Microstructural properties of high level waste concentrates and gels with raman and infrared spectroscopies. 1997 annual progress report
- Los Alamos National Lab., NM (US). Chemical Science and Technology Div.
- Purdue Univ., Lafayette, IN (US). Dept. of Soil and Agricultural Sciences
'Monosodium aluminate, the phase of aluminate found in waste tanks, is only stable over a fairly narrow range of water vapor pressure (22% relative humidity at 22 C). As a result, aluminate solids are stable at Hanford (seasonal average RH {approximately}20%) but are not be stable at Savannah River (seasonal average RH {approximately}40%). Monosodium aluminate (MSA) releases water upon precipitation from solution. In contrast, trisodium aluminate (TSA) consumes water upon precipitation. As a result, MSA precipitates gradually over time while TSA undergoes rapid accelerated precipitation, often gelling its solution. Raman spectra reported for first time for monosodium and trisodium aluminate solids. Ternary phase diagrams can be useful for showing effects of water removal, even with concentrated waste. Kinetics of monosodium aluminate precipitation are extremely slow (several months) at room temperature but quite fast (several hours) at 60 C. As a result, all waste simulants that contain aluminate need several days of cooking at 60 C in order to truly represent the equilibrium state of aluminate. The high level waste (HLW) slurries that have been created at the Hanford and Savannah River Sites over that last fifty years constitute a large fraction of the remaining HLW volumes at both sites. In spite of the preponderance of these wastes, very little quantitative information is available about their physical and chemical properties other than elemental analyses.'
- Research Organization:
- Los Alamos National Lab., Chemical Science and Technology Div., NM (US)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Environmental Management (EM), Office of Science and Risk Policy
- OSTI ID:
- 13659
- Report Number(s):
- EMSP-54773-97; ON: DE00013659
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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