U.S. DOE, National Energy Technology Laboratory-Morgantown, P.O. Box 880, Morgantown, WV 26507-0880

A -- DOWN-HOLE, REAL-TIME TRITIUM MONITOR FOR GROUNDWATER AND SOIL GAS/VAPOR DUE 040300 POC Ron K. Staubly, 304/285-4991 WEB: DOE/NETL Business Page, http://www.netl.doe.gov/business/solicit/. E-MAIL: Ron K. Staubly, rstaub@netl.doe.gov. THIS IS NOT A SOLICITATION ANNOUNCEMENT FOR PROPOSALS AND NO CONTRACT WILL BE AWARDED FROM THIS ANNOUNCEMENT. NO REIMBURSEMENT WILL BE MADE FOR ANY COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH PROVIDING INFORMATION IN RESPONSE TO THIS ANNOUNCEMENT AND ANY FOLLOW-UP INFORMATION REQUESTS. NO TELEPHONE CALLS REQUESTING A SOLICITATION WILL BE ACCEPTED OR ACKNOWLEDGED. THIS SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE MAY OR MAY NOT RESULT IN A SOLICITATION. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), National Energy Technology Center (NETL) is performing a market search for contractors with down-hole tritium monitors that are needed to perform low-level radiation measurements in deep monitoring wells at DOE Nuclear Complex sites, where tritium is the principal radionuclide. In addition, detectors are needed for in-situ measurements of tritium in soil gas and vapor. At the Nevada Test Site (NTS), for example, there is estimated to be 100 million picocuries (pCi) of tritium potentially available to the groundwater. It is anticipated that groundwater at the site will require monitoring for tritium for approximately 100 years. Technology currently available to DOE for in-situ measurement of tritium concentration cannot achieve the performance specifications required to provide detection of low concentrations of tritium within the physical constraints of deep hydraulic systems. Some technologies examined in the past are too large for down-hole use, while others suffer from unproven reliability (calibration stability) or have insufficient detection limits. In addition, the impact of the geochemical composition of the groundwater on the detection limits of these commercially available instruments is uncertain. Contractors with technologies that fulfill the following criteria are encouraged to submit information in response to this market search. Expeditious laboratory verification testing and possible field demonstrations would be desired for qualifying technologies, as there is a desire to have a technology or technologies for field demonstration and deployment forgroundwater by fiscal year 2002. To that end, the following are anticipated performance requirements for a full-scale demonstration at the NTS: The monitor must be deployable down-hole with a maximum inside diameter of 1.75 in (4.45 cm) (i.e., fit inside of a 2-in (5.08-cm) diameter well). Monitor must be capable of logging measurements as frequent as daily. It should have a duty cycle of at least 25 years, with maintenance required no more than yearly. Monitor must be able to withstand the harsh operating conditions of a deep well environment: depths of 800 to 5,000 ft (244 to 1,525 m) (target depth for performance: 2,000 ft (610 m)), pressures of 0 to 1,800 pounds per square inch, and temperatures from 50 to 165oF (10 to 74oC). The monitor must have a minimum resolution of 1,000 pCi per liter (L) (as low as 200 pCi/L is preferable), with a range of 1,000 to 200,000 pCi/L at an accuracy of "10%. The monitor should be capable of interrogation of a subsurface zone of interest 12 in (30 cm) or less. Other properties or contaminants of concern to measure at the NTS include total conductivity and gross gamma. The well locations are remote with no conventional electricity available (requires battery or solar power -- or other alternatives where applicable). Preferably, the units would require no periodic calibrations, but if required, the calibrations should be easy to perform in-situ. The technology must be capable of remotely downloading data and should include a self-diagnostic system including alarms for loss of signal or power, etc. The technology must result in significant cost savings over baseline monitoring methods. Under the current DOE baseline method, large volumes of water are pumped from deep wells with either dedicated pumps or pumps installed for each sampling, and water samples are sent to on-/off-site laboratories for analysis. Ultimately, the technology must be acceptable to regulators and stakeholders. For soil gas and vapor measurements in addition to groundwater such as at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) Site 300, there is an immediate need for deployable technologies for both site characterization and post-closure monitoring. Anticipated performance requirements for a full-scale demonstration include: The monitor must be deployable downhole with a maximum inside diameter of 1.75 in (4.45 cm) (i.e., fit inside a 2-in (5.08-cm) diameter well or borehole), or be deployable for near real-time readings with a push-technology (e.g., cone penetrometer). Dedicated monitors must be capable of measurements as frequent as weekly, and Have a duty cycle of at least 5 to 10 years, with maintenance no more than yearly. Monitor must be able to operate at depths up to 400 ft (122 m), 50 ft of head pressure, and temperatures of 68 to 86oF (20 to 30oC). The monitor must have a resolution of between 100 pCi/L with an accuracy of + 20% to 1,000 pCi/L with an accuracy of +10%. The monitor should be capable of interrogating a zone of 24 in (60 cm) or less. For soil-gas measurements, there is a need to also measure percent moisture. It is desired that fixed instruments operate off of batteries, solar power, or otherwise operate independent of power grids. The technology must result in significant cost savings over baseline monitoring methods. Under the current DOE baseline method for soil gas/vapor measurements of tritium, large volumes of air/soil vapor must be pumped from boreholes to obtain sufficient quantities of water with tritium for analysis. Samples are then sent to an offsite laboratory with turnaround for analysis taking a minimum of 30 days. Ultimately, the technology must be acceptable to regulators and stakeholders. ANY INTERESTED FIRM WITH A TECHNOLOGY THAT COULD FULFILL THESE REQUIREMENTS SHOULD SUBMIT A BRIEF CAPABILITY STATEMENT (MAXIMUM 10 PAGES) FOLLOWING THE TEMPLATE FOUND AT THE DOE/NETL WEB SITE AT http://www.netl.doe.gov/business/solicit/. THIS INFORMATION IS LISTED UNDER THE TITLE OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT. INFORMATION SHOULD FOCUS ON RESULTS FROM ANY PREVIOUS TESTING ALONG WITH THE CAPABILITY TO PROVIDE THE TECHNICAL SERVICES IDENTIFIED ABOVE. STANDARD COMPANY BROCHURES ARE NOT DESIRED. IN ADDITION TO THE CAPABILITY STATEMENT, REFERENCE(S) OF PREVIOUS DOE STUDIES, OTHER REFERENCES AND RELATED WEB SITE LINKS ARE PROVIDED AT THE DOE/NETL WEB SITE ADDRESS LISTED ABOVE. PLEASE INCLUDE YOUR SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN STATUS, UNDER SIC CODE 8731, IN YOUR CAPABILITY STATEMENT. DO NOT INCLUDE PROPRIETARY AND/OR BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL DATA. THE DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION OF THE CAPABILITY STATEMENT IS April 3, 2000. Six (6) copies of this document should be submitted to Ron K. Staubly, U.S. DOE/NETL, P.O. Box 880, 3610 Collins Ferry Road, Morgantown, WV 26507-0880 Posted 02/16/00 (W-SN426049). (0047)

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