Year
2001
Abstract
Liquid Radioactive Waste (LRW) is represented by a mixture of various contaminants of different chemical nature. Water is considered to be the dispersing medium, containing a mixture of solid particles, microorganisms, organic substances, polymers, water-soluble inorganic substances, etc. Additional water solutions could include acids, alkalines, or detergents. Radionuclides can typically be present in all these forms; therefore, any technological scheme of LRW reprocessing claiming universal applicability should include a capability to separate any of the above listed contaminants from water. However, such capability is limited by the fact that in many instances, the mass of the radioactive substances is hundreds, or thousands, of fractions of one percent of the total mass of the dissolved substances. Further, if LRW reprocessing is to be considered effective, it should not only target cleaning of the water, but also should provide for the maximum possible concentration of the radioactive component, thus facilitating isolation and storage in assigned waste repositories. Aquila Technologies Group (Aquila), Canberra Industries, the Russian Ultram company, which is a daughter company of the State Enterprise Krasnaya Zvezda, and the International Safeguards Project Office at Brookhaven National Laboratory, are presently collaborating to develop a unique method of separating radioactive nuclides from liquid waste water utilizing ceramic Trumem® membrane technology. Funding will be provided by the Initiatives for Proliferation Prevention program, which sponsors projects for scientists who were formerly involved in developing weapons of mass destruction. This paper describes the background of the technology, how and where it could be applied to LRW reprocessing, and the progress of the project to date.