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Colin Judge: Testing structural materials in Idaho’s newest hot cell facility
Idaho National Laboratory’s newest facility—the Sample Preparation Laboratory (SPL)—sits across the road from the Hot Fuel Examination Facility (HFEF), which started operating in 1975. SPL will host the first new hot cells at INL’s Materials and Fuels Complex (MFC) in 50 years, giving INL researchers and partners new flexibility to test the structural properties of irradiated materials fresh from the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) or from a partner’s facility.
Materials meant to withstand extreme conditions in fission or fusion power plants must be tested under similar conditions and pushed past their breaking points so performance and limitations can be understood and improved. Once irradiated, materials samples can be cut down to size in SPL and packaged for testing in other facilities at INL or other national laboratories, commercial labs, or universities. But they can also be subjected to extreme thermal or corrosive conditions and mechanical testing right in SPL, explains Colin Judge, who, as INL’s division director for nuclear materials performance, oversees SPL and other facilities at the MFC.
SPL won’t go “hot” until January 2026, but Judge spoke with NN staff writer Susan Gallier about its capabilities as his team was moving instruments into the new facility.
L. C. Cadwallader, S. A. Bruyere
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 56 | Number 1 | July 2009 | Pages 245-251
Tritium, Safety, and Environment | Eighteenth Topical Meeting on the Technology of Fusion Energy (Part 1) | doi.org/10.13182/FST09-A8910
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Continuous air monitors (CAMs) are used to sense radioactive particulates in room air of nuclear facilities. CAMs alert personnel of potential inhalation exposures to radionuclides and can also actuate room ventilation isolation for public and environmental protection. This paper presents the results of a CAM operating experience review of the DOE Occurrence Reporting and Processing System (ORPS) database from the past 18 years. Regulations regarding these monitors are briefly reviewed. CAM location selection and operation are briefly discussed. Operating experiences reported by the U.S. Department of Energy and in other literature sources were reviewed to determine the strengths and weaknesses of these monitors. Power losses, human errors, and mechanical issues cause the majority of failures. The average "all modes" failure rate is 2.65E-05/hr. Repair time estimates vary from an average repair time of 9 hours (with spare parts on hand) to 252 hours (without spare parts on hand). These data should support the use of CAMs in any nuclear facility, including the National Ignition Facility and the international ITER experiment.
