Dehydration of plutonium or neptunium trichloride hydrate

Patent · Tue Dec 31 23:00:00 EST 1991

OSTI ID:868205

Avens, Larry R ^[1]; Trujillo, Eddie A ^[2]

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1. Los Alamos, NM
2. Espanola, NM

A process of preparing anhydrous actinide metal trichlorides of plutonium or neptunium by reacting an aqueous solution of an actinide metal trichloride selected from the group consisting of plutonium trichloride or neptunium trichloride with a reducing agent capable of converting the actinide metal from an oxidation state of +4 to +3 in a resultant solution, evaporating essentially all the solvent from the resultant solution to yield an actinide trichloride hydrate material, dehydrating the actinide trichloride hydrate material by heating the material in admixture with excess thionyl chloride, and recovering anhydrous actinide trichloride is provided.

• Research Organization: Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-36
• Assignee: United States of America as represented by United States (Washington, DC)
• Patent Number(s): US 5098682
• OSTI ID: 868205
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

/423/
actinide
actinide metal
admixture
agent
agent capable
anhydrous
aqueous
aqueous solution
capable
chloride
consisting
converting
dehydrating
dehydration
essentially
evaporating
excess
heating
hydrate
material
metal
metal trichloride
neptunium
oxidation
plutonium
preparing
process
provided
reacting
recovering
reducing
reducing agent
resultant
resultant solution
selected
solution
solvent
thionyl
thionyl chloride
trichloride
trichlorides
yield