GADOLINIUM SOLUBILITY AND VOLATILITY DURING DWPF PROCESSING
Understanding of gadolinium behavior, as it relates to potential neutron poisoning applications at the DWPF, has increased over the past several years as process specific data have been generated. Of primary importance are phenomena related to gadolinium solubility and volatility, which introduce the potential for gadolinium to be separated from fissile materials during Chemical Process Cell (CPC) and Melter operations. Existing data indicate that gadolinium solubilities under moderately low pH conditions can vary over several orders of magnitude, depending on the quantities of other constituents that are present. With respect to sludge batching processes, the gadolinium solubility appears to be highly affected by iron. In cases where the mass ratio of Fe:Gd is 300 or more, the gadolinium solubility has been observed to be low, one milligram per liter or less. In contrast, when the ratio of Fe:Gd is 20 or less, the gadolinium solubility has been found to be relatively high, several thousands of milligrams per liter. For gadolinium to serve as an effective neutron poison in CPC operations, the solubility needs to be limited to approximately 100 mg/L. Unfortunately, the Fe:Gd ratio that corresponds to this solubility limit has not been identified. Existing data suggest gadolinium and plutonium are not volatile during melter operations. However, the data are subject to inherent uncertainties preventing definitive conclusions on this matter. In order to determine if gadolinium offers a practical means of poisoning waste in DWPF operations, generation of additional data is recommended. This includes: Gd solubility testing under conditions where the Fe:Gd ratio varies from 50 to 150; and Gd and Pu volatility studies tailored to quantifying high temperature partitioning. Additional tests focusing on crystal aging of Gd/Pu precipitates should be pursued if receipt of gadolinium-poisoned waste into the Tank Farm becomes routine.
- Research Organization:
- Savannah River Site (SRS), Aiken, SC (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- DOE Contract Number:
- DE-AC09-96SR18500
- OSTI ID:
- 923828
- Report Number(s):
- WSRC-STI-2008-00051; TRN: US0802229
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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