Development and characterization of cermet forms for radioactive waste
Cermets designed to isolate high-level wastes in a solid form are a composite consisting of various ceramic phase particles uniformly dispersed in and microencapsulated by an iron-nickel base alloy matrix. The metal matrix provides this waste form with many advantageous features including excellent thermal conductivity and mechanical strength. These cermets are formed by first dissolving the waste in molten urea, precipitating and calcining all the constituents, compacting the calcine, and sintering and reduction to form the final product. The exact formulation of cermets through additions to the waste is designed to fix most of the fission products in stable, leach resistant ceramic phases which are subsequently microencapsulated by an alloy matrix. The alloy matrix, which is derived primarily from the waste itself and includes the reducible fission and activation products from the waste, can be compositionally adjusted through additions to optimize its corrosion resistance under conditions existing in various disposal environments. The processes by which cermets are formed include several new and unique materials preparation options that are being developed to permit engineering scale-up and to be compatible with remote operations. Cermets formed by alternate processing methods are being characterized. Initially, cermet samples were prepared using a laboratory scale, batch process developed for the preparation of special ceramics having high compositional uniformity and excellent sinterability. The modification of this batch process to one suitable for scale-up and remote operation is the subject of this paper. Cermet characterization is also discussed.
- Research Organization:
- Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (USA)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-26
- OSTI ID:
- 5511001
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-791112-57; TRN: 80-007785
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: Symposium on the scientific basis for nuclear waste management, Boston, MA, USA, 26 Nov 1979
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
CERMETS
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
SAMPLE PREPARATION
RADIOACTIVE WASTE PROCESSING
SOLIDIFICATION
CALCINATION
DENSITY
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
FLOWSHEETS
HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
LEACHING
OPTIMIZATION
OXIDATION
SINTERING
TABLES
THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY
THERMAL SHOCK
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
COMPOSITE MATERIALS
DATA
DATA FORMS
DECOMPOSITION
DIAGRAMS
DISSOLUTION
FABRICATION
INFORMATION
MANAGEMENT
MATERIALS
NUMERICAL DATA
PHASE TRANSFORMATIONS
PROCESSING
PYROLYSIS
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
SEPARATION PROCESSES
THERMOCHEMICAL PROCESSES
THERMODYNAMIC PROPERTIES
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTE PROCESSING
WASTES
052001* - Nuclear Fuels- Waste Processing
360201 - Ceramics
Cermets
& Refractories- Preparation & Fabrication
360204 - Ceramics
Cermets
& Refractories- Physical Properties