FLUORIDE VOLATILITY PROCESSES FOR SPENT REACTOR FUELS. (A Survey of Recent Work in the Untied States)
Work has continued at various sites on the development of uranium hexafluoride distillation processes for the recovery of fissionable values froj spent reactor fuels. Metallic uranium fuels can be dissolved in bromine trifluoride or chlorine trifluonide, producing uranium hexafluoride. The hexafluride is purified and decontaminated by fractional distillation. In an advanced version of this process, plutonium in the fuel is also converted to the hexafluoride which is purified by volatilization then decomposed to a nonvolatile product. The application of fluoride volatility processes to various irradiated reactor fuel alloys is considered and possible approaches are indicated. At Oak Ridge National Laboratory the current emphasis is on fused salt processes. Work at Argonne National Laboratory includes the bromine trifluoride process, fused salt studies and investigation on plutonium fluorides. (auth)
- Research Organization:
- Argonne National Lab., Lemont, Ill.
- NSA Number:
- NSA-12-014713
- OSTI ID:
- 4328230
- Report Number(s):
- A/CONF.15/P/2388
- Country of Publication:
- Country unknown/Code not available
- Language:
- English
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Current status of fluoride volatility method development
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN FLUORIDE VOLATILITY PROCESSING OR REACTOR FUELS
Related Subjects
BROMINE FLUORIDES
BURNUP
CHEMISTRY
CHLORINE FLUORIDES
DECONTAMINATION
DISTILLATION
FISSIONABLE MATERIALS
FLUORIDES
FLUORINATION
FUEL ELEMENTS
FUELS
FUSED SALTS
IMPURITIES
IRRADIATION
PLUTONIUM
PLUTONIUM FLUORIDES
RADIOCHEMISTRY
RECOVERY
REPROCESSING
SEPARATION PROCESSES
SOLUTIONS
URANIUM
URANIUM HEXAFLUORIDE
VOLATILITY
WASTE PROCESSING