# alot of pm's



## dsinjc (Oct 25, 2007)

Don't you hate it when you know were there is a whole bunch of stuff like rhodium, platinum and so forth , but you can't get to it.well I can get to some of it but there is a slight problem.the platinum is hot , not thermally, radioactively. I work in the nuke field and there is literaly tons of the stuff all over, stainless, alot of pm's but alot of it is hot !! so would disolving the platinum break it down far enough to make it not radioactively hot anylonger does anyone have any insight on this.Also is there a good field test for platinum ??


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## Irons (Oct 26, 2007)

processing the waste themselves. Someone dumped in too much at once and the resulting radiation and thermal burst killed a bunch of people and contaminated a wide area.

The neighbors were not happy.

Those responsible, what little they found of them, were buried in lead caskets.

Here's a pdf from Oak Ridge on the cost of reprocessing spent nuclear fuel.

http://www.ornl.gov/~webworks/cppr/y2001/pres/116757.pdf


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## dsinjc (Oct 26, 2007)

Just thought it might be a possable business venture, to set up a lab to proccess stuff for the government and nuke plants, but perhaps i was wrong .............I know that the government has a precious metals program , but i understand that it isn't very effective much like most government programs.


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## aflacglobal (Oct 26, 2007)

Not to act like i know anything but here is an interesting story. It might explain how Aflac got to be so scientific and mechanically inclined.

My father was a mechanic all his life. What kind you ask? Well, it didn't matter. If you could put it together, he could take it apart and fix it. (anything)

Anyhow, When i was just a kid. Just 8-9 my dad took me to a place where he use to work in the 1950"s. We lived in a little town in upstate Tenn. called Erwin. It is in the same chain of mountains as Oak Ridge, but several miles to the north of all the others and in total seclusion so to speak. The city only had about 3,500 people. Today the city is not much bigger. The history of the Appalachian mountains can still be felt there today. Time moves at a slower pace in this region. It is really nice to still find a place where you feel at peace with nature and it's beauty. Oh yeah, and almost no crime. Maybe a bad check or two, something of that nature
nothing really serious.

We lived about 2-3 miles from the complex. Their is a stream that borders on the north side of the complex that starts about 4 miles upstream at the local fish hatchery ( Trout :wink: ). Sometimes these fish escape thru the gates and got into the creek. So as you can guess it was a pure gold mine of fish. The game warden would bust your ass if he caught you in that creek. It ran for about 6 miles and emptied into the Nolichucky River. It didn't matter if you had fishing license or not better stay your ass out. They use to let us kids fish and not even bother us.  

I spent untold hours on this little 8-10 foot wide, maybe 3 feet deep creek.
I went from start to end many times over the coming years. 
What does this have to do with anything ? Well the creek ran about 1/4 mile thru the complex. Oh baby, You know i did. :shock:
I just had to fish that part. Yellow whole corn is the trick for those who don't know. God i miss those days. lol Anyway the creek runs thru the north side of the complex. As it penetrates the perimeter fence there use to be a large group of woods. Which by the way was the only view blocking obstacle to their field of view for 1/4 mile and the only existing plant life on the compound. No other trees or anything. I often wondered when i got older if this was and experiment of some sorts. When this place was built it was the first and to my knowledge still is the only place the U.S. produces nuclear fuel for it's atomic sub fleet. But, i wondered if the trees were there for a reason. 

Oh, and it gets weirder. Inside the overgrown area was a small town so to speak. well, not a town so to say, but like a outpost type deal. I figured at one time it could have been like base housing. Maybe for the workers. It wasn't military style. It was like any town U.S.A. I wonder if they also wanted to see the effects it might have on people. :shock: 
The woods were well overgrown and the housing was starting to fall in. It had been abandoned many years before my discovery. To my left and about 300 yards from the tree line was the main complex surrounded by the inside security parameter fence. I was between the two fences. The one on the outside, then the open area with the trees and then another set of fences before you were in the compound. To my right and about 300 yards was an open area with drums stacked on a mini rail car system and parked in front of what appeared to be a concrete entrance to a underground mine shaft. This would latter be confirmed by us, Yes us ! You don't think i was going to let the biggest find of my 10 year old life go unheard did you ? Shit i was giving tours to my neighbor buddies. :twisted: Anyway, we found some air shafts that confirmed they might be tunnels. 200 yards to the west of the shaft was a open pools of water. It was about the size a small pond. I remember this most of all. It bubbled. I mean even with snow on the ground. Their was always a mist associated with it also. I don't believe it was water vapor either. Another few hundred yards behind it was the railway spur where their shipping was done. 

Now as the creek wound thru the parameter it had to run under the train tracks to get to the river. This is where the train trussle or big ass pipe for those who don't know runs under the train tracks. Perfect place for the big trout. It was here one day i got my ass caught. :shock: :shock: 
That's right, The ducks goose is cooked. 

Well as luck would have it, not to mention my striking good child looks
and maybe the crying had something to do with it to. lol But the soldier, yeah that's what he was machine gun and all, that caught me just scared the shit out of me and sent me on my way. Never to penetrate the fence line again, i might add. At 10-11 years old this will scare the shit out of you. I knew i wasn't suppose to be there. :wink: If it was today, god forbid what the outcome would be.

My father told me things from his years of working there. I would confirm these by my little fact finding excursions. He never knew or he would have beat my ass. My father was a retire military veteran and a true patron. Back then we all hated the Russians. It's the way we were taught to think by the man. His service in the military is what got him the job there. This may sound cliché, but i never really heard him going into great detail about what he really did do. Not much of the family left today to ask either, so i guess i will just have to wonder. 

The point :idea: I almost forgot. I remember him bring tools home from the plant. He would mix up a solution of something that also came from the plant. He would put this in a meta drum. I do remember it has to be metal. Why ? I don't know. He would mix the powder with hot water and fill the drum. He would add the tools and they had to stay submerged for at least 30 days. Now what is this ? Hell if i know or understand it.

Daddy told me that some of the tools that they used were expose to levels of radiation. Some where higher than others. The higher ones where used and then place in bags. Then the sealed bags were placed in drums, fill with some compound and then the drums were sealed and sent to the onsite storage unit. Remember the shaft. :idea: Those that were exposed to lower levels of radiation were also subject to this procedure.
These were brand new right out the box, use them one time and toss them. As a true mechanic it kills a person to do this. He said even the tools that didn't get trashed were subject to a wash down procedure for decontamination. I guess this is what the chemicals were ????

Anyway, a nice little story for you there. lol Aflac style. 
The name of the company you say ? NFS Nuclear Fuel Services.
If you ride by there today you will see signs saying. No pictures, Stay away, Restricted. It is today patrolled around the outside fence line by men in jeeps. There are multiple fence barriers, cameras, even remote sensing and patrol dogs. A far cry from the yesteryears.


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## catfish (Oct 27, 2007)

Hey Aflac:

Very interesting story. 

Keep up the good work.

Tom


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## aflacglobal (Oct 27, 2007)

Thanks, tom.

Where you been hiding yourself ? 

NFS > http://web.archive.org/web/20060317095801/www.nuclearfuelservices.com/timeline_more.htm

You won't believe this. I tried to look it up on google satellite, and the map will not let me zoom into that region where the plant is located. Dam terrorist.

Viva George Bush.


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## Noxx (Oct 27, 2007)

Hey catfish, long time no see


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## aflacglobal (Oct 27, 2007)

Now this is dam funny. The time line starts at 1957. I remember daddy saying after he worked their a couple of years that he bought him a 57 chevy. Now that would mean he worked there at least 2-3 years before 1957 ( 1954 ). It also says in the time line that construction started in 1959, so how could they get the contract for the fuel before the plant was even built. They wouldn't have even known if the thing would work.

Weird!!! Maybe thats just where they picked up at.

Knock :!: knock :!: knock :!: 

Is that homeland security at my door. :shock: :shock: :shock: 

Ducks gotta fly. Later.


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