Tuesday, February 18, 2025
Test Proves Robot Successful in Supporting Idaho Waste Retrieval Mission
A robot central to innovative methods Idaho Cleanup Project crews are developing to retrieve calcine, a granular solid waste, has successfully demonstrated its proficiency.
The team recently launched a new technology and equipment test at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Site to prove the capability of remote-handled robotics to properly weld access points in the Calcined Solids Storage Facilities, where 4,400 cubic meters of calcine waste is stored. The robot passed the test.
All calcine waste must be removed from the state for permanent disposal under an agreement with the State of Idaho. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) had converted liquid, high-level radioactive waste into calcine, which is similar in consistency to sand, until those operations ended in 2000. The waste was created during historic spent nuclear fuel reprocessing runs at the Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center.
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