DOI QR코드

DOI QR Code

Determination of Plutonium Present in Highly Radioactive Irradiated Fuel Solution by Spectrophotometric Method

  • 투고 : 2015.03.26
  • 심사 : 2016.01.11
  • 발행 : 2016.06.25

초록

A simple and rapid spectrophotometric method has been developed to enable the determination of plutonium concentration in an irradiated fuel solution in the presence of all fission products. An excess of ceric ammonium nitrate solution was employed to oxidize all the valence states of plutonium to +6 oxidation state. Interference due to the presence of fission products such as ruthenium and zirconium, and corrosion products such as iron in the envisaged concentration range, as in the irradiated fuel solution, was studied in the determination of plutonium concentration by the direct spectrophotometric method. The stability of plutonium in +6 oxidation state was monitored under experimental conditions as a function of time. Results obtained are reproducible, and this method is applicable to radioactive samples resulting before the solvent extraction process during the reprocessing of fast reactor spent fuel. An analysis of the concentration of plutonium shows a relative standard deviation of <1.2% in standard as well as in simulated conditions. This reflects the fast reactor fuel composition with respect to uranium, plutonium, fission products such as ruthenium and zirconium, and corrosion products such as iron.

키워드

참고문헌

  1. R. Natarajan, Challenges in fast reactor fuel reprocessing, IANCAS Bull. 14 (1998) 27-32.
  2. R. Natarajan, R. Baldev Raj, Fast reactor fuel reprocessing technology in India, J. Nucl. Sci. Technol. 44 (2007) 393-397. https://doi.org/10.1080/18811248.2007.9711299
  3. W.B. Lanham, T.C. Runion, Purex process for plutonium and uranium recovery USAEC, ORNL 479 (1949).
  4. R. Natarajan, K. Dhamodharan, P.K. Sharma, S. Pugazhendi, V. Vijakumar, R.V. Subba Rao, Optimization of flow sheet for scrubbing of ruthenium in reprocessing of fast reactor spent fuel, Sep. Sci. Technol. 48 (2013) 2494-2498. https://doi.org/10.1080/01496395.2013.807828
  5. W. Davies, W. Gray, A rapid and specific titrimetric method for the precise determination of uranium using iron(II) sulphate as reductant,, Talanta 11 (1964) 1203-1211. https://doi.org/10.1016/0039-9140(64)80171-5
  6. S. Ganesh, F. Khan, M.K. Ahmed, S.K. Pandey, Potentiometric determination of free acidity in presence of hydrolysable ions and a sequential determination of hydrazine, Talanta 85 (2011) 958-963. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.talanta.2011.05.001
  7. R. Balasubramanian, D. Darwin Albert Raj, S. Nalini, M. Sai Baba, Mass spectrometric studies on irradiated (U, Pu) mixed carbide fuel of FBTR, Int. J. Nucl. Energy Sci. Technol. 1 (2005) 197-203. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJNEST.2005.007143
  8. S. Bera, R. Balasubramanian, A. Datta, R. Sajimol, S. Nalini, T.S. Lakshmi Narasimahan, M.P. Antony, N. Sivaraman, K. Nagarajan, P.R. Vasudeva Rao, Burn-up measurements on dissolver solution of mixed oxide fuel using HPLC mass spectrometric method, Int. J. Anal. Mass Spectr. Chromatogr. 1 (2013) 55-60. https://doi.org/10.4236/ijamsc.2013.11007
  9. S.K. Aggarwal, S.A. Chitambar, V.D. Kavimandan, A.I. Almaula, P.M. Shah, A.R. Parab, V.L. Sant, H.C. Jain, M.V. Ramaniah, Precision and accuracy in the determination of $^{238}Pu/(^{239}Pu+^{240}Pu)$ alpha activity ratio by alpha spectrometry, Radiochim. Acta 27 (1980) 1-5. https://doi.org/10.1524/ract.1980.27.1.1
  10. Y. Lee, C.J. Park, H.-D. Kim, K.C. Song, Design of LSDS for isotopic fissile assay in spent fuel, Nucl. Eng. Technol. 45 (2013) 921-928. https://doi.org/10.5516/NET.06.2013.044
  11. R.V. Subba Rao, K. Damodaran, G. Santosh Kumar, T.N. Ravi, Determination of uranium and plutonium in high active solutions by extractive spectrophotometry, J. Radioanal. Nucl. Chem. 246 (2000) 433-435. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006788321971
  12. D. Jebaraj Mahildoss, T.N. Ravi, Spectrophotometric determination of plutonium III, IV and VI concentration in nitric acid solution, J. Radioanal. Nucl. Chem. 294 (2012) 87-91. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-012-1614-4
  13. A. Kaya, H. Kudo, J. Shirahashi, S. Suzuki, The purification of plutonium by anion exchange in nitric acid, J. Nucl. Sci. Technol. 4 (1967) 289-292. https://doi.org/10.1080/18811248.1967.9732746
  14. R. Agarwal, V. Venugopal, Chemical status of fission products in irradiated $(U_{0.3}Pu_{0.7})C_{1+x}$ fuel at high burn-ups, J. Nucl. Mater. 354 (2006) 122-131.
  15. O.J. Wick, Plutonium Handbook-A Guide to the Technology, Gorden and Breach, New York, 1967.
  16. J.J. Katz, G.T. Seaborg, L.R Morss, The Chemistry of the Actinides Elements, second ed., Chapman and Hall, New York, 1986.
  17. N. Surugaya, S. Taguchi, S. Sato, M. Watahiki, T. Hiyama, Spectrophotometric determination of plutonium in highly radioactive liquid waste using an internal standardization technique with neodymium (II), Anal. Sci. 24 (2008) 377-380. https://doi.org/10.2116/analsci.24.377
  18. M.H. Lee, Y.J. Park, W.H. Kim, Absorption spectroscopic properties for Pu (III, IV, and VI) in nitric and hydrochloric acid media, J. Radioanal. Nucl. Chem. 273 (2007) 375-382. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-007-6848-1
  19. B.D. Blaustein, J.W. Gryder, An investigation of the species existing in nitric acid solutions containing cerium (III) and cerium (IV), J. Am. Chem. Soc. 79 (1957) 540-547. https://doi.org/10.1021/ja01560a012