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Development of a process for the co-conversion of Pu-U nitrate mixed solutions to mixed-oxide powder using a microwave heating method

Journal Article · · Nucl. Technol.; (United States)
OSTI ID:5526485
; ; ; ;
Along the line of a nonproliferation policy for nuclear materials, the development of a process for the co-conversion of Pu-U nitrate mixed solutions to mixed-oxide (MOX) powder has been carried out, and through the bench-scale experimental work performed at the Power Reactor and Nuclear Fuel Development Corporation, a new co-conversion process using a microwave heating method has been successfully developed. Using the bench-scale test unit with a 2 kg of MOX/day capacity, designed on the basis of the results of mock-up tests, the feasibility of this process has been demonstrated with good results. The test unit and process are described in this paper. At present, using this unit, plutonium nitrate solution transported from the Tokai Reprocessing Plant is being converted to MOX powder which has a Pu/U ratio of 1. The advantages of the process, such as its simplicity, the homogeneity of the product, the minimal liquid waste, the absence of impurity pickup during denitration, and control of the Pu/U ratio are listed. Its commercialization is in progress.
Research Organization:
Tokai Works, Power Reactor and Nuclear Fuel Development Corporation, 4-33 Muramatsu, Tokai-mura Naka-Gun, Ibaraki-ken, 319-11
OSTI ID:
5526485
Journal Information:
Nucl. Technol.; (United States), Journal Name: Nucl. Technol.; (United States) Vol. 61:1; ISSN NUTYB
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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Related Subjects

050400* -- Nuclear Fuels-- Feed Processing
11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
ACTINIDE COMPOUNDS
BENCH-SCALE EXPERIMENTS
CALCINATION
CHALCOGENIDES
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
COMMINUTION
DECOMPOSITION
DENITRATION
ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION
FUEL FABRICATION PLANTS
FUEL PELLETS
FUELS
HEATING
IMPURITIES
MICROWAVE RADIATION
MIXED OXIDE FUELS
NITRATES
NITROGEN COMPOUNDS
NUCLEAR FACILITIES
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PELLETS
PLUTONIUM COMPOUNDS
PLUTONIUM NITRATES
PLUTONIUM OXIDES
POWDERS
PRODUCTION
PYROLYSIS
RADIATIONS
REPROCESSING
SEPARATION PROCESSES
SOLID FUELS
THERMOCHEMICAL PROCESSES
TRANSURANIUM COMPOUNDS
URANIUM COMPOUNDS
URANIUM DIOXIDE
URANIUM NITRATES
URANIUM OXIDES