Supercritical fluid carbon dioxide cleaning of plutonium parts

Conference · Wed Sep 01 00:00:00 EDT 1993

OSTI ID:10181483

Hale, S J; Haschke, J M; Cox, L E

Supercritical fluid (SCF) carbon dioxide (CO{sub 2}) is being evaluated for use as a cleaning solvent to replace 1,1,1-trichloroethane for the final cleaning of plutonium (Pu) parts. These parts must be free of organic residue to avoid corrosion in the stockpile. Thermodynamic and kinetic data for selected reactions of Pu metal are evaluated as a basis for assessing the risk of a violent exothermic reaction during the use of SCF CO{sub 2} on Pu. The need for considering kinetic behavior of a reaction in assessing its thermal risk is demonstrated. Weight difference data and results of xray photoelectron spectroscopy to evaluate the surface after exposure to the supercritical fluid show that SCF CO{sub 2} is an effective and compatible cleaning solvent.

• Research Organization: Los Alamos National Lab., NM (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-36
• OSTI ID: 10181483
• Report Number(s): LA-UR-93-3103; CONF-9308150-2; ON: DE93040142; TRN: 93:022847
• Resource Relation: Conference: Environmentally conscious manufacturing congress `93,Arlington, VA (United States),30 Aug - 1 Sep 1993; Other Information: PBD: [1993]
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

45 MILITARY TECHNOLOGY, WEAPONRY, AND NATIONAL DEFENSE
36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
37 INORGANIC
ORGANIC
PHYSICAL AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
CARBON DIOXIDE
SOLVENT PROPERTIES
PLUTONIUM
OXIDATION
METALS
CLEANING
SUPERCRITICAL STATE
CHEMICAL REACTION KINETICS
SOLVENTS
NUCLEAR WEAPONS
450200
360101
400201
NUCLEAR EXPLOSIONS AND EXPLOSIVES
PREPARATION AND FABRICATION
CHEMICAL AND PHYSICOCHEMICAL PROPERTIES