PNNL

Abstract

Following an evaluation of potential Sr-90 treatment technologies and their applicability under 100-NR-2 hydrogeologic conditions, U.S. Department of Energy, Fluor Hanford, Inc., Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, and the Washington Department of Ecology agreed that the long-term strategy for groundwater remediation at 100-N Area will include apatite sequestration as the primary treatment, followed by a secondary treatment if necessary (most likely phytoremediation). Since then, the agencies have worked together to agree on which apatite sequestration technology has the greatest chance of reducing Sr-90 flux to the river at a reasonable cost. In July 2005, aqueous injection, (i.e., the introduction of apatite-forming chemicals into the subsurface) was endorsed as the interim remedy and selected for field testing. Studies are in progress to assess the efficacy of in situ apatite formation by aqueous solution injection to address both the vadose zone and the shallow aquifer along the 300 ft of shoreline where Sr-90 concentrations are highest. This report describes the field testing of the shallow aquifer treatment.