Direct Feed Low-Activity Waste

Click on the photo to see a larger image of the DFLAW graphic.

The U.S. Department of Energy is on the verge of achieving a cleanup commitment that has been decades in the making – vitrifying Hanford’s tank waste through the Direct-Feed Low-Activity Waste (DFLAW) program. “Direct-feed” means waste is separated at a double-shell tank farm to remove the more radioactive portion (solids and cesium) so that the resulting low-activity (less radioactive) waste can be fed directly to the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant’s Low-Activity Waste Facility for immobilization in glass.

DFLAW is an assembly of highly interdependent projects and infrastructure improvements, managed as a program, that will operate together to vitrify and dispose of low-activity waste. Supporting DFLAW requires significant upgrades to Hanford Site infrastructure and coordination and integration among all Site contractors. DFLAW will be the most highly integrated operational program at Hanford.

For more information, please see the Direct Feed Low-Activity Waste Fact Sheet and the Tank-Side Cesium Removal Fact Sheet.