ASTM STANDARD GUIDE FOR EVALUATING DISPOSAL OPTIONS FOR REUSE OF CONCRETE FROM NUCLEAR FACILITY DECOMMISSIONING

Within the nuclear industry, many contaminated facilities that require decommissioning contain huge volumes of concrete. This concrete is generally disposed of as low-level waste at a high cost. Much of the concrete is lightly contaminated and could be reused as roadbed, fill material, or aggregate for new concrete, thus saving millions of dollars. However, because of the possibility of volumetric contamination and the lack of a method to evaluate the risks and costs of reusing concrete, reuse is rarely considered. To address this problem, Argonne National Laboratory–East (ANL-E) and the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory teamed to write a “concrete protocol ” to help evaluate the ramifications of reusing concrete within the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). This document, titled the Protocol fo