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Decontamination
of radioactive metal wastes using underwater microwave plasma (2022) Seongsik Nam, Wooyong Um,
Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering Volume 10, Issue 1,
2022,107090,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jece.2021.107090.
(https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2213343721020674)
Abstract: As nuclear power plants (NPPs) operate, the levels of
radioactively contaminated oxide films are increased at the surface of the
metal components of these plants. The Chalk River Unidentified Deposit (CRUD)
is one such radioactive waste. Decontamination of CRUD is an essential task
because radionuclides such as cobalt-60 (60Co; γ-emitter) can be
deposited in the CRUD and react with the inverse spinel nickel ferrite. Hence,
decontaminating the CRUD is an essential yet challenging process. Compared with
conventional techniques, underwater microwave plasma was developed to provide
high reliability and low environmental impact because the plasma system does
not require external additives. In addition, the formation of highly reactive
species such as radicals available to remove the deposited radioactive isotopes
and underwater conditions of microwave plasma decontamination systems can
reduce the risk of radioactive exposure during the decommissioning and
decontamination of NPPs. This study demonstrated that the removal efficiency of
cobalt of the microwave plasma system is 96.9%, which can be a new decontamination
technique associated with the underwater cutting of metal wastes during the
NPPs decommissioning process. |
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