Chemical Demilitarization

After Congress directed the Army to destroy its entire stockpile of chemical weapons, the Army’s original plan was to destroy the stockpile at the Blue Grass Army Depot by constructing an incineration facility.  However, in response to public concerns regarding incineration, Congress mandated the Army and Department of Defense evaluate the effectiveness of alternative destruction technologies.

After a comprehensive evaluation process, the Department of Defense selected neutralization followed by supercritical water oxidation (SCWO) as the method of destruction.  During the neutralization process, munitions are disassembled using modified reverse assembly.  After the agent and energetics are separated, they are chemically decomposed and neutralized by caustic or water hydrolysis. The resulting chemical compounds are known as “hydrolysates.”  The agent hydrolysate and energetics hydrolysate are destroyed using SCWO units.  The SCWO process subjects the hydrolysates to very high temperature and pressure, breaking them down into carbon dioxide, water and salts. Metal parts are thermally decontaminated in a heated discharge conveyor.  Dunnage, or materials such as the wooden pallets upon which the weapons are stored, are destroyed in the SCWO process.  Solid effluents are recycled or tested prior to disposal in permitted landfills.  Gas effluents are recycled or filtered and monitored before release into the atmosphere.

Through collaborative efforts, BGAD and the Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives  (ACWA) program have worked with the community in selecting the neutralization followed by the SCWO process as the technology to destroy the chemical weapons being stored.  The Bechtel Parsons Blue Grass Team was awarded a contract to design, construct, test, operate and close the Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant.

Currently, the plant site has been cleared and two-lane roads constructed.  Construction is estimated to take about three years to complete.