Use of a Shielded High Resolution Gamma Spectrometry System to Segregate LLW from Contact Handleable ILW Containing Plutonium - 13046

Dounreay Site Restoration Limited (DSRL) have a number of drums of solid waste that may contain Plutonium Contaminated Material. These are currently categorised as Contact Handleable Intermediate Level Waste (CHILW). A significant fraction of these drums potentially contain waste that is in the Low Level Waste (LLW) category. A Canberra Q2 shielded high resolution gamma spectrometry system is being used to quantify the total activity of drums that are potentially in the LLW category in order to segregate those that do contain LLW from CHILW drums and thus to minimise the total volume of waste in the higher category. Am-241 is being used as an indicator of the presence of plutonium in the waste from its strong 59.54 keV gamma-ray; a knowledge of the different waste streams from which the material originates allows a pessimistic waste 'fingerprint' to be used in order to determine an upper limit to the activities of the weak and non-gamma-emitting plutonium and associated radionuclides. This paper describes the main features of the high resolution gamma spectrometry system being used by DSRL to perform the segregation of CHILW and LLW and how it was configured and calibrated using the Canberra In-Situ Object Counting System (ISOCS). Itmore » also describes how potential LLW drums are selected for assay and how the system uses the existing waste stream fingerprint information to determine a reliable upper limit for the total activity present in each measured drum. Results from the initial on-site commissioning trials and the first measurements of waste drums using the new monitor are presented. (authors)« less