Scaling Trivalent Actinide and Lanthanide Recovery by Diglycolamide Resin from Savannah River Site’s Mark-18A Targets
The Savannah River National Laboratory is implementing a separation flowsheet to recover rare isotopes and transplutonium elements from irradiated 242Pu targets known as Mark-18A targets. The Mark-18A targets contain the United States’ supply of nonseparated 244Pu, which has a wide range of applications from nuclear forensics to production of superheavy elements such as flerovium. The targets also contain hundreds of grams of heavy curium (246–248Cm), which is used as a target material for 252Cf production. This work investigates the use of diglycolomide resin (DGA Resin) to recover valuable trivalent actinides from the Mark-18A targets. Batch contact experiments were performed on a representative simulant to determine mass loadings. Furthermore, the resin showed an overall capacity of 11 mg/mL for a mixed metal matrix (Zr and La–Gd). Column experiments showed chromatographic separation with transition-metal breakthroughs occurring first followed by the lanthanide series La–Gd. The experiments showed that lanthanide breakthrough occurred after 11 mg/mL mass loading was reached on the column with the mixed metal matrix. A radiological column experiment with an in-line UV/vis cell was able to detect Nd breakthrough just prior to 241Am breakthrough. Implementing an in-line UV/vis cell into full-scale Mark-18A target processing will be used to limit breakthrough of trivalent actinides recovered from the targets.
- Research Organization:
- Savannah River National Lab (SRNL), Aiken, SC (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA); USDOE Office of Environmental Management (EM)
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC09-08SR22470
- OSTI ID:
- 1768187
- Report Number(s):
- SRNL-STI--2020-00277
- Journal Information:
- Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research, Journal Name: Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 60; ISSN 0888-5885
- Publisher:
- American Chemical Society (ACS)Copyright Statement
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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