DECONTAMINATION SERVICES

 SUMMARISED PROCESS DESCRIPTION

 The purpose of the Decontamination Services Section is to decontaminate components, material and oil originating from dismantled uranium processing plants, which have been contaminated by uraniferous compounds.

 The decontamination facility includes the following operational sections:

 Dry Decontamination Facility: - removal of large quantities of contaminants by mainly scraping and “steam” cleaning. This facility is “geometrically safe” to allow for the decontamination of components and material contaminated with highly enriched uranium compounds.  

 Wet Decontamination Facility: - this facility consists of two decontamination lines and the processes are similar to conventional chemical cleaning operations.  Uraniferous contamination is removed by dipping batches of components into a series of chemical cleaning tanks according to procedures developed for specific material types and categories.

 Oil Purification Facility: - contaminated oil on the Pelindaba site is decontaminated in a uniquely designed facility, and the removal of uranium from the oil is based on liquid/liquid extraction technology.