The RadPiper robots will first be deployed at the former Portsmouth gaseous diffusion plant, in Piketon, Ohio, which operated from 1954 to 2001 and contains over 75 miles (120 kilometres) of process pipes. Uranium deposits inside the pipes must be located before facilities can be decontaminated, decommissioned and demolished. Up to now, this has been done by external measurements carried out by human crews. This is both time-consuming and hazardous, with workers needing to wear protective clothing and use scaffolding or lifts to reach elevated pipes.
