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Ion Exchange Decontamination System Print E-mail
Customer:         Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL)
Project:             NRU Reactor Piping Ion Exchange Decontamination System
Location:          AECL’s Chalk River Laboratories NRU Research and Medical Isotope Nuclear Reactor
Services:          Engineering, design, procurement, fabrication, assembly, testing

Scope of Work:

  • Engineering and design including stress and seismic analysis, radiation shielding design and system process design in accordance with  ASME Sec.VIII,  B31.1, and CSA 299.2 (equivalent to ISO 9002)
  • Design and implementation of  I & C, logic controls, graphical user interface and supervisory computer control system
  • Design drawings, calculations, fabrication procedures, testing documentation, Quality Assurance package, and installation & maintenance manuals
  • System and components fabrication, assembly and inspection
  • Functional and performance testing

System Function and Features:

This CANDEREM© Nuclear Decontamination Ion Exchange System comprises five custom ion exchange columns designed to provide resin transfer capabilities while the remaining system is on-line.  Offset distribution headers provide even flow of the process fluid through the resin.
The design of the decontamination system assures that the majority of the activity is removed by ion exchange.  Optimization of the shielding design resulted in a shielding configuration which groups the IX Columns in the centre of the skid with a common shielding wall around them.
The IX skid is fully enclosed in order to contain fugitive emissions, and provides a top collar for connection to an active ventilation system.  As this system is designed for local manual control, all valve handles are extended to the outside of the enclosure through stem seals.  All process instrumentation is grouped onto one panel for ease of operation.


The IX skid weighs approximately 25 tons.