Bechtel National, Inc., has awarded contracts valued at nearly USD 37.8M to Petersen, Inc., to supply engineered stainless-steel containers and a spare melter for Hanford’s Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, or Vit Plant. These containers will hold the first-ever vitrified waste from Hanford for safe long-term storage.
Bechtel National is working in partnership with the Department of Energy to bring its Direct-Feed Low-Activity Waste (DFLAW) program online by the end of 2023. The engineered 7-foot tall, 4-foot wide containers will be filled with molten glass containing simulated and real radioactive waste during the Vit Plant’s commissioning phase, and the spare melter will be on standby for when the current melters reach their end of the lifespan.
The Vit Plant’s Low-Activity Waste vitrification facility is an integral part of the DFLAW program. During plant operations, the Low-Activity Waste Facility will treat about 1.75 million gallons of tank waste per year.
LAW Facility construction is substantially complete, systems startup testing is well underway and the computerized control room is operational and staffed 24-7 by workers. Construction of the Analytical Laboratory and plant-wide utilities infrastructure are finished, and startup testing is nearing completion.
