Balance of Facilities
The Vit Plant’s Balance of Facilities (BOF) is made up of 14 buildings and 53 systems, plus interconnecting piping, electrical, and other utilities that provide support functions to the Low-Activity Waste (LAW), Effluent Management Facility, and Analytical Laboratory facilities.
The support utilities include systems for:
- Electrical power distribution
- Backup power
- Compressed air
- Steam
- Chilled, process, potable, and fire water
- Communication and control
BOF Fast Facts
The Vit Plant’s BOF includes:
- A chilled water system that could cool 23,500 houses
- An electrical power distribution that could power 2,250 houses
- A compressed air system that could fill the Goodyear blimp in three minutes
- A fuel oil storage that could fill the gas tanks of 11,500 cars
- A steam plant that could heat 3,300 houses
Effluent Management Facility 
During DFLAW vitrification, secondary liquid, called effluent, is generated from the melter off-gas system and when transfer pipes are flushed. These liquids go to the Effluent Management Facility processing building, where excess water is evaporated and transferred to Hanford’s nearby Liquid Effluent Retention Facility, and the remaining concentrate is sent back into the vitrification process.
EMF contains three structures: a main processing building, an electrical powerhouse, and a utility systems building.
