Management of TENORMs produced during oil and gas operation

Abstract

Enhanced oil and gas production activities have resulted in the increased production of Technologically Enhanced Naturally Occurring Nuclear Materials (TENORMs). This has raised a radiological concern for workers, the public and the environment. The available studies have focused on identification and assessment of TENORMs; no attention yet has been given to the safe handling and management of produced TENORMs based on scientific evaluation or adoption of new technology. This paper attempts to present set of recommendations and conceptual understanding of a technology to manage TENORMs concerns, as part of a larger system development program of TENORMs risk management in the oil and gas industry. These recommendations stress the importance of new approaches of special personal protective equipment shielded with an effective and lightweight layer of leaded material. It also introduces a novel Thermo-chemi-nuclear Conversion Technology (TCT) to treat TENORMs. This technology is designed to manage TENORMs wastes along with household, sewage, industrial effluent, and hazardous wastes, and eventually convert them into fuel and renewable energy.