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The role of oxidizing radicals in neptunium speciation in γ-irradiated nitric acid

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Abstract

The irradiation of aqueous nitric acid solutions generates transient, reactive species that are known to oxidize neptunium. However, nitrous acid is also a long-lived product of nitric acid irradiation, which reduces neptunium. When we irradiated nitric acid solutions of neptunium and measured its speciation by UV/Vis spectroscopy, we found that at short irradiation times, oxidation of Np(V) to Np(VI) occurred due to reactions with radicals such as •OH, •NO3 and •NO2. However, at higher absorbed doses and after a sufficient amount of nitrous acid was produced, reduction of Np(VI) to Np(V) began to occur, eventually reaching an equilibrium distribution of these species depending on nitric acid concentration. Neptunium(IV) was not produced.

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Acknowledgments

Work supported through the INL Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) program, under DOE Idaho Operations Office Contract DE-AC07-05ID14517.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Idaho National Laboratory, P.O. Box 1625, Idaho Falls, ID, 83415-6180, USA

    Bruce J. Mincher & Leigh R. Martin

  2. Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, 97331, USA

    Martin Precek & Alena Paulenova

  3. California State University at Long Beach, Long Beach, CA, 90820, USA

    Stephen P. Mezyk

Authors
  1. Bruce J. Mincher
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  2. Martin Precek
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  3. Stephen P. Mezyk
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  4. Leigh R. Martin
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  5. Alena Paulenova
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Correspondence to Bruce J. Mincher.

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Mincher, B.J., Precek, M., Mezyk, S.P. et al. The role of oxidizing radicals in neptunium speciation in γ-irradiated nitric acid. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 296, 27–30 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-012-1937-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-012-1937-1

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