This my own post from raging bull.
By: ROB $$$$
Reply To: None Sunday, 17 Sep 2000 at 1:22 PM EDT
Post # of 786
Popular Science October Issue:
Page 26..Nuclear Waste...Sealed with a Hiss.
The Meltdown at Ukraine's Chernobyl unit 4 is still the world's worst nuclear accident,and even after 14 years the disaster continues in the form of radioactive particles that float away as dust or leach into the soil.But a solution may be on the way from the Washington,D.C.-based company Eurotech,which claims a new material called Ekor can safely encapsulate radioactive material.
Invented by scientists in Moscow,Ekor is a silicon-based foam that looks like marshmallow.It can withstand radiation of up to 10 billion rads (350 rads is enough to kill a person).Sprayed onto nuclear waste by a robot,Ekor is fire-and waterproof.
Ekor was first used in March,on one of the hot spots in Chernobyl's Unit 4,where radoative wasted melted through the floor of the reactor and formed a debris pile in the basement.Unlike previous coatings,Ekor effectively immobilized the debris.
However,"it was never intended to be a shield,"says Don Hahnfeldt,president of Eurotech.Only an additive such as boron would reduce the radiation given off the pile.
Although the Unites States doesn't have any sites as contaminated as Chernobyl,it has plenty of nuclear waste with potential to contaminate groundwater or air.Recently,Eurotech demonstrated Ekor to officials at the Hanford nuclear waste site in Richland,Washington.There,Ekor could be useful for sealing leaking tanks and insulating containers for transport.
The Department of Energy and state environmental agencies are currently certifying Ekor.It could be in use as early as the end of this year.---Christopher Miller
NoDebtatAll...thanks goes to you for bringing this article to my attention.Now after I have put the article on the thread I hope that you all enjoy it.
Regards ROB
