THE PROCEDURES USED TO REVIEW SAFETY ANALYSIS REPORTS FOR PACKAGINGS SUBMITTED TO THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY FOR CERTIFICATION*

This paper presents an overview of the procedures used at Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) to review Safety Analysis Reports for Packagings (SARPs) submitted to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for issuance of a Certificate of Compliance. Prior to certifica- tion and shipment of a packaging for the trans- port of radioactive materials, a SARP describing the design, contents, analyses, testing, and safety features of the packaging must be pre- pared. The SARP must be reviewed to ensure that the specific packaging meets all DOE orders and federal regulations for safe transport. The ANL SARP review group provides DOE with an independent review and evaluation function to ensure that the packaging meets all the prescribed requirements. This review involves many disciplines and includes evaluation of the general information, drawings, construction details, operating procedures, maintenance and test programs, and the quality assurance plan for compliance with requirements. In addition, detailed confirmatory analyses are performed on the structural, thermal, containment, radioactive shielding, and nuclear criticality aspects of the packaging to ensure adequate performance. Because the various elements of the SARP review must be synergetic for the safe operation and use of the packaging, the review must be a team effort, with all disciplines cooperating in all phases of the process. This paper emphasizes the structural and material aspects of the review process, but the general approach presented is representative of all the disciplines involved. Some of the specific issues and problems encountered during typical reviews are discussed.