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It could still be transported to New Jersey and dumped
into the Delaware River after treatment, but the flammability of a byproduct
of chemical weapons disposal has been reduced.
Engineers at the Newport Chemical Agent Disposal Facility
in Newport, Ind., said Wednesday they have solved a nagging problem with
wastewater produced by a chemical neutralization process, adjusting the process
to raise the flash point of the wastewater to about 200 degrees Fahrenheit
from the former 68 to 88 degrees Fahrenheit. The flash point is the lowest
temperature at which a volatile liquid produces ignitable vapor.
“Analytical results of caustic wastewater processed
during this limited restart of destruction operations show we have been successful
in removing flammability from the process wastewater,” said Jeffrey Brubaker,
NECDF Site Project Manager in a statement, “and as a result, operators have
begun draining containers of VX into holding tanks within the destruction
facility and neutralization operations are expected to resume this week.”
Unlike Anniston and other weapons disposal facilities,
which burn nerve agent, Newport destroys its bulk VX by mixing the nerve
agent with hot water and lye. The process creates wastewater which must be
treated before being released.
Crews mix the agent with water and lye at 194 degrees
for about an hour, then drop the temperature to 150 degrees and vent nitrogen
through the tanks, which strips away diisopropylamine, the compound believed
to be responsible for the increased flammability.
The diisopropylamine is vented through a series of carbon
filters, which are shipped to a hazardous waste facility.
The Army plans to transport the wastewater from Newport to a DuPont plant
in Deepwater, N.J., where the wastewater would be treated and released into
the Delaware River. The plan still needs approval from the Centers for Disease
Control and has run into opposition from members of New Jersey’s congressional
delegation. |
