Clean-out of the F Reactor fuel storage basin (FSB) by the Environmental Restoration Contractor (ERC) is an element of the FSB decontamination and decommissioning and is required to complete interim safe storage (ISS) of the F Reactor. Following reactor shutdown and in preparation for a deactivation layaway action in 1970, the water level in the F Reactor FSB was reduced to approximately 0.6 m (2 ft) over the floor. Basin components and other miscellaneous items were left or placed in the FSB. The item placement was performed with a sense of finality, and no attempt was made to place the items in an orderly manner. The F Reactor FSB was then filled to grade level with 6 m (20 ft) of local surface material (essentially a fine sand). The reactor FSB backfill cleanout involves the potential removal of spent nuclear fuel (SNF) that may have been left in the basin unintentionally. Based on previous cleanout of four water-filled FSBs with similar designs (i.e., the B, C, D, and DR FSBs in the 1980s), it was estimated that up to five SNF elements could be discovered in the F Reactor FSB (1). In reality, a total of 10 SNF elements have been found in the first 25% of the F Reactor FSB excavation. This paper discusses the technical and programmatic challenges of performing this decommissioning effort with some of the controls needed for SNF management. The paper also highlights how many various technologies were married into a complete package to address the issue at hand and show how no one tool could be used to complete the job; but by combining the use of multiple tools, progress is being made.
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