Recovery of noble metals from fission products
Spent nuclear fuels contain significant quantities of three of the platinum-group metals--ruthenium, rhodium, and palladium--plus a related element, technetium, which is nearly absent in nature. Applications for the ruthenium, rhodium, and palladium are well established, and since the supply of these and other noble metals is largely from foreign sources, they are considered strategic materials. Thus, there is considerable incentive to recover them from nuclear fuels. The technical feasibility of using fission product (FP) noble metals extensively in industry depends on resolution of three major problems: 1. They must be thoroughly decontaminated from all other radioactive materials in the waste stream. 2. They must be separated from one another in very high purity because of internal decay processes. 3. Applications selected must provide appropriate control of radioactivity or the radioisotopes must be removed by isotope-separation techniques or normal decay.
- Research Organization:
- Battelle-Pacific Northwest Laboratories, Richland, WA
- OSTI ID:
- 5459310
- Journal Information:
- Nucl. Technol.; (United States), Vol. 65:2
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Fate of Noble Metals during the Pyroprocessing of Spent Nuclear Fuel
Defense by-products production and utilization program: noble metal recovery screening experiments
Related Subjects
FISSION PRODUCTS
MATERIALS RECOVERY
PALLADIUM
RHODIUM
RUTHENIUM
ANTIMONY OXIDES
BISMUTH OXIDES
CHARCOAL
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
COPPER OXIDES
GLASS
GRAPHITE
LEAD OXIDES
MATERIALS TESTING
REAGENTS
REDUCING AGENTS
REDUCTION
REDUCTIVE EXTRACTION
SCAVENGING
STRONTIUM OXIDES
TIN OXIDES
ADSORBENTS
ALKALINE EARTH METAL COMPOUNDS
ANTIMONY COMPOUNDS
BISMUTH COMPOUNDS
CARBON
CHALCOGENIDES
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
COPPER COMPOUNDS
ELEMENTAL MINERALS
ELEMENTS
EXTRACTION
ISOTOPES
LEAD COMPOUNDS
MANAGEMENT
MATERIALS
METALS
MINERALS
NONMETALS
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PLATINUM METALS
PROCESSING
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RECOVERY
SEPARATION PROCESSES
STRONTIUM COMPOUNDS
TESTING
TIN COMPOUNDS
TRANSITION ELEMENT COMPOUNDS
TRANSITION ELEMENTS
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTE PROCESSING
052001* - Nuclear Fuels- Waste Processing