A Batch Process for Vitrification of Americium/Curium Solutions

Conference · Mon Feb 22 04:00:00 EST 1999

OSTI ID:4828

Marra, J E

Isotopes of americium (Am) and curium (Cm) were produced in the past at the Savannah River Site (SRS) for research, medical, and radiological applications. These highly radioactive and valuable isotopes have been stored in an SRS reprocessing facility for a number of years. Vitrification of this solution will allow the material to be more safely stored until it is transported to the DOE Oak Ridge National Laboratory for use in research and medical applications. The Savannah River Technology Center (SRTC) research and development (R&038;D) program supporting the stabilization of the Am-Cm solution began in 1995. A full-scale Pilot Facility has been in operation since late-1995. Originally, the vitrification process was to be accomplished using a Pt-Rh bushing melter similar to that used in the glass industry. Several equipment application challenges were addressed and significant progress was made on the original feed system, melter, drain tube, and off-gas design. However, in October 1997, the bushing melter failed and a batch flowsheet concept was proposed. Testing on the batch flowsheet has been ongoing since November 1997 and full-scale Pilot Facilities are currently in operation. This paper describes the batch flowsheet, discusses the equipment development, and presents the path forward for stabilizing the highly radioactive Am-Cm solutions.

• Research Organization: Savannah River Site
• Sponsoring Organization: DOE
• DOE Contract Number: AC09-96SR18500
• OSTI ID: 4828
• Report Number(s): WSRC-MS-98-00745; ON: DE00004828
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

05 NUCLEAR FUELS
07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES
Americium Isotopes
Curium Isotopes
Vitrification