Proceedings of the Plutonium Futures ? The Science 2006 Conference
Plutonium Futures--The Science 2006 provided opportunities to examine present knowledge of the chemical and physical properties of plutonium and other actinides in complex media and materials; to discuss the current and emerging science (chemistry, physics, materials science, nuclear science, and environmental effects) of plutonium and actinides relevant to enhancing global nuclear security; and to exchange ideas. This international conference also provided a forum for illustrating and enhancing capabilities and interests, and assessing issues in these areas. U.S. and international scientists, engineers, faculty, and students from universities, national laboratories, and DOE's nuclear complex were encouraged to participate and make technical contributions. The Conference ran from Sunday, July 9th through Thursday, July 13th. A popular aspect of the conference was the opening tutorial session on Sunday afternoon intended for students and scientists new to the area of plutonium research. The tutorial was well attended by novices and veterans alike, and featured such diverse topics as; plutonium metallurgy, plutonium in the environment, and international arms control and nonproliferation. Two plenary lectures began each morning and each afternoon session and highlighted the breakout sessions on coordination/organometallic chemistry, solid-state physics, environmental chemistry, materials science, separations and reprocessing, advanced fuels and waste forms, phase transformations, solution and gas-phase chemistry, compounds and complexes, electronic structure and physical properties, and more. Chemistry Highlights--Among the many chemistry highlights presented in this proceedings are the overview of concepts and philosophies on inert nuclear fuel matrices and concerns about the ever-increasing amounts of minor actinides and plutonium generated in the fuel cycle. The various ideas involve multiple reduction schemes for these materials, suggesting fuels for 'burning' or 'cradle-to-grave' accountability for various reactor types. Related work is presented on identification of the unique reaction mechanisms and identification of the intermediate products, including Pu(III), at the end of the PUREX process. In the important area of nuclear forensics, actual scenarios of nuclear materials confiscation and the successes of applying forensics protocols to determine attribution and possible intention are provided. In the area of reactor incidents, there is no other place on Earth like the Chernobyl Site Object Shelter and radioactive aerosol particle characterization studies reflect an important effort described herein. An additional report from another unique environmental site presents results on radionuclide monitoring, fate, and transport in the ecosystem of the Yenisei River in the Krasoyarsk region. In the area of nuclear waste disposal, a study of the ion irradiation damage to pyrochlore compounds with varying amounts of host elements and actinide dopants is presented. Papers on both the aqueous and nonaqueous chemistry of plutonium and other actinides are presented including anhydrous coordination chemistry and redox behavior in the presence of humic materials and the their sorption on common minerals in the environment. Also published herein are reports on the field of anhydrous coordination chemistry of the transuranic elements where there is scarce information. Solid-State and Materials Highlights--Plutonium solid-state and materials research is represented in these proceedings by a wealth of leading edge discovery class research. The breadth of this research is reflected in the topics covered: solid-state; materials science; superconductivity; phase changes, phonons, and entropy; electronic structure and physical properties; surface science and corrosion; and radiation effects, defects, impurities, and property changes. Indeed the scientific challenge and excitement of plutonium can best be highlighted by quoting the tutorial prospectus of Drs. Sarrao and Schwartz. 'Plutonium has long been recognized as a complex and scientifically rich metal. The challenge of Pu derives from the fact that its 5f electrons are neither fully localized nor fully itinerant. The resulting low energy scales lead to competing interactions and important entropic and lattice considerations as well. As a consequence, plutonium is on the verge of magnetic order and can be stabilized in a variety of crystal structures. The past several years have seen a renaissance in plutonium materials research. Despite significant progress and important breakthroughs, metallic plutonium remains a mystery at the frontier of materials research'. As we hope you will discover, much progress is being made that is reflected in these proceedings. More importantly however, is that the papers herein also inspire new experiments and theoretical approaches that we trust will not go unnoticed by the reader.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-48
- OSTI ID:
- 920888
- Report Number(s):
- UCRL-PROC-232903; TRN: US0802040
- Resource Relation:
- Journal Volume: 444-445; Conference: Presented at: Plutonium Futures--The Science 2006, Pacific Grove, CA, United States, Jul 09 - Jul 13, 2006
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
37 INORGANIC
ORGANIC
PHYSICAL AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
ACTINIDES
ARMS CONTROL
CHEMISTRY
CRYSTAL STRUCTURE
ELECTRONIC STRUCTURE
ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS
FUEL CYCLE
NUCLEAR FUELS
PHASE TRANSFORMATIONS
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
PLUTONIUM
PUREX PROCESS
RADIATION EFFECTS
RADIOACTIVE AEROSOLS
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
REACTION KINETICS
WASTE FORMS