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That was the response at the U.S. Department of Energy's Hanford Site near Richland, Washington, when Encapsulation Technologies used its patented capture-coating technology to fix radioactive contamination in tank farm pit facilities prior to worker entry. The effectiveness of Encapsulation Technologies' process is also featured in the Technology Deployments section of the Hanford Site's website as part of the DOE's Technology Management program.
During work in this pit last September, a whirlwind lifted contamination out of an open tent containment and spread it over three acres of land in ETF. Workers spent three weeks on multiple shifts to recover from the contamination spread. When an ETF Radiological Controls staff member recommended the use of the capture coating, some ETF personnel were skeptical about whether the new technology could work. The technology uses a sticky solution of sugar and starch compounds which is applied in an aerosol fog to the contaminated area. Since the capture coating is applied as an aerosol, it permeates and covers the entire area, settling a thin film of the sticky solution on ductwork, cable runs and equipment. The application was originally invented to serve as a tool in the cleanup of ductwork, piping, hoods and gloveboxes contaminated with plutonium. Testing of the capture coating began two years ago, and Encapsulation Technologies began seeking a test case to use its new technology in actual field conditions involving real contamination. While the 244-A Lift Station did not fit the original intention of the technology, Encapsulation Technologies was confident the coating would work. Owen Berglund and Larry Waggoner of the ALARA Center of Technology invited Encapsulation Technologies to share its product with several Hanford health physics professionals in September 1995. When problems cropped up at the 244-A Lift Station, Craig Upchurch, a principal scientist with ETF Radiological Controls, saw an opportunity to invite Encapsulation Technologies to Hanford to test its capture coating product. To say the capture coating was successful is an understatement. Contamination control changed dramatically from nightmarish to livable after the first application of capture coating. The exposure savings in reduced decontamination efforts alone is phenomenal. Before application, workers were continually decontaminating the containment tent to keep contamination levels in check. After application, decontamination during work became unnecessary. Jerry Borrowman and Dan Bishop, both supervisors for work at the 244-A Lift Station, agreed that while technologies such as this may seem expensive, they become very cost-effective compared to shutting down a job for three weeks to decontaminate an area. ETF plans on evaluating and using this and similar technologies as tools for contamination control in future high-risk jobs.
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