Development of inorganic ion exchangers for nuclear waste remediation. 1997 annual progress report

'In this research program, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is collaborating with Texas A and M University in the development of highly selective inorganic ion exchangers for the removal of cesium and strontium from nuclear tank-waste and from groundwater. Inorganic ion exchangers are developed and characterized at Texas A and M University; ORNL is involved in preparing the powders in engineered forms and testing the performance of the sorbents in actual nuclear waste solutions. The Texas A and M studies are divided into two main categories: (1) exchangers for tank wastes and (2) exchangers for groundwater remediation. These are subdivided into exchangers for use in acid and alkaline solutions for tank wastes and those that can be recycled for use in groundwater remediation. The exchangers will also be considered for in situ immobilization of radionuclides. The approach will involve a combination of exchanger synthesis, structural characterization, and ion exchange behavior. ORNL has developed a technique for preparing inorganic ion exchangers in the form of spherules by a gel-sphere internal gelation process. This technology, which was developed and used for making nuclear fuels, has the potential of greatly enhancing the usability of many other special inorganic materials because of the improved flow dynamics of the spherules. Also, pure inorganic spherules can be made without the use of binders. ORNL also has access to actual nuclear waste in the form of waste tank supernatant solutions for testing the capabilities of the sorbents for removing the cesium and strontium radionuclides from actual waste solutions. The ORNL collaboration will involve the preparation of the powdered ion exchangers, developed and synthesized at Texas A and M, in the form of spherules, and evaluating the performance of the exchangers in real nuclear waste solutions. Selected sorbents will be provided by Texas A and M for potential incorporation into microspheres, and the performance of the sorbents and microspheres will be examined using actual waste supernatant solutions. This collaborative program could potentially take an exchanger from concept, synthesis, structure determination, and elucidation of exchange mechanism, to engineered product and testing on real waste streams.'