Preparation and study of corrosion behavior of some simulated radioactive waste glasses

To safe environment from radioactive waste it is important to fix them as radioactive waste glasses. The corrosion behavior of radioactive waste glasses in water is significantly important. Radionuclides return to the biosphere by means of leaching from waste form into ground water. Finally the ground water containing the radionuclide are transported to the surface. In this study, the preparation, characterization and leaching behavior of some borosilicate (BS) and lead iron phosphate (LIP) of different chemical composition doped with simulated nuclear waste oxide were investigated. We measured the pH found to be in the range from 6.78 up to 7.79 of the leachate solution at normal temperature and at varying time intervals. Leaching study of these glasses were conducted with the help of Soxhlet distillation apparatus with distilled water upto 24 hours and for BS9 - BS12 upto 100 hours duration. Weight losses were measured with respect to time of leaching. Leach rate of some borosilicate glass samples loaded with uranium are calculated from surface area measurements. The results are reported in the range 1.34 x 10^-4 g.m^-2.hr^-1 and 6.26 x 10^-4 g.m^-2.hr^-1 respectively at 90°C. (author)