Sequoyah Fuels Corporation
Encyclopedia
Sequoyah Fuels Corporation owned and operated a uranium processing plant near Gore, Oklahoma. The company was created in 1983 as a subsidiary of Kerr-McGee
. In 1988 it was sold to General Atomics
, close to the Illinois River
and Interstate 40
. The plant started construction in 1968 and began operation in 1970. It converted yellowcake uranium into uranium hexafluoride
. In 1987 it started converting depleted uranium
hexafluoride
into depleted uranium tetrafluoride
. The plant ceased operation in 1993.
The plant was operated under Kerr-McGee Nuclear Corporation. In 1983 KMNC split into Quivira Mining Corporation
and Sequoyah Fuels Corporation. The latter was given control of the plant. In 1988 Sequoyah Fuels Corporation was sold to General Atomics
.
In 2008 a company named International Isotopes said it would buy equipment and intellectual property from the Sequoyah Fuels Corp plant. The equipment would be used in a new location. It would be used for converting depleted uranium
hexafluoride to depleted uranium tetrafluoride
.
Kerr-McGee
The Kerr-McGee Corporation, founded in 1929, was an energy company involved in the exploration and production of oil and gas. On June 23, 2006, Houston-based Anadarko Petroleum Corporation agreed to acquire Kerr-McGee in an all-cash transaction totaling $16.5 billion plus the assumption of $2.6...
. In 1988 it was sold to General Atomics
General Atomics
General Atomics is a nuclear physics and defense contractor headquartered in San Diego, California. General Atomics’ research into fission and fusion matured into competencies in related technologies, allowing the company to expand into other fields of research...
Uranium processing plant
The plant is located near Gore, OklahomaGore, Oklahoma
Gore is a town in Sequoyah County, Oklahoma, United States. It is part of the Fort Smith, Arkansas-Oklahoma Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 850 at the 2000 census...
, close to the Illinois River
Illinois River
The Illinois River is a principal tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately long, in the State of Illinois. The river drains a large section of central Illinois, with a drainage basin of . This river was important among Native Americans and early French traders as the principal water route...
and Interstate 40
Interstate 40
Interstate 40 is the third-longest major east–west Interstate Highway in the United States, after I-90 and I-80. Its western end is at Interstate 15 in Barstow, California; its eastern end is at a concurrency of U.S. Route 117 and North Carolina Highway 132 in Wilmington, North Carolina...
. The plant started construction in 1968 and began operation in 1970. It converted yellowcake uranium into uranium hexafluoride
Uranium hexafluoride
Uranium hexafluoride , referred to as "hex" in the nuclear industry, is a compound used in the uranium enrichment process that produces fuel for nuclear reactors and nuclear weapons. It forms solid grey crystals at standard temperature and pressure , is highly toxic, reacts violently with water...
. In 1987 it started converting depleted uranium
Depleted uranium
Depleted uranium is uranium with a lower content of the fissile isotope U-235 than natural uranium . Uses of DU take advantage of its very high density of 19.1 g/cm3...
hexafluoride
Uranium hexafluoride
Uranium hexafluoride , referred to as "hex" in the nuclear industry, is a compound used in the uranium enrichment process that produces fuel for nuclear reactors and nuclear weapons. It forms solid grey crystals at standard temperature and pressure , is highly toxic, reacts violently with water...
into depleted uranium tetrafluoride
Uranium tetrafluoride
Uranium tetrafluoride is a green crystalline solid compound of uranium with an insignificant vapor pressure and very slight solubility in water. Uranium in its tetravalent state is very important in different technological processes...
. The plant ceased operation in 1993.
The plant was operated under Kerr-McGee Nuclear Corporation. In 1983 KMNC split into Quivira Mining Corporation
Quivira Mining Corporation
The Quivira Mining Corporation was a uranium mining company owned by Kerr-McGee Corporation. It was formed from the Kerr-McGee Nuclear Corporation in 1983....
and Sequoyah Fuels Corporation. The latter was given control of the plant. In 1988 Sequoyah Fuels Corporation was sold to General Atomics
General Atomics
General Atomics is a nuclear physics and defense contractor headquartered in San Diego, California. General Atomics’ research into fission and fusion matured into competencies in related technologies, allowing the company to expand into other fields of research...
.
In 2008 a company named International Isotopes said it would buy equipment and intellectual property from the Sequoyah Fuels Corp plant. The equipment would be used in a new location. It would be used for converting depleted uranium
Depleted uranium
Depleted uranium is uranium with a lower content of the fissile isotope U-235 than natural uranium . Uses of DU take advantage of its very high density of 19.1 g/cm3...
hexafluoride to depleted uranium tetrafluoride
Uranium tetrafluoride
Uranium tetrafluoride is a green crystalline solid compound of uranium with an insignificant vapor pressure and very slight solubility in water. Uranium in its tetravalent state is very important in different technological processes...
.
Quotes from American Journal of Public Health
"At the Sequoyah Fuels Corporation facility in eastern OklahomaOklahomaOklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
, yellow cake was treated with nitric acidNitric acidNitric acid , also known as aqua fortis and spirit of nitre, is a highly corrosive and toxic strong acid.Colorless when pure, older samples tend to acquire a yellow cast due to the accumulation of oxides of nitrogen. If the solution contains more than 86% nitric acid, it is referred to as fuming...
for the purification and extraction of uraniumUraniumUranium is a silvery-white metallic chemical element in the actinide series of the periodic table, with atomic number 92. It is assigned the chemical symbol U. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons...
."
...
"On January 4, 1986, Sequoyah Fuels Corporation experienced a rupture in an overfilled uranium hexafluorideUranium hexafluorideUranium hexafluoride , referred to as "hex" in the nuclear industry, is a compound used in the uranium enrichment process that produces fuel for nuclear reactors and nuclear weapons. It forms solid grey crystals at standard temperature and pressure , is highly toxic, reacts violently with water...
cylinder that contained an estimated 29,500 pounds of gaseous uranium hexafluoride. The incident led to the death of a 26 year-old worker, James Harrison, and the hospitalization of 37 of the 42 onsite workers. Health care providers examined up to 100 people, many from the local community, for health effects and 21 were hospitalized for short periods."
...
"The Sequoyah Fuels Corporation was able to reopen after the accident, but the company never fully recovered. In 1988, Kerr McGee sold the facility to General AtomicsGeneral AtomicsGeneral Atomics is a nuclear physics and defense contractor headquartered in San Diego, California. General Atomics’ research into fission and fusion matured into competencies in related technologies, allowing the company to expand into other fields of research...
. Another acute release occurred at the facility in 1992. In 1993, the plant was permanently shut down and began a long decommissioning process to address onsite contamination, most of which came from routine operation."
--Brugge at al, Am J of Public Health, 2007 Sep
See also
- Church Rock uranium mill spillChurch Rock Uranium Mill SpillThe Church Rock Uranium Mill Spill occurred in New Mexico, USA, in 1979 when United Nuclear Corporation's Church Rock uranium mill tailings disposal pond breached its dam. Over 1,000 tons of radioactive mill waste and millions of gallons of mine effluent flowed into the Puerco River, and...
- Uranium mining in the United StatesUranium mining in the United StatesUranium mining in the United States is the extraction of uranium-bearing ore from the earth. While uranium is used primarily for nuclear power, uranium mining had its roots in the production of uranium-bearing ore in 1898 with the mining of carnotite-bearing sandstones of the Colorado Plateau in...
- Kerr-McGeeKerr-McGeeThe Kerr-McGee Corporation, founded in 1929, was an energy company involved in the exploration and production of oil and gas. On June 23, 2006, Houston-based Anadarko Petroleum Corporation agreed to acquire Kerr-McGee in an all-cash transaction totaling $16.5 billion plus the assumption of $2.6...
- General AtomicsGeneral AtomicsGeneral Atomics is a nuclear physics and defense contractor headquartered in San Diego, California. General Atomics’ research into fission and fusion matured into competencies in related technologies, allowing the company to expand into other fields of research...
- uranium hexafluorideUranium hexafluorideUranium hexafluoride , referred to as "hex" in the nuclear industry, is a compound used in the uranium enrichment process that produces fuel for nuclear reactors and nuclear weapons. It forms solid grey crystals at standard temperature and pressure , is highly toxic, reacts violently with water...