Munirem Reagents
MuniRem Reagent is a mature and award-winning technology utilizing reduction chemistry to instantly neutralize and degrade explosives and chemical warfare agents(CWA), while also stabilizing metals as the insoluble metal sulfides.
MuniRem is a scalable and versatile solution for a broad range of explosives and munitions constituents including Sarin gas, Mustard (CWA), HMX, RDX, TNT, TNR, DNTs, ADNTs, NBs, NDMA, Black Powder, Ammonium Nitrate, Lead Styphnate, Lead Azide, Nitrocellulose, Nitroguanidine, Nitroglycerine, PBX, PETN, Primer Mix, and reactive Aluminum. The short cleanup time and closeout associated with this technology eliminates the O&M costs (30 – 50% savings) associated with other remediation technologies.
MuniRem Reagents are used in demilitarization and remediation projects at United States Department of Defense installations, in Australia, Canada, South Africa, Taiwan, and commercial manufacturers of explosives worldwide.
MuniRem Reagent comes in a variety of formulations and its application is tailored to each site to ensure optimum performance and desired results. It can be applied as a solid or aqueous solution.
- Disposal of bulk explosives involves spraying MuniRem solution to safely recover and transport the recovered bulk explosives for rapid destruction in reactors containing MuniRem solution.
- Contaminated soils treatment involves mixing MuniRem® powder into the soils and adding water to achieve in-situ or ex-situ remediation.
- Groundwater remediation involves injection of the MuniRem® solution into the site groundwater to instantly degrade the dissolved contaminants and create permeable reactive aquifer solids for long-term treatment of the plume.
- Decontamination applications involve spraying the MuniRem® solution on building walls, large equipment and scrap metals (including bombs shells, bomb components, projectiles); and soaking small-sized equipment in MuniRem® baths. MDAS (5X) decontamination is achieved.
- Alternative to Open Burn/Open Detonation involves application of MuniRem® in solution or powder form to neutralize bulk explosives and destroy residual explosives in different materials traditionally decontaminated by open burning/open detonation.
Traditional Remediation Methods1
MuniRem Reagent
Treatment
Time
- Weeks to months to years
- Dig & haul slow and not scalable
- Combustion takes hours to weeks
- Large expensive, immobile equipment
- Generally requires removal from site
- Results generally achieved in hours to days after application
- Simple and quick setup and application
- Training usually takes 1 week or less
Treatment
Effectiveness
- Dig & haul does not remediate hazardous materials, just moves them elsewhere
- Potentially hazardous pH conditions in alkaline hydrolysis and other treatments
- Incineration & thermal treatments emit large amounts of greenhouse gases
- Rapid, in-situ or ex-situ and 100% eco-friendly mass destruction of contaminant of concern
- Creates innocuous by-product
Application
Safety
- Burdensome, complicated & dangerous
- Careful handling & monitoring required
- Safe room temperature & pH process
- Little danger to the user or community
Cost / Capital
Investment
- High upfront plant and equipment costs
- High upfront and post-treatment costs
- Digging / transportation
- By-product remediation
- Flexible and scalable with a “pay-as-you-go” model
- No material upfront costs
- Typically 30-50% less expensive
MuniRem® is applied at US Department of Defense installations and worldwide to:
- Neutralize recovered bomb contents and decontaminate bomb casings
- Rapidly treat high concentrations of TNT, RDX and HMX in soils
- Degrade explosives in water including pink water to non-detect concentrations
- Degrade explosives in spent activated carbon (GAC) from pink water treatment
- Neutralize highly reactive open burn open detonation (OBOD) ash
- Treat bag house waste which passed TCLP test
- Destroy high explosives and stabilize metals in demilitarization sludge
- Neutralize solid propellants of different particle sizes
- Destroy chemical warfare agents (sulfur mustard, sarin gas, Novichok, etc.) to non-hazardous end-products
- Decontaminate walls in explosives handling and processing buildings using a spray of liquid MuniRem reagent
- Decontaminate demilitarization/militarization equipment