Adsorption of Pu(IV) Polymer onto 304L Stainless Steel
'The report, Technical Basis for Safe Operations with Pu-239 Polymer in NMS&S Operating Facilities (F & H Areas), (WSRC-TR-99-00008) was issued in an effort to upgrade the Authorization Basis (AB) for H Area facilities relative to nuclear criticality. At the time, insufficient data were found in the literature to quantify the adsorption of Pu polymer onto the surfaces of stainless steel tanks. Additional experimental or literature information on the adsorption of Pu(IV) polymer and its removal was deemed necessary to support the H Area AB. The results obtained are also applicable to processing in F Area facilities.Additional literature sources suggest that adsorption on the tank walls should not be a safety concern. The sources show that the amount of Pu polymer that adsorbs from a solution comes to a limiting amount in 5 to 7 days after which no additional Pu is adsorbed. Adsorption increases with Pu concentration and decreases with acid concentration. The adsorbed amounts are small varying from 0.5 mg/cm2 for a 0.5 g/l Pu / 0.5M HNO3 solution to 11 mg/cm2 for a 1-3 g/l Pu / 0.1M HNO3 solution. Additionally, acid concentrations greater than 0.1M will remove a percentage of adsorbed Pu.The experimental results have generally confirmed much of what has been reported in the literature. Specifically, adsorption onto stainless steel was found to increase with increased Pu concentration, and decreased acid concentration. The amount adsorbed was found to come to a limiting amount after 5 to 7 days. Pu adsorbed as polymer was found to be harder to remove than if it was adsorbed as Pu(IV). The amount of Pu adsorbed as polymer was found to be almost an order of magnitude more than that from a similar concentration Pu(IV) solution. Unlike the literature, only a slight increase in adsorption values was found when the steel surface was removed, dried, and replaced in the Pu solution. The amount of Pu as polymer which would adsorb onto the surface of a 14,000L tank was estimated to be less than 10 grams and thus was not a safety concern.'
- Research Organization:
- Savannah River Site
- Sponsoring Organization:
- DOE
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC09-96SR18500
- OSTI ID:
- 9176
- Report Number(s):
- WSRC-TR-99-00210; ON: DE00009176
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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