Other
Scientific paper
Jan 1997
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1997aipc..387.1443s&link_type=abstract
Space technology and applications international forum (STAIF - 97). AIP Conference Proceedings, Volume 387, pp. 1443-1446 (1997
Other
Fuel Elements, Preparation, Reloading, And Reprocessing, Thermoelectric, Electrogasdynamic And Other Direct Energy Conversion, Spaceborne And Space Research Instruments, Apparatus, And Components
Scientific paper
Nuclear Materials Technology (NMT) Division of Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) has initiated a development program to recover & purify plutonium-238 oxide from impure sources. A glove box line has been designed and a process flowsheet developed to perform this task on a large scale. Our initial effort has focused on purification of 238PuO2 fuel that fails to meet General Purpose Heat Source (GPHS) specifications because of impurities. The most notable non-actinide impurity was silicon, but aluminum, chromium, iron and nickel were also near or in excess of limits specified by GPHS fuel powder specifications. 234U was by far the largest actinide impurity observed in the feed material because it is the daughter product of 238Pu by alpha decay. An aqueous method based on nitric acid was selected for purification of the 238PuO2 fuel. All aqueous processing used high purity reagents, and was performed in PTFE apparatus to minimize introduction of new contaminants. Impure 238PuO2 was finely milled, then dissolved in refluxing HNO3/HF and the solution filtered. The dissolved 238Pu was adjusted to the trivalent state by an excess of reducing reagents to compensate for radiolytic effects, precipitated as plutonium(III) oxalate, and recovered by filtration. The plutonium(III) oxalate was subsequently calcined to convert the plutonium to the oxide. Decontamination factors for silicon, phosphorus and uranium were excellent. Decontamination factors for aluminum, chromium, iron and nickel were very good. The purity of the 238PuO2 recovered from this operation was significantly better than specifications. Efforts continue to develop the capability for efficient, safe, cost-effective, and environmentally acceptable methods to recover and purify 238PuO2 fuel in a glove box environment. Plutonium-238 materials targeted for recovery includes impure oxide and scrap items that are lean in 238Pu values.
Avens Larry R.
Espinoza Jacob
Foltyn Elizabeth M.
Jarvinen Gordon D.
Rinehart Gary H.
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