| Abstract: | Argonne National Laboratory is developing a method to treat spent nuclear fuel in a molten-salt electrorefiner. Glass-bonded zeolite and sodalite are both being developed as ceramic waste forms. The ceramic waste form will contain the fission product (e.g., rare earth, alkali and alkaline-earth metals, halogens, and chalcogens) and transuranic radionuclides that accumulate in the electrorefiner salt. Zeolite A can fully incorporate both the salt and the radionuclides into its crystal structure. Salt-loaded zeolite A is mixed with glass frit; the blend undergoes hot isostatic pressing to produce a monolithic leach-resistant waste form. Alternatively, the salt-loaded zeolite may be converted to sodalite simply by heat treating first, then adding the glass and hot pressing. |
