REMOVAL OF Cs{sup 137}, Sr{sup 90}, AND Ru{sup 106} FROM ORNL PLANT WASTES BY SORPTION ON VARIOUS MINERALS
A series of minerals (120) were tested as to their efficiency in removing Cs/sup 137/, Sr/sup 90/, and Ru/sup 106/ from dilute alkaline wastes prior to ground disposal. Strontium-90 exchanged rapidly with calcium in Florida pebble phosphate. The best results were obtained with Tennessee phosphate heated to 600 deg C for one hour, but part of the increase in sorption of strontium was due to ion exchange. Heating Tennessee phosphate resulted in a material with excellent hydraulic properties that sorbed Cs/sup 137/ and Sr/sup 90/ from dilute alkaline solutions. Other calcium minerals such as calcite or dolomite were activated to adsorb Sr/sup 90/ by heating or by treating with caustic or phosphate solutions. Cesium-137 in dilute alkaline solutions exchanged preferentially with the potassium present in a number of mica schists and mica minerals which possess a layer lattice type of structure. The high selectivity for cesium of Tennessee phosphate heated to 600 deg C for one hour ts ascribed to the presence of bentonitic impurities present in this material. The kinetics and adsorption of Ru/sup 106/ are shown to be complex and slow due to tbe large number of chemical forms and complexes of ruthenium which can exist under varying conditions. Copper in conglomerate, various sulfide minerals containing copper, cuprite (cuprous oxide), and descloizite (basic zinc lead vanadate) removed 90% of the ruthenium under reducing conditions at a pH of 7 when heated at 60 deg C for 16 hours. At lower tempenatures (25 deg C) the removal of ruthenium from aged solutions took days or even weeks. (auth)
- Research Organization:
- Oak Ridge National Lab., Tenn. (US)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- US Atomic Energy Commission (AEC)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-26
- NSA Number:
- NSA-14-014604
- OSTI ID:
- 4140914
- Report Number(s):
- CF-60-4-17
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
CALCIUM
CALCIUM CARBONATES
CESIUM 137
CONFIGURATION
COPPER
COPPER OXIDES
EFFICIENCY
HEATING
HYDROXIDES
IMPURITIES
ION EXCHANGE
LATTICES
MAGNESIUM CARBONATES
MATERIALS TESTING
MICA
MINERALS
PHOSPHATES
POTASSIUM
REACTION KINETICS
RUTHENIUM 106
STRONTIUM 90
VANADIUM COMPOUNDS
WASTE DISPOSAL
WASTE DISPOSAL AND PROCESSING
WASTE SOLUTIONS