DESTRUCTIVE EXAMINATION OF SHIPPING PACKAGE 9975-00600

Abstract

The Savannah River Site (SRS) stores packages containing plutonium (Pu) materials in the K-Area Complex (KAC). The Pu materials are packaged per the DOE 3013 Standard and stored within Model 9975 shipping packages in KAC. The KAC facility DSA (Document Safety Analysis) [1] credits the Model 9975 package to perform several safety functions, including criticality, impact resistance, containment, and fire resistance to ensure the plutonium materials remain in a safe configuration during normal and accident conditions. The Model 9975 package is expected to perform its safety function for at least 12 years from initial packaging. The DSA recognizes the degradation potential for the materials of package construction over time in the KAC storage environment and requires an assessment of materials performance to validate the assumptions of the analysis and ultimately predict service life. As part of the comprehensive Model 9975 package surveillance program [2-3], destructive examination of package 9975-00600 was performed following field surveillance in accordance with Reference [4]. Field surveillance of the Model 9975 package in KAC included nondestructive examination of the drum, fiberboard, lead shield and containment vessels [5]. Results of the field surveillance are provided in Attachment 1. Destructive and non-destructive examinations have been performed on specified components of shipping package 9975-00600. For those attributes that were also measured during the field surveillance, no significant changes were observed. Three conditions were identified that do not meet inspection criteria. These conditions are subject to additional investigation and disposition by the Surveillance Program Authority. The conditions include: (1) The lead shield was covered with a white corrosion layer; (2) The lead shield height dimension exceeded drawing requirements; and (3) Fiberboard thermal conductivity in the axial direction exceeded the specified range. The Surveillance Program Authority was notified of these conditions. All other observations and test results met identified criteria, or were collected for information and trending purposes.