Non-destructive in situ measurement of radiological distributions in Hanford site waste tanks

Measurement of radiological materials in defense nuclear waste stored in underground tanks at the Hanford Site is being used to indicate material distributions. Both safety assessment and future processing challenges are dependent on knowledge of the distribution, kinds, and quantities of various key components. Data from CdTe and neutron detector measurements are shown and correlated with physical sampling and laboratory results. The multiple assay approach is shown to increase the confidence about the material distributions. As a result, costs of physical sampling and destructive analyses can be controlled while not severely limiting the uncertainty of results.