Final Report for Grant

INTRODUCTION Low-level radioactive waste is the primary component of the toxic waste stream generated from biomedical research and patient care activities. Historically, this radioactive waste has been shipped to Richland, Washington for landfill disposal. Several years ago, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission "deregulated" liquid scintillation vials containing tritium and carbon 14. More recently, the State of Washington closed their landfill to these deregulated wastes. These regulatory changes have prompted a critical review of radioactive waste management practices at Duke University Medical Center. We have determined that volume reduction in the form of crushing and compacting could save $200,000 in annual disposal costs. Since there were no appropriate facilities to house these operations, construction of a new Environmental Safety Building was commissioned. The building is scheduled for occupancy by April 1986, and will house specialized facilities for the management of chemical and radioactive wastes. The original proposed method of volume reduction for I i scintillation fluid was to crush the vials and collect the fluid. ~ The deregulated liquid waste would t.hen be shipped off-site for incineration as a fuel supplement. The iodinated fluid would be stored on-site for decay and then incinerated off-site as a non-radioactive fuel supplement. Further benefits would be derived if the scintillation fluid could be recycled within the institution. Redistillation is a possibility since the new facility will be equipped with two efficient spinning-band stills. Recycling could be implemented redistilling, and distributing the scintillation fluid from 137 laboratories had not been investigated. I shortly after occupancy. However, the feasibility of segregating, SCOPE OF THE PROJECT " Duke University Medical Center will undertake a feasibility study of a scintillation fluid recycling program. The program scope wili be as follows: 1. Perform an audit of each laboratory which uses scintillation fluid. Identify for each laboratory the chemical composition of the scintillation cocktails used, radioactive isotope(s) employed, monthly volume generated, and ameniability of the investigator to utilize on-site prepared cocktails. 2. Analyze the collected data to identify wastestreams which can be segregated for batch distillation. 3. Review and evaluate distillation equipment suitable for redistillation of scintillation fluid. 4. Develop a working system for the collection of used fluid and the eventual distribution of the redistilled fluid. 5. Perform bench scale studies of the effectiveness of the redistillation process. 6. Evaluate the feasibility of segregating, redistilling and distributing the recovered scintillation fluid.The initial phase of the study was auditing all laboratories …