Crews at the Hanford Site in Washington state have introduced an advanced metal coating technology to help extend the life of underground tanks that hold radioactive waste, in line with a US Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Environmental Management (EM) commitment to innovation and safe, long-term cleanup.
The Hanford site was used to produce plutonium over a 40-year period during WWII and the Cold War resulting in 56m gallons of radioactive and chemical wastes, which are now stored in 158 underground tanks.
Contractor Hanford Tank Waste Operations & Closure (H2C) is using a technique called “cold spray,” which applies metal powder at supersonic speed to strengthen tank surfaces. While cold spray is commonly used in industries like aerospace and marine repair, this marks the first time EM has adapted the approach to Hanford’s aging double-shell tanks.
“Incorporating cold spray technology into our toolkit is crucial for maintaining these large, underground tanks as we prepare to turn tank waste into glass,” said Erik Nelson, Hanford Field Office Tank and Pipeline Integrity program manager. “Extending the lifespan of these tanks is vital to our cleanup mission.”
Workers used a remotely controlled robot to apply a 7-by-16-inch metal patch between the primary and secondary walls of a double-shell tank. This comes after years of testing and demonstrated the system’s potential to extend tank service life. Stephanie Doll, the H2C technical lead for the project, expressed pride in adapting this technology for Hanford’s needs: “It’s rewarding to bring this industrial technique to our site and enhance our ongoing tank monitoring efforts.”
