Plutonium scrap and residue represent major national and international concerns because (1) significant environmental, safety, and health (ES&H) problems have been identified with their storage; (2) all plutonium recovered from the black market in Europe has been from this category; (3) storage costs are high; and (4) safeguards are difficult. It is proposed to address these problems by conversion of plutonium scrap and residue to a CRACHIP (CRiticality, Aerosol, and CHemically Inert Plutonium) glass using the Glass Material Oxidation and Dissolution System (GMODS). CRACHIP refers to a set of requirements for plutonium storage forms that minimize ES&H concerns. The concept …
continued below
Publisher Info:
Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (United States)
Place of Publication:
Tennessee
Provided By
UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
Serving as both a federal and a state depository library, the UNT Libraries Government Documents Department maintains millions of items in a variety of formats. The department is a member of the FDLP Content Partnerships Program and an Affiliated Archive of the National Archives.
Descriptive information to help identify this article.
Follow the links below to find similar items on the Digital Library.
Description
Plutonium scrap and residue represent major national and international concerns because (1) significant environmental, safety, and health (ES&H) problems have been identified with their storage; (2) all plutonium recovered from the black market in Europe has been from this category; (3) storage costs are high; and (4) safeguards are difficult. It is proposed to address these problems by conversion of plutonium scrap and residue to a CRACHIP (CRiticality, Aerosol, and CHemically Inert Plutonium) glass using the Glass Material Oxidation and Dissolution System (GMODS). CRACHIP refers to a set of requirements for plutonium storage forms that minimize ES&H concerns. The concept is several decades old. Conversion of plutonium from complex chemical mixtures and variable geometries into a certified, qualified, homogeneous CRACHIP glass creates a stable chemical form that minimizes ES&H risks, simplifies safeguards and security, provides an easy-to-store form, decreases storage costs, and allows for future disposition options. GMODS is a new process to directly convert metals, ceramics, and amorphous solids to glass; oxidize organics with the residue converted to glass; and convert chlorides to borosilicate glass and a secondary sodium chloride stream. Laboratory work has demonstrated the conversion of cerium (a plutonium surrogate), uranium (a plutonium surrogate), Zircaloy, stainless steel, and other materials to glass. GMODS is an enabling technology that creates new options. Conventional glassmaking processes require conversion of feeds to oxide-like forms before final conversion to glass. Such chemical conversion and separation processes are often complex and expensive.
This article is part of the following collection of related materials.
Office of Scientific & Technical Information Technical Reports
Reports, articles and other documents harvested from the Office of Scientific and Technical Information.
Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI) is the Department of Energy (DOE) office that collects, preserves, and disseminates DOE-sponsored research and development (R&D) results that are the outcomes of R&D projects or other funded activities at DOE labs and facilities nationwide and grantees at universities and other institutions.
Forsberg, C. W.; Beahm, E. C.; Parker, G. W.; Rudolph, J.; Elam, K. R. & Ferrada, J. J.Conversion of plutonium scrap and residue to boroilicate glass using the GMODS process,
article,
November 28, 1995;
Tennessee.
(https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc673008/:
accessed July 16, 2024),
University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu;
crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.