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Production of uranium metal via electrolytic reduction of uranium oxide in molten LiCl and salt distillation

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Abstract

Recovery of metallic uranium has been achieved by electrolytic reduction of uranium oxide in a molten LiCl–Li2O electrolyte at 650 °C, followed by the removal of the residual salt by vacuum distillation at 850 °C. Four types of stainless steel mesh baskets, with various mesh sizes (325, 1,400 and 2,300 meshes) and either three or five ply layers, were used both as cathodes and to contain the reduced product in the distillation stage. The recovered uranium had a metal fraction greater than 98.8 % and contained no residual salt.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Nuclear Research & Development Program of the National Research Foundation (NRF), in a grant funded by the Korean Government.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daedoek-daero 989-111, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 305-353, Republic of Korea

    Eun-Young Choi, Chan Yeon Won, Dae-Seung Kang, Sung-Wook Kim, Ju-Sun Cha, Sung-Jai Lee, Wooshin Park, Hun Suk Im & Jin-Mok Hur

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  1. Eun-Young Choi
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  2. Chan Yeon Won
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  3. Dae-Seung Kang
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  4. Sung-Wook Kim
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  6. Sung-Jai Lee
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  7. Wooshin Park
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Correspondence to Eun-Young Choi.

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Choi, EY., Won, C.Y., Kang, DS. et al. Production of uranium metal via electrolytic reduction of uranium oxide in molten LiCl and salt distillation. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 304, 535–546 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-014-3842-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-014-3842-2

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