Development of a Novel Depleted Uranium Treatment Process at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

A three-stage process was developed at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory to treat potentially pyrophoric depleted uranium metal wastes. The three-stage process includes waste sorting/rinsing, acid dissolution of the waste metal with a hydrochloric and phosphoric acid solution, and solidification of the neutralized residuals from the second stage with clay. The final product is a solid waste form that can be transported to and disposed of at a permitted low-level radioactive waste disposal site