Carbothermic synthesis of (Cm,Pu)N

Nitrides are being considered as fuel candidates for the transmutation of minor actinides. Carbothermic reduction of oxides is an effective method to fabricate nitride fuels. In this study, (Cm0.40,Pu0.60)N was synthesized by the carbothermic reduction of the mixed oxide in N2. By applying excess carbon, an oxide-free nitride was obtained at 1773 K. The lattice parameter of the oxide-free sample was 0.4948 nm, and that of the nitride with oxides was 0.4974 nm. The former value agreed well with that estimated from the literature values for CmN and PuN. The larger lattice parameter of the latter sample is considered to be due to the oxygen dissolved in the nitride. (authors)