The Modelling Investigation of Wiikit Ore as Radioactive Waste Matrices by Studying Behavior of its U and Th Atoms

Hosseinpour Khanmiri, Mohhamad

Document Type : Research Paper

Author

Mohhamad Hosseinpour Khanmiri

Abstract

This research is dedicated to modeling the wiikit uranium ore for HLW radioactive waste storing. At first, during X-ray Crystallography it was determined that wiikit has metamict structure. Then SEM revealed the U phase and different mineral phases that could be regarded as a reason for being amorphous. EMP was used to determine the chemical composition of the sample showing that wiikit contains 4% of uranium. The radioactive elements U and Th were separated by ion exchange chromatography using Dowex АВ-17-8 anion exchanger. During the next stage, the U and Th sources were prepared by molecular plating. Alpha-spectroscopy of the U and Th sources revealed high deficit in ²³⁴U/²³⁸U activity ratios, which violates secular equilibrium in the series of ²³⁸U decay. Finally, according to the results obtained by the behavior analysis of the U and Th atoms in this wiikit, modeling of the wiikit as ²³⁷Np, ²³⁹Pu, ²⁴¹Am, ²⁴²Cm, ²⁴⁴Cm radioactive waste matrices and other heavy radioisotopes was performed when neutral oxides such as Al₂O₃,SiO₂, Fe₂O₃ were added.

Keywords

20.1001.1.17351871.1396.38.2.6.6

References

[1] H. Muller, Metamict minerals as model substances for radwaste, Conference on the treatment and containment of radioactive waste and its disposal in environments, Cape Town, South Africa, 7-12 September (1986).

[2] В.В. Чердынцев. Уран-234. М., Атомиздат, (1969). (V.V. Cherdyntsev, “Uranium-234”, Atomizdat (1969)) (in Russian).

[3] П.И. Чалов. Изотопное фракционирование природного урана. Фрунзе, (1967). (P.I.. Chalov, “Isotopic fractionation of natural uranium, Frunze (1967) (in Russian).

[4] J.K. Osmond, J.B. Cowart, Natural uranium and thorium series disequilibrium: New approaches to geochemical problems, Nuclear Sci. Appl. 1 (1982) 303–352.

[5] N. Ivanovich, R.S. Harmon, eds., Uranium Series Disequilibrium. Application to Environmental Problems, Clarendon Press, Oxford (1982).

[6] И.Е. Старик, Форма нахождения и условия первичной миграции радиоэлементов в природе, Успехи химии. 12 (1943) 287. (I.E. Starik, Forma nakhozhdeniya i usloviya pervichnoy migratsii radioelementov v prirode, Uspekhi Khimii. 12 (1943) 287 (in Russian).

[7] И.Е. Старик и др. Труды V сессии комиссии по определению абсолютного возраста геологических формаций. М. Акад. НаукСССР. (1958). (I.E. Starik i dr. Trudy V sessii komissii po opredeleniyu absolyutnogo vozrasta geologicheskikh formatsiy. M. Akad. NaukSSSR. (1958) (in Russian).

[8] И.Е. Старик, К.Ф. Лазарев, О форме нахождения атомов урана и тория в радиоактивных минералах, Радиохимия. 1 (1959) 60–65. (I.E. Starik, K.F. Lazarev, On the form of uranium and thorium atoms in radioactive minerals, Radiokhimiya. 1 (1959) 60–65 (in Russian).

[9] И.Е. Старик, Н.И. Полевая, Выщелачиваемость ThX и RdTh из минералов, Труды Радиевого института Акад. НаукСССР. 6 (1957) 104–118. (I.E. Starik, N.I. Polevaya, Viishelachivaemost ThX i RdTh iz mineralov, Trudy radievogo instituta Akad. Nauk SSSR, 6 (1957) 104–118. (in Russian).

[10] A. Kobashi, T. Tominaga, Study on physicochemical states of uranium, thorium, and radium isotopes in Some Radioactive minerals by the leaching method, Radiochim. Acta. 30 (1982) 205–212.

[11] G.R. Lumpkin, E.M. Foltyn, R.C Ewing, Thermal recrystallyzation of alpha-recoil damaged minerals of the pyrochlore structure type, J. of Nuclear Materials. 139 (1986) 113–120.

[12] G.R. Lumpkin, R.C. Ewing, Transmission electron microscopy of alpha-decay damage and alteration of betafite, 45^th Annual Meeting of the Electron Microscopy Society of America. (1987) 376–377.

[13] K.A. Richardson, Thorium, uranium, and potassium in the Conway granite. New Hampshire, U.S.A. Natural Radiation Environment (J. A. S. Adams and W.M. Lewder, eds.) Chicago: University of Chicago Press. (1963) 39–50.

[14] A. Kobashi, J. Sato, N. Saito, Radioactive disequilibrium with uranium, thorium and radium isotopes leached from euxenite, Radiochim. Acta. 26 (1979) 107–111.

[15] М.В. Соболева, И.А. Пудовкина, Минералы урана. М. (1957) 332–340 (M.V. Coboleva, I.A. Pudovkina, Uranium minerals. М. (1957) 332–340 (in Russian).

[16] Минералогическая энциклопедия. Под ред. К. Фрея. Л., «Недра», 489 (1985). (Encyclopedia of minerals. Edited by K. Freya. L., «Nedra», 489 (1985) (in Russian).

[17] A.E. Ringwood, Disposal of high-level nuclear Wastes: A geological perspective, Mineral Mag. 49 (1985) 159.

[18] О. Самуэльсон, Ионообменные разделения в аналитической химии, (1966) 288–301 (O. Samuelson, Ion exchange separation in analytical chemistry, (1966) 288–301 (in Russian).

[19] W. Parker, R. Falk, Molecular plating: a method for the electrolytic formation of thin inorganic films, Nucl. Instrum. Meth. 16 (1962) 355–359.

[20] W. Parker, H. Bildstein, N. Getoff, Quantitative Electrodeposition of Thorium and Uranium, Nature. 200 (1963) 457–458.

[21] M. Weber, N. Trautmann, H. Menke, Herstellung duenner Praeparate durch Molecularplating, Inst. für Kernchemie der Univ. Mainz Jahresbericht 1974, Mainz. (1975) 118–121.

[22] P.J. Shirvington, Fixation of radionuclides in the 238U decay series in the vicinity of mineralized zones: the Austatom Uranium Prospect, Northern Territory, Australia, Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta. 47 (1983) 403–412.

[23] Z.Z. Sheng, P.K. Kuroda, Isotopic fractionation of uranium: extremely high enrichments of ²³⁴U in the acid-residues of a Colorado carnotite, Radiochim. Acta. 39 (1986) 131–138.

[24] Z.Z. Sheng, P.K. Kuroda, Further studies on the separation of acid residues with extremely high ²³⁴U/²³⁸U ratios from a Colorado Carnotite, Radiochim. Acta. 40 (1986) 95–102.

Journal of Nuclear Science, Engineering and Technology (JONSAT)

The Modelling Investigation of Wiikit Ore as Radioactive Waste Matrices by Studying Behavior of its U and Th Atoms

References

References

Volume 38, Issue 2 - Serial Number 80
September 2017
Pages 44-52

The Modelling Investigation of Wiikit Ore as Radioactive Waste Matrices by Studying Behavior of its U and Th Atoms

References

References

Volume 38, Issue 2 - Serial Number 80September 2017Pages 44-52

Volume 38, Issue 2 - Serial Number 80
September 2017
Pages 44-52