A Field Evaluation of a Prototype Global Identifier for UF6 Cylinders
The U.S. Department of Energy s National Nuclear Security Administration (DOE/NNSA), members of the U.S. national laboratories, UF6 industry stakeholders, and international inspectorates have been working on developing a global identifier (ID) for UF6 cylinders. This industry-driven project has identified efficiency gains for facility operations, state and/or regional regulation, and inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency. The global ID features standardized alphanumeric characters, a large font, a barcode (for automated reading), and it is affixed to the cylinder. Four years of active engagement with all of the stakeholders has resulted in on the development of user requirements, implementation guidelines, and a preferred design for the ID. Although this project was conceived and has been largely managed from the DOE/NNSA side to address international non-proliferation concerns, it remains an industry-driven initiative. When designing the field evaluation, the NNSA team worked closely with a World Nuclear Transport Institute (WNTI) Working Group on UF6 Cylinder Identification to determine features that would provide the most benefit. The WNTI Working Group consists predominately of industry members associated with cylinder fabrication, UF6 conversion, enrichment, fuel fabrication, and cylinder transport. Despite its industry-laden focus, the DOE/NNSA team realized that a vote of confidence from the IAEA could serve as a catalyst for the overall project, and its eventual implementation. In April of 2016, a field evaluation was conducted to demonstrate how the key features of the identifier would work in an operational setting. A selected team travelled to Vienna to evaluate the benefits of a global identifier in performing a PIV in a cylinder storage area containing ~50-100 cylinders. The mock tag-checking exercise was conducted three separate times, with varying scenarios with three different teams. The first group performed the exercise according to current inspection methods. The second group focused on the addition of a new global identifier to the cylinders, and the third group used the new global identifier with an automated reader. This paper will discuss the preparation and execution of the field evaluation, its results, and the next steps for the Global Cylinder Identifier Project.