APPLICATION OF NONDESTRUCTIVE ASSAY TECHNOLOGY IN OAK RIDGE NATIONAL LABORATORY'S WASTE MANAGEMENT PROGRAM*

Waste characterization is the process whereby physical properties and chemical composition of waste are determined. Waste characterization is an important element of a waste certification program in that it provides information which is necessary to certify that waste meets the acceptance criteria for storage, treatment, or disposal. Department of Energy (DOE) Order 5820.2A and WIPP-DOE-069 list and describe the germane waste form, package, and container criteria for the storage of both solid low-level waste (SLLW) and transuranic (TRU) waste, including chemical composition and compatibility, hazardous material content (e.g., lead), fissile material content, radioisotopic inventory, particulate content, equivalent alpha activity, thermal heat output, and absence of free liquids, explosives, and compressed gases.