PNNL

A paper by researchers from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) and collaborator from Washington River Protection Services was recognized as a “Paper of Note” by the 2022 Waste Management Symposia—the symposia’s highest manuscript honor.

That research paper and seven others contributed by PNNL researchers were named “Superior Papers,” with one of those papers also recognized with a Best Oral Paper/Presentation award by the American Nuclear Society (ANS).

The papers were presented at the 2022 Waste Management Symposia in March, with the honored papers announced June 16.

PNNL’s papers covered a range of topics that span research on spent nuclear fuel, tank waste removal, fissile materials, geophysical data, and vadose zone remediation.

The following paper was one of 16 symposia papers receiving the prestigious Papers of Note designation. It also was one of 60 papers recognized as Superior Papers, demonstrating superb knowledge and understanding as well as laying the foundation for future waste management endeavors.

• “Filtration of Hanford Tank 241-AP-107 Supernatant Samples Obtained at Prototypic Tank Level and Filtered at 16 °C.” Authors are Reid Peterson, Jarrod Allred, John Geeting, Amy Westesen, and Edgar Buck, PNNL; and Kris Colosi, Washington River Protection Services.

The following paper was recognized with an ANS Best Oral Paper/Presentation Award as well as a Superior Paper designation.  

• “Performance of a Scaled Tank Side Cesium Removal Test System at High Solids Loading.” Authors are Philip Schonewill, Phillip Gauglitz, Richard Daniel, Carolyn Burns, and Stephen Davidson, PNNL; and Matt Landon, Washington River Protection Services.

Author Philip Schonewill has been invited to the ANS Honors and Awards Luncheon on February 28, 2023 to receive the award. According to ANS, the “presentation excelled in the paper judging criteria, which demonstrated knowledge, understanding, and a foundation for future waste management endeavors.”

Five additional PNNL papers received the Superior Papers honor:

• “Tank Side Cesium Removal System Project and Technology Testing Activities.” Authors are Matt Landon, Kevin Ard, and Blake Chamberlain, Washington River Protection Services; David Herman and Daniel McCabe, Savannah River National Laboratory; Reid Peterson and Philip Schonewill, PNNL; Ian Pegg, Catholic University of America; Robert Wilson, INTERA; Tim Foley and Blake Nolan, Los Alamos National Laboratory; and Janet Diediker, Department of Energy (DOE).
• “Development of a Draft Safety Inspection Protocol for Rail Shipments of Spent Nuclear Fuel.” Authors are Steven Maheras, PNNL, and Erica Bickford, DOE.
• “The Evolution of International Criticality Safety Regulations for the Transport of Fissile Material in Certified Packages.” Authors are Antonio Rigato and Steven Maheras, PNNL; Calvin Hopper, Oak Ridge National Laboratory; and Ronald Pope, Argonne National Laboratory.
• “Overview of the Hanford Lead Canister.” Authors are Nicholas Klymyshyn, Sarah Suffield, Eric Berglin, and Carl Enderlin, PNNL.

• ”Addressing Big Data Challenges with Geophysical Data Archival, Discoverability, and Re-use.” Authors are Nicolas Huerta, Judy Robinson, Kenneth Ham, and Jon Thomle, PNNL; and Vicky Freedman, Sealaska.

• “Organic Gas Injection Delivery Behavior for Vadose Zone Remediation.” Authors are Kenneth Carroll, Cheyenne Stice, and Chia-hsing Tsai, New Mexico State University; and Christian Johnson and Jim Szecsody, PNNL.

A Best in Track Poster award was also received for “Verification and Validation (V&V) of the Stakeholder Tool for Assessing Radioactive Transportation (START),” by Caitlin Condon, Philip Jensen, Patrick Royer, Harish Gadey, Mark Abkowitz, Robert Claypool, Steven Maheras, and Matt Feldman. The Best in Track Poster awards were established to recognize the finest in technical and policy innovations in each of the nine symposia tracks.

The Waste Management Symposia constitutes the world's largest and most prestigious conference on radioactive waste management and disposal, decommissioning, packaging and transportation, facility siting, and site remediation.