ABSTRACT
Mixed waste treatment is often required to meet treatment objectives that include (1) destruction of hazardous organics in the waste, (2) volume reduction, and (3) stabilization of hazardous metals and radionuclides in less leachable and more durable final waste forms such as vitreous, ceramic, or cementstabilized products. Thermal treatment to destroy and ultimately oxidize hazardous organics and reduce the mass and volume of mixed wastes, together with stabilization of the inorganic components, has been used at many facilities worldwide (IAEA, 1989). For example, in the United States, incineration (or treatment that is demonstrated to be equivalent to incineration) of Department of Energy (DOE) combustible mixed wastes is generally required to meet Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Land Disposal Restriction (LDR) treatment standards and requirements, Site Treatment Plan commitments, and “Path To Closure” commitments. Other waste streams, such as radioactive liquid wastes currently stored in liquid storage tanks at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) Idaho Nuclear Engineering and Technology Center (INTEC), at the Hanford Site in Washington state, and at the Savannah River Site in South Carolina may also require treatment to reduce waste volume, destroy hazardous organic compounds, and separate or stabilize the radionuclides and hazardous metals in a better waste form for final disposal.
