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Materials Interactions Test Method to Measure Radionuclide Release from Waste Forms Under Repository-Relevant Conditions

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 February 2011

Richard G. Strickert,
Robert L. Erikson and
John W. Shade
Richard G. Strickert
Affiliation:
Materials Characterization Center, Pacific Northwest Laboratory, Richland, WA 99352
Robert L. Erikson
Affiliation:
Materials Characterization Center, Pacific Northwest Laboratory, Richland, WA 99352
John W. Shade
Affiliation:
Materials Characterization Center, Pacific Northwest Laboratory, Richland, WA 99352
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Abstract

At the request of the Basalt Waste Isolation Project, the Materials Characterization Center has collected and developed a set of procedures for a waste form compliance test method (MCC-14.4). The purpose of the test is to measure the steady-state concentrations of specified radionuclides in solutions contacting a waste form material. The test method uses a crushed waste form and basalt material suspended in a synthetic basalt groundwater and agitated for up to three months at 150°C under anoxic conditions. Elemental and radioisotopic analyses are made on filtered and unfiltered aliquots of the solution. Replicate experiments are performed and simultaneous tests are conducted with an approved test material (ATM) to help ensure precise and reliable data for the actual waste form material. Various features of the test method, equipment, and test conditions are reviewed. Experimental testing using actinide-doped borosilicate glasses are also discussed.

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References

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