Oil, Gas, and Energy Commons^™

Corrosion Barrier Development For Lbe Corrosion Resistance: Quarterly Report (April 2006), Biswajit Das

Transmutation Sciences Materials (TRP)

As reported in the last quarterly report, synthesis of Cr nanowires was found to be problematic in terms of uniform coverage. Hence Ni was identified as the alternative metal to form the nanowires. The purpose of the metal nanowires is to provide structural integrity to the nanoporous alumina, as well as a second defense mechanism against corrosion by oxidizing in case the top alumina layer is compromised. Nickel was selected due to its established electrochemical synthesis procedure. While Ni can provide very good structural integrity to the porous alumina, one potential problem is its higher dissolution rate in LBE. However, …

Development Of Nanostructure Based Corrosion-Barrier Coatings On Steel For Transmutation Applications, Biswajit Das

Transmutation Sciences Materials (TRP)

Advanced transmutation systems require structural materials that are able to withstand high neutron fluxes, high thermal cycling, and high resistance to chemical corrosion. The current candidate materials for such structures are ferritic and ferritic-martensitic steels due to their strong resistance to swelling, good microstructural stability under irradiation, and the retention of adequate ductility at typical reactor operating temperatures.

In parallel, lead bismuth eutectic (LBE) has emerged as a potential spallation target material for efficient production of neutrons, as well as a coolant in the accelerator system. While LBE has excellent properties as a nuclear coolant, it is also highly corrosive …

Neutron Multiplicity Measurements Of Target/Blanket Materials, Denis Beller

Transmutation Sciences Physics (TRP)

The U.S. Advanced Fuel Cycle Initiative (AFCI) is a program to develop economic and environmental methods to reduce the impact of waste from commercial nuclear fuel cycles. One concept for near-complete destruction of waste isotopes from used nuclear fuel is accelerator-driven transmutation. High-power accelerators would be used to produce high-energy charged particles, which then collide with heavy metal targets to create a cascade of neutrons. These neutrons then cause nuclear reactions in subcritical systems.

To design these systems, complex reactor physics computer codes and highly detailed data libraries are used to compute the reactivity of systems, reaction rates, destruction rates, …

Immobilization Of Fission Iodine By Reaction With A Fullerene Containing Carbon Compound And Insoluble Natural Matrix, Spencer M. Steinberg, Gary Cerefice, David W. Emerson

Separations Campaign (TRP)

The recovery of iodine released during the processing of used nuclear fuel poses a significant challenge to the transmutation of nuclear waste. Iodine-129, a long-lived fission product formed by both commercial nuclear power generation and nuclear weapons production, is released when reprocessing nuclear fuel. Since iodine can be concentrated in the human thyroid, any uncontrolled release of iodine may result in an increased rate of thyroid cancer in the exposed population. For this reason, recovery of iodine is important for implementing any nuclear transmutation strategy.

The stability of the association of iodine with FCC and NOM products are studied. Product …

Evaluation Of Fluorapatite As A Waste-Form Material, Dennis W. Lindle, Oliver Hemmers, Dale L. Perry

Separations Campaign (TRP)

Argonne National Laboratory has proposed a new extraction procedure to handle TRISO-coated fuels, the Fluoride Extraction Process, or FLEX. The FLEX process is designed to separate the uranium in the fuel from the actinides and most fission products by taking advantage of the unique properties of uranium hexafluoride (UF₆). In the FLEX process, the used TRISO fuel is reacted with zirconium fluoride salt, forming UF₆ and the fluoride salts of the actinides and fission products. At process temperatures, the UF₆ volatizes into a gas, and is released from the molten salt mixture. This leaves behind the …

Development Of Integrated Process Simulation System Model For Spent Fuel Treatment Facility (Sftf) Design, Yitung Chen, Sean Hsieh

Separations Campaign (TRP)

The overall goal of this project is the creation of a framework that combines all the strengths of AMUSE’s complicated calculations, well-established commercial system process packages, and TRPSEMPro’s flexible parameter optimization modules. Development of the process simulation code can be done using the solvent extraction process at Argonne National Laboratory in collaboration with the UNLV Nevada Center for Advanced Computational Methods.

The major objectives are the following:

• Develop a framework for simulating the Spent Fuel Treatment Facility (SFTF) process using AMUSE code, commercial process package, such as ASPEN-PLUS, and system engineering model.
• Develop a middleware package that can communicate between …

Electrochemical Separation Of Curium And Americium, David W. Hatchett, Kenneth Czerwinski

Separations Campaign (TRP)

The objective of this project is to use electrochemical techniques to develop a thermodynamic understanding of actinide and lanthanide species in aqueous solution and use this data to effectively separate species with very similar chemical properties. In consultation with a national laboratory collaborators, electrochemical methods and materials will be evaluated and used to exploit the thermodynamic differences between similar chemical species enhancing the ability to selectively target and sequester individual species from mixtures. This project is in its third year and has successfully completed Phases 1 and 2.

The following were specific goals for this year:

• To develop a fundamental …

Fundamental Chemistry Of U And Pu In The Tbp-Dodecane-Nitric Acid System, Kenneth Czerwinski, Byron Bennett

Separations Campaign (TRP)

The research objectives of this project are as follows:

• To determine the influence of nitrate on the speciation of U and Pu in the TBP-dodecane-nitric acid system. The aqueous and organic speciation of U and Pu are examined as a function of the nitric acid concentration, nitrate concentration (by the addition of NaNO₃), actinide ion concentration, temperature, and time.
• To determine the speciation of U and Pu with AHA in the presence and absence of TBP-dodecane organic phase. The aqueous and organic speciation of U and Pu are evaluated as a function of AHA concentration, metal ion concentration, …

Interaction Between Metal Fission Products And Triso Coating Materials: A Study Of Chemical Bonding And Interdiffusion: 1st Quarterly Report, 2006, Clemens Heske

Fuels Campaign (TRP)

This project is devoted to an in-depth study of the chemical and electronic impact of metal fission products on the coating layers in TRISO nuclear fuel. In particular, there is a focus on the investigation of Pd, Cs, and Ag and their interface formation with SiC and carbon-based substrates. A variety of surface and near-surface bulk sensitive probes that investigate the occupied and unoccupied electronic states of the substrate and the metal overlayer have been utilized. By a controlled and stepwise deposition of the metal overlayer, it is possible to gain substantial insight into the formation of interfaces and their …

Interaction Between Metal Fission Products And Triso Coating Materials, Clemens Heske

Fuels Campaign (TRP)

In this project the chemical bonding and interface formation of metal fission products with the coating materials used in TRISO fuel particles is investigated. The interface formation of Pd, Cs, and Ag with SiC and pyrolytic carbon is studied in detail. Using the SiC single crystals and TRISO coating materials as substrates, interfaces are prepared under controlled conditions in an ultra-high vacuum environment and are studied with a photoelectron spectroscopy, Auger electron spectroscopy, Inverse Photoemission, X-ray emission spectroscopy, and X-ray absorption spectroscopy. Recent additions to the experimental approach include microscopic techniques (Transmission Electron Microscopy, Scanning Tunneling Microscopy, Atomic Force Microscopy) …

Design Concepts And Process Analysis For Transmuter Fuel Manufacturing, Georg F. Mauer

Fuels Campaign (TRP)

The safe and effective manufacturing of actinide-bearing fuels for any transmutation strategy requires that the entire manufacturing process be contained within a shielded hot cell environment. To ensure that the fabrication process is feasible, the entire process must be designed for remote operation. The equipment must be reliable enough to perform over several decades, and also easy to maintain or repair remotely. The facility must also be designed to facilitate its own decontamination and decommissioning. In addition to these design factors, the potential viability of any fuel fabrication process will also be impacted by a number of variables, such as …

Dissolution, Reactor, And Environmental Behavior Of Zro2-Mgo Inert Fuel Matrix, Kenneth Czerwinski

Fuels Campaign (TRP)

This project examines inert fuels containing ZrO₂ and MgO as the inert matrix, with the relative amount of MgO varied from 30% to 70% in ZrO₂. Reactor physics calculations are used to examine suitable quantities of burnable poisons from the candidate elements Gd, Er, or Hf with reactor grade Pu providing the fissile component, with up to 10% of ²³⁹Pu. Ceramics are synthesized and characterized based on the reactor physics results. The solubility of the fuel ceramics, in reactor conditions, reprocessing conditions, and repository conditions, are investigated in a manner to provide thermodynamic data necessary for …

Impact Of The Synthesis Process On Structure Properties For Afci Fuel Candidates, Thomas Hartmann

Fuels Campaign (TRP)

Advanced Fuel Cycle Initiative research on transmutation fuels includes mono-nitride ceramic fuel forms, and consists of closely coordinated “hot” actinide and “cold” inert and surrogate fuels work. Matrix and surrogate materials work involves three major components: (1) fuel matrix synthesis and fabrication, (2) fuel performance, and (3) fuel materials modeling. The synthesis and fabrication component supports basic material studies, as well as actinide fuel fabrication work through fuel fabrication process development. Fuel performance studies are examining the tolerance of nitride-type fuel to heavy irradiation damage. The fuel materials simulation work involves both atomistic and continuum scale modeling employing first principles, …

Solution-Based Synthesis Of Nitride Fuels, Kenneth Czerwinski, Thomas Hartmann

Fuels Campaign (TRP)

A wide variety of fuel concepts are considered for advanced reactor technology including metals, metal oxides or metal nitrides as solid solutions or composite materials. Nitride fuels have appropriate properties for advanced fuels including high thermal conductivity, thermal stability, solid-state solubility of actinides, fissile metal density, and suitable neutronic properties. A drawback of nitride fuels involves their synthesis. A key parameter for preparing oxide fuels is the precipitation step in the sol-gel process. For nitride fuels, the current synthetic route is carbothermic reduction from the oxide to the nitride. This process step is based on solid phase reactions and for …

Fundamental And Applied Experimental Investigations Of Corrosion Of Steel By Lbe Under Controlled Conditions: Kinetics, Chemistry Morphology, And Surface Preparation, John Farley, Allen L. Johnson, Dale L. Perry

Transmutation Sciences Materials (TRP)

Advanced nuclear processes such as the transmutation of nuclear waste, fast reactors, liquid-metal-cooled reactors, and spallation neutron sources require advanced materials systems to contain them. The required structural materials must be stable in the presence of nonmoderating coolants. A prime candidate for such a coolant is Lead Bismuth Eutectic (LBE). Materials in these systems must be able to tolerate high neutron fluxes, high temperatures, and chemical corrosion. Unfortunately, LBE corrodes stainless steel.

The corrosive behaviors of structural materials in LBE are not well understood. The Russians have over 80 reactor-years experience with LBE coolant in their Alpha-class submarine reactors. The …

Theoretical Modeling Of Protective Oxide Layer Growth In Non-Isothermal Lead Alloy Coolant Systems, Yitung Chen, Jinsuo Zhang, Huajun Chen, Jichun Li

Transmutation Sciences Materials (TRP)

The goal of this research project is to provide a basic understanding of the protective oxide layer behaviors and to develop oxide layer growth models of steels in non-isothermal lead alloys (lead or lead-bismuth eutectic) coolant systems. Precise studies and simulations of all hydrodynamics with thermal conditions encountered in practical coolant loop systems by use of different flowing conditions in the laboratory are difficult and expensive, if not impossible. Therefore it is important and necessary to develop theoretical models to predict the protective oxide layer behaviors at the design stage of a practical lead-alloy coolant system, to properly interpret and …