Teams of engineering students from Oregon State University (OSU) and Washington State University (WSU) recently partnered with engineers at the Hanford Site’s Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) for their senior projects.
Office of Environmental Management
January 30, 2024
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Oregon State University engineering students, center, not in order, Corbin Anderson, John Domjan-Yuhas, Jose Cortez-Segura, Michael Acosta and Benjamin Porter are pictured with Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant staff inside the plant’s Analytical Laboratory.
RICHLAND, Wash. — Teams of engineering students from Oregon State University (OSU) and Washington State University (WSU) recently partnered with engineers at the Hanford Site’s Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) for their senior projects.
Each team worked closely with the WTP engineers on designs and analyses of actual WTP systems, providing the students with real-world experiences as they wrap up their undergraduate studies.
“Supporting projects like these helps forge important connections with universities,” said Mat Irwin, EM Office of River Protection acting assistant manager for the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant Project. “Not only do they give the students great learning experiences, but they also establish recruiting pipelines that will help build the future of the Hanford workforce.”
Oregon State Students Get Hands-on at Analytical Laboratory
The team of students from OSU partnered with engineers from WTP’s Plant Engineering group and were tasked with redesigning the carrier splitter assembly for the auto sampling system (ASX) inside WTP’s Analytical Laboratory. The assembly separates sample vials from the carriers that transport them through the ASX. They were tasked with redesigning the carrier splitter because the original design experienced technical challenges that impacted reliability.
“Working with these engineering students on their senior project provides a win-win situation," said Pete Benson, plant engineering manager for Waste Treatment Completion Company, a subcontractor to WTP lead contractor Bechtel National Inc. “The students gain valuable real-world experience working on actual engineering challenges, and our engineers get outside assistance and perspective on important engineering design."
The students began their project in September and met with WTP engineers weekly via video conference to discuss the project and review design iterations. They also visited WTP in November to get hands-on experience with the carrier splitter. Based on observations from their trip to the plant, the team finalized their design, updated their drawings and began procuring parts for the redesigned device. The team will complete the assembly of the prototype and conduct testing in February.
Corbin Anderson, one member of the OSU team, was wowed by WTP during his visit.
“I was impressed by the complexity of the plant and the number of moving pieces necessary to get it operational,” Anderson said. “I was also excited to see that our project will have an actual impact on operations.”
During future operations, the ASX will safely retrieve radioactive waste samples from the Low-Activity Waste (LAW) Facility and deliver them to WTP’s Analytical Laboratory for analysis. There, chemists and technicians will analyze the waste's radionuclides, metals and organic materials and will confirm the correct “recipe" of glass-forming materials to mix with the waste before it is added into one of the 300-ton glass melters inside the LAW Facility.
Washington State University engineering students, center, from left, Anthony Cromwell, Maksim Karazhbei, and Braxley Meyers are pictured with Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant engineers Dan Harris, far left, and Bryan Dunlap, far right.
Washington State Students Get Analytical With High-Level Waste Design
The Washington State team is partnered with engineers for WTP’s High-Level Waste Facility and conducting a fatigue analysis. Bryan Dunlap, senior mechanical engineer for Bechtel, mentors the students with support from Dan Harris, engineering group supervisor for equipment analysis for WTP and a WSU alum.
“Fatigue analysis is a common and valuable skill within the mechanical engineering field,” said Harris. “These students are taking the theories they’ve learned in school and applying them in the real world, while building their resumes and making them more attractive to potential employers.”
Fatigue analysis involves calculating how a design will withstand repeated use. The students’ fatigue analysis is being conducted on a high-level waste vessel that will hold five-ton canisters after they are filled with glass at the end of the vitrification process. When complete, the analysis will identify how many times the vessel can compress and decompress during the load and unload of the container, and still return to its original state without breaking, bending or cracking.
“Being on this side of a senior project allowed me to come full circle on my own career,” said Harris, who did his own senior project with WTP 20 years ago. “I learned a lot from my own senior project, and I was excited to find the right opportunity for these students, something that would provide both of us value.”
-Contributor: Tyler Oates
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