PIKE COUNTY — U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management (EM) crews at the Portsmouth Site relied on detailed planning, collaboration and teamwork to successfully complete characterization activities in the X-333 Process Building, which is slated for demolition early next year.
The characterization included approximately 134,000 measurements, analyses and documentation of all equipment components, piping and valves that could contain uranium deposits at X-333.
X-333 is one of two remaining large process buildings with 65 acres of floor space, formerly used for uranium enrichment at the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant. It was the first process building in the cascade of facilities used for enriching uranium and contained the largest process gas equipment onsite.
Fluor-BWXT Portsmouth (FBP), the deactivation and demolition contractor at the Portsmouth Site, assigned nearly 90 employees to the Portsmouth Non-destructive Assay/Characterization Criticality Incredible (NDA/CCI) team. Non-destructive assay entailed measuring the quantities of uranium deposits that remained from enrichment operations in dozens of miles of process pipes.
While characterizing X-333, the team used a unique aid to attain precise data.
“The team incorporated a multi-step verification process to ensure all the information was as accurate as possible,” Portsmouth Site Lead Jeremy Davis said. “Their progress in the X-333 Process Building is appreciated and does not go unnoticed.”
Portsmouth Site Lead Jeremy Davis and Safety System Oversight Engineer Dick Mayer show appreciation to the Portsmouth Non-destructive Assay (NDA)/Characterization Criticality Incredible team leaders for their efforts in characterizing equipment in the X 333 Process Building. From left: Davis, Fluor-BWXT Portsmouth (FBP) Project Support Manager Robert Graves, FBP NDA Deputy Director Amanda DeHart, FBP NDA Director Ricky Walls, FBP Site Project Director Greg Wilkett, and Mayer.
Earlier this year, FBP’s NDA/CCI group was recognized for their efforts in safely and conscientiously characterizing enrichment equipment in X-333.
“It is difficult to build and maintain a program this size that runs smoothly,” EM Portsmouth Site Safety System Oversight Engineer Dick Mayer said. “Safely and correctly completing the work on time can be a challenge. We are fortunate to have one of the best teams around to do the job.”
FBP NDA/CCI Deputy Director Amanda DeHart credits the progress to effective teamwork.
“The NDA/CCI team worked hand in hand with deactivation, nuclear criticality safety and the nuclear safety organizations to safely orchestrate the successful deactivation and characterization efforts,” DeHart said. “Collectively, the improvements resulted in a 90% reduction in measurements required for characterization as opposed to the efforts in the X-326 Process Building.”
The X-333 demolition project is slated to begin in early 2025. It will be the second of three large process buildings to be torn down at Portsmouth. In 2022, EM crews completed the demolition of the X-326 Process Building, marking the most significant cleanup milestone to date at the site
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