Bechtel National Inc.: Vit Plant heating up in 2021

The Hanford Vit Plant is moving toward heating up our first 300-ton low-activity waste melter at the end of this year — a permanent step forward. The melter is the heart of the vitrification process, which will turn Hanford’s legacy nuclear waste into a solid glass form for safe disposal.

The melter will be used to combine low-activity waste and glass-forming chemicals at 2,100 degrees Fahrenheit before the mixture is poured into stainless steel containers to cool and solidify. The melters will remain at this operating temperature through hot commissioning in 2023 and into long-term operations.

Our progress toward melter heatup and preparing to treat tank waste using the Direct-Feed Low-Activity Waste (DFLAW) approach is thanks to the resilience, hard work and dedication of our team. Despite the unprecedented challenges of 2020, we continued to move the project forward. Just a few of the accomplishments from last year include:

▪  Completed Low-Activity Waste (LAW) Facility construction.

▪  Completed Effluent Management Facility (EMF) construction.

▪  Completed Analytical Laboratory (Lab) startup testing.

▪  Completed handing over of all utilities and support facilities (Balance of Facilities) to Plant Management.

Our team members adapted and stepped up when needed last year, never wavering on their commitment to safety and quality. Led by Bechtel National Inc., our team includes Amentum, the Waste Treatment Completion Co. and members of the Central Washington Building Trades.

Achieving the start of tank waste processing is just around the corner. Vit Plant facilities and systems continue to be handed over regularly, and our plant operators are in their second year of working 24/7 shifts. Our jobsite continues to look more like an operating facility, with temporary structures coming down and paved roads going in.

We kicked off 2021 by celebrating the completion of DFLAW facility construction, meaning construction is done on the Vit Plant facilities needed to start treating tank waste. Soon after, we announced the Lab was deemed “ready to operate,” which means that the facility and its team are prepared to support cold commissioning, during which a waste-like simulant is run through the plant to ensure systems are working properly under operating conditions.

We will continue to build momentum this year by demonstrating backup systems will temporarily power the melters in case there is an electricity outage. This is important, because once started, the melters need to stay hot until they are replaced at the end of their service life. After that demonstration, we’ll proceed with heating up the first melter.

Other 2021 goals include:

▪  Completing all procedures required for operations.

▪  Completing testing of all the components and systems in the Effluent Management Facility, which treats secondary waste from the LAW Facility.

▪  Completing testing of all the components and systems in the LAW Facility.

▪  Completing testing of HEPA filters in the Analytical Laboratory.

The Vit Plant team works closely with our DOE customer and other Hanford contractors as One Hanford. We collaborate with the Washington State Department of Ecology and regulators to achieve our mission.

Community is more important than ever right now, and our team continued to step up last year, donating more than $275,000 to local charitable organizations, events and programs. This is in addition to corporate donations, including $100,000 to the United Way COVID-19 Response Fund.

As the Vit Plant continues to drive toward completion, we want to thank the thousands of skilled craft and professionals — current and past — who have worked on achieving this piece of history. We also thank the Central Washington Building Trades and their leadership for being incredible partners over the years.

Each of our team members brought their expertise and helped make this plant a modern marvel that will achieve its mission — cleaning up Hanford’s legacy waste. They have truly been part of One Team and One Hanford and contributed to the achievement of the future milestones we can’t wait to celebrate this year.

This story was originally published April 30, 2021 at 12:23 AM with the headline "Bechtel National Inc.: Vit Plant heating up in 2021."