Separations Technology: The Key to Radioactive Waste Minimization

Abstract

Waste and waste management problems are as old as the human race. For purposes of this discussion, wastes can be grouped and identified according to three chemical categories: organic, inorganic, and radioactive. Throughout history, humans have disposed of organic wastes by piling them on the earth or by burial. Until this century, most of the organic waste that was disposed to the environment was manageable by natural biodegradation processes. Even though kinetically slow, these natural processes seemed to satisfactorily manage organic wastes until the middle of the twentieth century. During the post-World War II years, the combined effects of increasing population and accelerating industrial production created organic wastes in quantities that began to overwhelm the natural biodegradation processes. New chemical technologies began to produce very stable chemical products specifically designed to be used once and then discarded as waste. Many of those stable materials, such as plastics and transformer oils, are very resistant to biodegradation.

The authors wish to express appreciation for the time and effort contributed by many reviewers across the DOE complex. Their comments and constructive criticism have improved the quality of the resulting paper. The views and interpretations presented here are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of Energy, Oak Ridge National Laboratory or Martin Marietta Energy Systems, Inc.