Uranium chloride extraction of transuranium elements from LWR fuel

Patent · Tue Aug 25 00:00:00 EDT 1992

OSTI ID:7066406

Miller, W E; Ackerman, J P; Battles, J E; Johnson, T R; Pierce, R D

A process of separating transuranium actinide values from uranium values present in spent nuclear oxide fuels containing rare earth and noble metal fission products as well as other fission products is disclosed. The oxide fuel is reduced with Ca metal in the presence of Ca chloride and a U-Fe alloy which is liquid at about 800 C to dissolve uranium metal and the noble metal fission product metals and transuranium actinide metals and rare earth fission product metals leaving Ca chloride having CaO and fission products of alkali metals and the alkali earth metals and iodine dissolved therein. The Ca chloride and CaO and the fission products contained therein are separated from the U-Fe alloy and the metal values dissolved therein. The U-Fe alloy having dissolved therein reduced metals from the spent nuclear fuel is contacted with a mixture of one or more alkali metal or alkaline earth metal halides selected from the class consisting of alkali metal or alkaline earth metal and Fe or U halide or a combination thereof to transfer transuranium actinide metals and rare earth metals to the halide salt leaving the uranium and some noble metal fission products in the U-Fe alloy and thereafter separating the halide salt and the transuranium metals dissolved therein from the U-Fe alloy and the metals dissolved therein. 1 figure.

• DOE Contract Number: W-31109-ENG-38
• Assignee: Dept. of Energy, Washington, DC (United States)
• Patent Number(s): US 5141723; A
• Application Number: PPN: US 7-770386
• OSTI ID: 7066406
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

050800* -- Nuclear Fuels-- Spent Fuels Reprocessing
11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
ACTINIDE COMPOUNDS
ACTINIDES
ALKALINE EARTH METAL COMPOUNDS
CALCIUM CHLORIDES
CALCIUM COMPOUNDS
CALCIUM HALIDES
CHALCOGENIDES
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
CHLORIDES
CHLORINE COMPOUNDS
DISSOLUTION
ELEMENTS
ENERGY SOURCES
FUELS
HALIDES
HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
MANAGEMENT
MATERIALS
MATERIALS RECOVERY
METALS
NUCLEAR FUELS
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PROCESSING
REACTOR MATERIALS
REDUCTION
REPROCESSING
SEPARATION PROCESSES
SPENT FUELS
TRANSURANIUM ELEMENTS
URANIUM
URANIUM COMPOUNDS
URANIUM OXIDES
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTE PROCESSING