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1.0 INTRODUCTION 



On July 31, 1976, an 80-gallon nuclear waste container was recovered by 

 the Environmental Protection Agency from a depth of 2783 meters in the 

 Northwestern Atlantic Ocean at a point approximately 120 miles east of the 

 Delaware-Maryland border. The container was hoisted aboard the research 

 vessel, Cape Henlopen , where it was photographed, and samples were immediately 

 taken of corrosion products and attached biological growths. The container 

 was then encapsulated in a jet engine shipping container which was flushed 

 thoroughly with argon to minimize any further corrosion. The elapsed time 

 from when the container first broke the surface of the water to the start of 

 the argon flushing process was two hours. 



The purpose of this report is to describe the photographic, chemical, and 

 biological analyses performed on board the ship by University of Delaware 

 personnel during those two hours and to present the results of those analyses. 



2.0 EXPERIMENTAL METHODS 



Both the surface condition of the container as it came on board the ship, 

 and the recovery operation itself, were documented photographically. 

 Thirty-five mm color slides of the container were taken as soon as it broke 

 the surface in order to record the volume and distribution of corrosion 

 products before any changes due to decreasing pressure and increasing 

 temperature took place. After the container was secured to the deck of the 

 ship, photographs were taken in a systematic way so that they could be related 

 to the correct position on the exterior of the drum upon subsequent laboratory 

 examination. 



