Adsorption and desorption studies of radiocesium on Al2O3 from aqueous solutions

The adsorption and the desorption of radiocesium from aqueous solutions containing NaNO3 or CaCl2 on Al2O3 were studied over a wide range of background electrolyte concentration and solution pH by using batch techniques in polyethylene and glass test tubes. It was found that the wall of the glass test tubes has a great effect on the adsorption and desorption data, and the adsorption-desorption hysteresis on the same time scale is negligible by using the same aqueous solutions for both adsorption and desorption in the polyethylene test tubes. The dependence of the distribution coefficient on the pH and background electrolyte concentration and the adsorption mechanism were discussed. (author). 7 refs., 6 figs., 2 tabs