, and RADTRAN itself is conservative.

N-CART (the National Spent Nuclear Fuel Program Cost Analysis and Risk Tool) is being developed to aid in low-risk, cost-effective, timely management of radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel, and can therefore be used in management of mixed waste. N-CART provides evaluation of multiple alternatives and presents the consequences of proposed waste management activities in a clear and concise format. N-CART`s decision-aiding analyses include comparisons and sensitivity analyses of multiple alternatives and allows the user to perform quick turn-around {open_quotes}what if{close_quotes} studies to investigate various scenarios. Uncertainties in data (such as cost and schedule of various activities) are represented as distributions. N-CART centralizes documentation of the bases of program alternatives and program decisions, thereby supporting responses to stakeholders concerns. The initial N-CART design considers regulatory requirements, costs, and schedules for alternative courses of action. The final design will include risks (public health, occupational, economic, scheduling), economic benefits, and the impacts of secondary waste generation. An optimization tool is being incorporated that allows the user to specify the relative importance of cost, time risks, and other bases for decisions. The N-CART prototype can be used to compare the costs and schedules of disposal alternatives for mixed low-level radioactive waste (MLLW) and greater-than-Class-C (GTCC) waste, as well as spent nuclear fuel (SNF) and related scrap material.

This paper presents a performance assessment model of dissolved actinide concentrations for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP). The model assesses the concentration of each actinide oxidation state and combines these concentrations with an oxidation state distribution. The chemical behavior of actinides in the same oxidation state is presumed to be very similar for almost all situations, but exceptions arising from experimental evidence are accommodated. The code BRAGFLO calculates the gas pressure, brine mass, gas volume, and mass of remaining Fe and cellulosics for each time step and computational cell. The total CO{sub 2} in the repository and dissolved Ca(OH){sub 2} is estimated. Lookup tables are constructed for pmH and f(CO{sub 2}) as a function of brine type and volume, moles of CO{sub 2}, and Ca(OH){sub 2}. Amounts of five soluble complexants are considered. A model based on the formulation of Harvie et al. produces tables of solubilities for each actinide oxidation state as a function of pmH, f(CO{sub 2}), brine composition, and complexant. Experimental data yield lookup tables of fractions of Th, U, Np, Pu, and Am in each oxidation state as a function of f(CO{sub 2}) and complexant. The tables are then used to provide a concentration of a particular actinide at particular values of pmH and f(CO{sub 2}). Under steady-state conditions, the oxidation state of each actinide that is most stable in the particular chemical environment controls the concentration of that actinide in solution. In the absence of steady-state conditions, the oxidation state distribution of interest is that of the dissolved actinide, and the oxidation states may be treated as if they were separate compounds.

Experiences as an environmental activist have produced some insights into addressing the current public over-reaction to environmental risks, and in particular to the risks posed by nuclear industry development.