Values in Spent Fuel From Power Reactors Page: 26 of 51
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-24- BNWL-25
to improve the metallurgical properties of tungsten is also being studied, as
are superconductivity characteristics. Its long half-life and low energy
pure beta emissions (free of gamma activity) indicate that it may be used
with a minimum of control.
The Noble Metals
As a group the similar noble metals, ruthenium, rhodium, and palla-
dium, have the next the highest availability (after xenon), among all potentially
useful fission products and as a group might be easily recovered. This pos-
sibility would appear to be greatly enhanced in an integrated fuel processing
and multiple isotope recovery facility. The cost per gram may then be suf-
ficiently low to make recovery economical in competition with conventional
ore sources. The recovery cost, therefore, is assumed to be only slightly
below the expected selling prices.
In precious metal mining today the existence of accessible and large
hard-rock ore bodies containing about one-half of an ounce of gold ($17) to
the ton justifies mining and processing. For large placer deposits, gold
values at far less than 1 g ($1) per ton justify mining. In expected power
reactor fuels, the rhodium value alone based on the present prices will be
about $2000 /ton. Palladium values would add about another $1000 per ton
of fuel. Compared with the concentrations in natural ores, such levels of
the noble metals in spent fuels would be regarded by miners and economic
geologists as nothing less than fantastic. The acknowledged existence of such
concentrations in extensive and available geological formations would certainly
initiate a "gold rush" of wild intensity ! However, the reality of the high cost
of processing intensely radioactive materials plus the rather modest quan-
tities of such material which can be anticipated in the near future (within
the next 5 to 10 yr) requires a temperate and more deliberate approach to
such recovery. Although such recovery apparently has not been demonstrated
on 'a significant scale even experimentally, the possibilities and eventual
practicality of a large scale approach seems reasonable as well as probable.
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Rohrmann, C. A. Values in Spent Fuel From Power Reactors, report, March 1, 1965; Richland, Washington. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc1032168/m1/26/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.