The environmental impacts of borosilicate glass and crystalline ceramic waste form are similar with the more developed borosilicate glass technology being relatively less complex and less expensive to implement at this time. The selection of borosilicate glass for the West Valley Demonstration Project is consistent with applicable draft federal standards and regulations and draft DOE acceptance criteria relating to high-level waste disposal in a geologic repository. 20 refs., 2 figs., 2 tabs.

In 1980, the US Department of Energy (DOE) established the West Valley Solidification Project as the result of legislation passed by the US Congress. The purpose of this project was to carry out a high level nuclear waste management demonstration project at the Western New York Nuclear Service Center in West Valley, New York. The DOE authorized the Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL), which is operated by Battelle Memorial Institute, to assess alternative processes for treatment and solidification of the WNYNSC high-level wastes. The Process Alternatives Study is the suject of this report. Two pretreatment approaches and several waste form processes were selected for evaluation in this study. The two waste treatment approaches were the salt/sludge separation process and the combined waste process. Both terminal and interim waste form processes were studied.