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The dissolution of simulant vitrified intermediate level nuclear waste in young cement water

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 January 2020

Colleen Mann
Affiliation:
Immobilisation Science Laboratory, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, The University of Sheffield, Sir Robert Hadfield Building, Mappin Street, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK
Jeremy R. Eskelsen
Affiliation:
Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
Donovan N. Leonard
Affiliation:
Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
Eric Pierce
Affiliation:
Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
Claire L Corkhill*
Affiliation:
Immobilisation Science Laboratory, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, The University of Sheffield, Sir Robert Hadfield Building, Mappin Street, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK
*
*Corresponding author. Email address: c.corkhill@sheffield.ac.uk (C L Corkhill)
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Abstract

It is pertinent to the safety case for geological disposal in the UK that the behaviour of vitrified wastes in proximity to cementitious materials is understood. In this study, vitrified simulant intermediate level nuclear waste (ILW) was subject to dissolution in a synthetic cement water solution to simulate disposal conditions. Results show that the presence of alkali / alkaline earth elements in the cementitious solution can be favourable, at least in the short-term, leading to lower dissolution rates associated with incorporation of these elements into the altered layer of the glass.

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Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2020

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