'Commissioning' Process Moves Ahead on Hanford VIT Plant

The process is called cold commissioning, and it's another step toward actual treatment of tank waste at Hanford.

Chemicals introduced into the VIT plant to 'test' its reactions.

According to reports, including the Tri-City Area Journal of Business, the chemicals produce ammonia and nitrous oxide. This process will allow the workers to determine if the plant is working correctly.

DOE officials say these chemicals produce almost identical 'results' as feeding actual waste into the unit, which will glassify the toxic elements. Vitrification does not remove radioactivity, but encases the waste in what's called a glassy matrix. Then it can be much more safely transported and stored. It becomes much more stable.

Hanford officials hope to begin actual vitrification later this year, or in the fall.

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There are a wide variety of types of waste in the 177 underground storage tanks at Hanford, which date back to the Manhattan Project. According to various DOE and Hanford contractor estimates, the total cleanup of all the tank waste is expected to last into the year 2060's or even 2070.

The VIT Plant is intended for the high-level most radioactive waste at the facility.