Heat capacity of thorium phosphate diphosphate using differential scanning calorimeter

Disposal of radioactive wastes is a serious environmental problem for which complete satisfactory solution is not available. Intensive research is being carried out for the storage and disposal of spent nuclear fuel, high-level and transuranic radioactive wastes. Natural monazites containing phosphate matrix are considered as one of the most radiation resistant minerals of the Earth's crust. Thus, phosphate matrixes have been found attractive for their potential use for storage of high level radioactive waste. It was also found that the concentrations of the radio nuclides leached from glasses are significantly greater than those for phosphate ceramics (LaPO4) of the monazite structure. Zirconium phosphate, thorium phosphate diphosphate (TPD) matrices as well as some other materials such as Synroc, zircon or pyrochlore are also proposed as ceramic matrix for storage of radioactive waste