An Assessment of Initial Leaching Characteristics of Alkali-Borosilicate Glasses for Nuclear Waste Immobilization.

Initial leaching characteristics of simulated nuclear waste immobilized in three alkali- borosilicate glasses (ABS-waste) were studied. The effects of matrix composition on the containment performance and degradation resistance measures were evaluated. Normalized release rates are in conformance with data reported in the literature. High Li and Mg loadings lead to the highest initial de-polymerization of sample ABS-waste (17) and contributed to its thermodynamic instability. Ca stabilizes non-bridging oxygen (NBO) and reduces the thermodynamic instability of the modified matrix. An exponential temporal change in the alteration thickness was noted for samples ABS-waste (17) and Modified Alkali-Borosilicate (MABS)-waste (20), whereas a linear temporal change was noted for sample ABS-waste (25). Leaching processes that contribute to the fractional release of all studied elements within the initial stage of glass corrosion were quantified and the main controlling leach process for each element was identified. As the waste loading increases, the contribution of the dissolution process to the overall fractional release of structural elements decreases by 43.44, 5.05, 38.07, and 52.99% for Si, B, Na, and Li respectively, and the presence of modifiers reduces this contribution for all the studied metalloids. The dissolution process plays an important role in controlling the release of Li and Cs, and this role is reduced by increasing the waste loading.

The effects of BaSO4 loading on OPC cementing system for encapsulation of BaSO4 scale from oil and gas industry.

The BaSO4 scales obtained from piping decontamination from oil and gas industries are most often classified as low level radioactive waste. These wastes could be immobilised by stable cement matrix to provide higher safety of handling, transportation, storage and disposal. However, the information available for the effects of the basic formulation such as waste loading on the fundamental properties is still limited. The present study investigated the effect of BaSO4 loading and water content on the properties of OPC-BaSO4 systems containing fine BaSO4 powder and coarse granules. The BaSO4 with different particle size had a marked effect on the compressive strength due to their different effects on hydration products formed. Introduction of fine BaSO4 powder resulted in an increased formation of CaCO3 in the system, which significantly contributed to the compressive strength of the products. Amount of water was important to control the CaCO3 formation, and water to cement ratio of 0.53 was found to be a good level to maintain a low porosity of the products both for fine BaSO4 powder and coarse BaSO4 granule. BaSO4 loading of up to 60 wt% has been achieved satisfying the minimum compressive strength of 5 MPa required for the radioactive wasteforms.

Acoustic emission detection of microcrack formation and development in cementitious wasteforms with immobilised Al.

An acoustic emission (AE) technique was applied for early detection, characterisation and time progress description of cracking phenomenon caused by the corrosion of Al encapsulated in cement matrix. The study was conducted on an ordinary Portland cement (OPC) system encapsulating high purity Al bar. Acoustic signals were generated and released during immersing of the sample in deionised water. A computer controlled PCI-2 based AE system processed the signals detected by piezoelectric transducers. A subsequent comparative study of the AE data collected with those obtained from a reference OPC sample has been applied. Recorded AE activity confirmed that the process of initiation and development of Al corrosion causes significant mechanical stresses within the cement matrix. Our analysis demonstrated possibility to differentiate AE signals based on their characteristics, and potentially correlate detected AE with the fracture processes in the cement system encapsulating Al.