A test of a portable waste glassification system is scheduled this fall at Oak Ridge, Tenn.

Envitco, which will design one Hanford melter, teamed with Westinghouse Savannah River Co. to build the $16 million "Transportable Vitrification System." The machine will be tested on about 176,000 pounds of low-level mixed radioactive sludge and dried soils.

If the test run is successful, several modifications still will be needed before the pilot system can be used on a regular basis, Oak Ridge officials said.

Ultimately, it could be moved from site to site to handle certain types of low-level wastes. It isn't designed for high-level radioactive wastes, however.

Meanwhile, tests would have to be done at each site to see if the equipment can handle specific wastes, Oak Ridge officials said. Also, while the system is portable, it could take two to three months to dismantle it, move it and set back up.