a) Considerations. Determination of the
classification of radioactive waste involves two considerations. First,
consideration must be given to the concentration of long-lived radionuclides
(and their shorter-lived precursors) whose potential hazard will persist long
after such precautions as institutional controls, improved waste form and
deeper disposal have ceased to be effective. These precautions delay the time
when long-lived radionuclides could cause exposures. In addition, the magnitude
of the potential dose is limited by the concentration and availability of the
radionuclide at the time of exposure. Second, consideration must be given to
the concentration of shorter-lived radionuclides for which requirements on
institutional controls, waste form and disposal methods are
effective.
b) Classes of waste.
1) Class A waste is waste that is usually
segregated from other waste classes at the disposal site. The physical form and
characteristics of Class A waste must meet the minimum requirements set forth
in Section
340.1055(a)
of this Part. If Class A waste also meets the stability requirements set forth
in Section
340.1055(b)
of this Part, it is not necessary to segregate the waste for
disposal.
2) Class B waste is waste
that must meet more rigorous requirements on waste form to ensure stability (as
defined in 32 Ill. Adm. Code
601.20 ) after
disposal. The physical form and characteristics of Class B waste must meet both
the minimum and stability requirements set forth in Section
340.1055
of this Part.
3) Class C waste is
waste that not only must meet more rigorous requirements on waste form to
ensure stability but also requires additional measures at the disposal facility
to protect against inadvertent intrusion. The physical form and characteristics
of Class C waste must meet both the minimum and stability requirements set
forth in Section
340.1055
of this Part.
c)
Classification determined by long-lived radionuclides. If the radioactive waste
contains only radionuclides listed in Table 1 of this Section, classification
shall be determined as follows:
1) If the
concentration does not exceed 0.1 times the value in Table 1, the waste is
Class A.
2) If the concentration
exceeds 0.1 times the value in Table 1, but does not exceed the value in Table
1, the waste is Class C.
3) If the
concentration exceeds the value in Table 1, the waste is not generally
acceptable for land disposal.
4)
For wastes containing mixtures of radionuclides listed in Table 1, the total
concentration shall be determined by the sum of fractions rule described in
subsection (g) of this Section.
Table 1
|
Radionuclide
|
Concentration curies/cubic meter
|
C-14
|
8
|
C-14 in activated metal
|
80
|
Ni-59 in activated metal
|
220
|
Nb-94 in activated metal
|
0.2
|
Tc-99
|
3
|
I-129
|
0.08
|
Alpha emitting transuranic radionuclides with
half-life greater than five years
|
100
|
Pu-241
|
3,500
|
Cm-242
|
20,000
|
Ra-226
|
100
|
AGENCY NOTE: Units are nanocuries per gram.
d) Classification determined by short-lived
radionuclides. If the waste does not contain any of the radionuclides listed in
Table 1, classification shall be determined based on the concentrations shown
in Table 2 of this Section. However, as specified in subsection (f) of this
Section, if radioactive waste does not contain any nuclides listed in either
Table 1 or Table 2, it is Class A.
1) If the
concentration does not exceed the value in Column 1, the waste is Class
A.
2) If the concentration exceeds
the value in Column 1 but does not exceed the value in Column 2, the waste is
Class B.
3) If the concentration
exceeds the value in Column 2 but does not exceed the value in Column 3, the
waste is Class C.
4) If the
concentration exceeds the value in Column 3, the waste is not generally
acceptable for near-surface disposal.
5) For wastes containing mixtures of the
radionuclides listed in Table 2, the total concentration shall be determined by
the sum of fractions rule described in subsection (g) of this Section.
Table 2
|
Radionuclide
|
Concentration (curies/cubic meter)
|
Column 1
|
Column 2
|
Column 3
|
Total of all radionuclides with less than 5-year
half-life
|
700
|
-
|
-
|
H-3
|
40
|
-
|
-
|
Co-60
|
700
|
-
|
-
|
Ni-63
|
3.5
|
70
|
700
|
Ni-63 in activated metal
|
35
|
700
|
7000
|
Sr-90
|
0.04
|
150
|
7000
|
Cs-137
|
1
|
44
|
4600
|
AGENCY NOTE: There are no limits established for these
radionuclides in Class B or C wastes. Practical considerations such as the
effects of external radiation and internal heat generation on transportation,
handling and disposal will limit the concentrations for these wastes. These
wastes shall be Class B unless the concentrations of other radionuclides in
Table 2 determine the waste to be Class C independent of these
radionuclides.
e) Classification determined by both long-
and short-lived radionuclides. If the radioactive waste contains a mixture of
radionuclides, some of which are listed in Table 1 and some of which are listed
in Table 2, classification shall be determined as follows:
1) If the concentration of a radionuclide
listed in Table 1 is less than 0.1 times the value listed in Table 1, the class
shall be that determined by the concentration of radionuclides listed in Table
2.
2) If the concentration of a
radionuclide listed in Table 1 exceeds 0.1 times the value listed in Table 1,
but does not exceed the value in Table 1, the waste shall be Class C, provided
the concentration of radionuclides listed in Table 2 does not exceed the value
shown in Column 3 of Table 2.
f) Classification of wastes with
radionuclides other than those listed in Tables 1 and 2. If the waste does not
contain any radionuclides listed in either Tables 1 or 2, it is Class
A.
g) The sum of the fractions rule
for mixtures of radionuclides. For determining classification for waste that
contains a mixture of radionuclides, it is necessary to determine the sum of
fractions by dividing each radionuclide's concentration by the appropriate
limit and adding the resulting values. The appropriate limits must all be taken
from the same column of the same table. The sum of the fractions for the column
must be less than 1.0 if the waste class is to be determined by that column.
Example: A waste contains Sr-90 in a concentration of 50 Ci/m3 and Cs-137 in a
concentration of 22 Ci/m3. Since the concentrations both exceed the values in
Column 1, Table 2, they must be compared to Column 2 values. For Sr-90
fraction, 50/150 = 0.33, for Cs-137 fraction, 22/44 = 0.5; the sum of the
fractions = 0.83. Since the sum is less than 1.0, the waste is Class
B.
h) Determination of
concentrations in wastes. The concentration of a radionuclide may be determined
by indirect methods such as use of scaling factors which relate the inferred
concentration of one radionuclide to another that is measured, or radionuclide
material accountability, if there is reasonable assurance that the indirect
methods can be correlated with actual measurements. The concentration of a
radionuclide may be averaged over the volume of the waste, or weight of the
waste if the units are expressed as nano-curies per gram.