Technetium Chemistry in HLW
Tc contamination is found within the DOE complex at those sites whose mission involved extraction of plutonium from irradiated uranium fuel or isotopic enrichment of uranium. At the Hanford Site, chemical separations and extraction processes generated large amounts of high level and transuranic wastes that are currently stored in underground tanks. The waste from these extraction processes is currently stored in underground High Level Waste (HLW) tanks. However, the chemistry of the HLW in any given tank is greatly complicated by repeated efforts to reduce volume and recover isotopes. These processes ultimately resulted in mixing of waste streams from different processes. As a result, the chemistry and the fate of Tc in HLW tanks are not well understood. This lack of understanding has been made evident in the failed efforts to leach Tc from sludge and to remove Tc from supernatants prior to immobilization. Although recent interest in Tc chemistry has shifted from pretreatment chemistry to waste residuals, both needs are served by a fundamental understanding of Tc chemistry.
- Research Organization:
- Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC)
- OSTI ID:
- 893265
- Report Number(s):
- EMSP-81921-2005; R&D Project: EMSP 81921; TRN: US0605965
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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