Gamma irradiation sources with cesium-137 incorporated in the chemically stable glass for the utilization in radiation technology, medicine and industry

The impact of radionuclides partitioning on the HLW management strategy was discussed in 1, where a number of technical and economical benefits and long-term prospects of such an approach was shown. The recovery of ⁹⁰Sr and ¹³⁷Cs is of a particular importance as they are responsible for 85% of heat generation from the bulk of HLW after 10-years storage and amount to more than 11 wt.% of waste product. Utilization of ¹³⁷Cs as a by-product could bring additional benefits and it is most suitable for food processors, the sterilization of medical supplies and irradiation processing of sewage sludges. To replace ⁶⁰Co by ¹³⁷Cs the most important factor is the concentration of ¹³⁷Cs in active compounds. Other important properties of the immobilized forms are thermal, mechanical and chemical stability under strong self-irradiation. Our investigations have shown that aluminophosphate glasses containing ¹³⁷Cs are suitable as cesium based irradiation sources. It was shown that such glasses have satisfactory durability and mechanical properties with a cesium content of up to 55 wt.% and specific activity up to 55 Ci/g matrix