Electrodecontamination for Mitigation of Airborne Contamination

72679-Radioactively contaminated surfaces within Department of Energy and commercial nuclear facilities endanger workers and create problems with waste handling and disposal. Current methods for removing these radiological contaminants are expensive, use hazardous chemicals or dangerous rotating machinery, release removed materials into the airspace surrounding the jobsite, and generate considerable secondary waste. This project will develop an electrodecontamination process that overcomes these deficiencies with the removal of radioactive contamination. The process combines the best attributes of electropolishing and strippable coatings into a safe, cost-effective technology that can rapidly remove both fixed and smearable radioactive contaminants from stainless steel and other conductive substrates. The system maintains full control of materials as they are stripped, can be deployed within minutes, and results in a waste form already familiar to DOE¿s existing infrastructure ¿ radioactive ¿hot¿ plastic. Phase I developed a safe and cost effective system that uses proprietary gel chemistry and a special power waveform to remove radioactive contamination from stainless steel through surface stripping electrochemical reactions. Independent laboratory tests demonstrated the system¿s ability to remove up to 96% of fixed and 99% of smearable radioactive contaminates from stainless steel without generating airborne hazard. In Phase II, independent certifications of electrical safety, nuclear safeguards compliance, and non-combustability of the cured gel will be obtained. Extensive field validations will be carried out at three or more nuclear facilities within the DOE and the power industry. A configuration-controlled engineering package will be created in anticipation of manufacturing a commercial product in Phase III. Commercial Applications and Other Benefits as described by awardee: The electro-decontamination technology should have application in the steel fabrication and construction sectors, as well as the autobody repair industry. In addition, the gel has anti-microbial properties, suggesting possible medical applications, such as the control of tuberculosis or other highly infectious diseases within surgical suites and medical facilities, or spray-on surgical masking and wound dressings for burn treatment.