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The effects of radiation chemistry on radiochemistry: when unpaired electrons defy great expectations

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Abstract

In liquid/liquid extraction fuel cycle scenarios, successful metal partitioning depends upon maintaining predictable ligand concentrations and metal valence states in a non-equilibrium system perturbed by the constant input of energy. Energetic particles from nuclide decay interact with solution to yield ions and radicals that react with solutes. These reactions have the potential to interfere with the expected separations chemistry. This paper describes example reactions of the main transient products of aqueous and organic diluents with ligands or metal ions. These reactions tend to decrease ligand concentrations, generate unwanted products, and change metal valence states. It discusses the effects of these reactions on the desired separations, using examples mainly from work conducted at the Idaho National Laboratory Center for Radiation Chemistry Research (CR2).

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Acknowledgements

Funding was provided by the United States Department of Energy Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy, Fuel Cycle Research and Development Radiation Chemistry Program, DOE-Idaho Operations Office Contract DE-AC07-05ID14517. The collaborations with California State University at Long Beach, USA; Brookhaven National Laboratory, USA; Oregon State University, USA; University of California, Irvine, USA; Forschungszentrum Jülich, Germany; Commissariat á l’Énergie Atomique, Marcoule, France; Chalmers Institute of Technology, Sweden; Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany; Centro de Investigaciones Energéticas, Medioambientales y Technológicas, Spain; University of Notre Dame Radiation Laboratory, USA, and many colleagues at the Idaho National Laboratory, USA were essential to the successful completion of this work.

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  1. Aqueous Separations and Radiochemistry Department, Idaho National Laboratory, PO Box 1625, Idaho Falls, ID, 83415-4107, USA

    Bruce J. Mincher

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  1. Bruce J. Mincher
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Correspondence to Bruce J. Mincher.

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Mincher, B.J. The effects of radiation chemistry on radiochemistry: when unpaired electrons defy great expectations. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 316, 799–804 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-018-5728-1

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