Crews Open Paducah Process Building Tanks for First Time in 70 Years

Deactivation crews collect samples from one of 42 storage tanks in the Paducah Site's C-333 Process Building.

PADUCAH, Ky. - For the first time in 70 years, crews at the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management (EM) Paducah Site recently opened storage tanks used in the uranium enrichment process.

The tanks, used for containing the gases used in the enrichment process, went through a rigorous sampling process to be placed in a safe, stable condition for the C-333 Process Building demolition in the future.

In total, crews sampled 42 tanks measuring 40 feet long and 8 feet in diameter with a combined capacity of 86,000 cubic feet - enough to hold nearly all the water from an Olympic-size swimming pool.

C-333, one of the largest buildings at Paducah, enriched uranium for national security and defense, and later for nuclear power before ceasing operations in 2013 and transitioning to deactivation.

Four Rivers Nuclear Partnership Deactivation Crew Maintenance Mechanic Jason Murphy positions a core drill for sampling of piping for storage tanks in the C-333 Process Building.

Workers inspected and sampled remaining contents of the tanks to ensure any hazardous material left over from enrichment operations could be removed. They also took scans of the valves, piping and other components in support of the overall sampling of C-333. The samples taken of the tanks and other components provide information needed for analysis for the equipment to be demolished in place as part of the overall facility demolition in the future.

"Completing this project is part of the bigger puzzle and a big step in deactivating the facility," Portsmouth Paducah Project Office Manager Joel Bradburne said.

Deactivation in C-333 is complex, requiring multiple crews to tackle big challenges in a sequence supporting the overall goal. The Paducah team incorporated lessons learned from similar sampling efforts in the tanks supporting the X-326 Process Building at EM's Portsmouth Site in Ohio. The integrated teams shared information to ensure the work was completed safely and ahead of schedule.

"Since they were installed, these tanks had never been opened. The preparation that went into the planning for this project was instrumental in its success and is a testament to the emphasis FRNP puts on safety," Four Rivers Nuclear Partnership (FRNP) Program Manager Myrna Redfield said.

FRNP is the deactivation and remediation contractor charged with deactivating C-333.

-Contributor: Dylan Nichols