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oa Recovery of Value Fission Platinoids from Spent Nuclear Fuel
Part II: Separation Processes
- Source: Platinum Metals Review, Volume 47, Issue 3, Jul 2003, p. 123 - 131
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- 01 Jan 2003
Abstract
Several processes are reviewed for recovering fission platinoids from radioactive liquids and solid material that typically originate during the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel by the Purex process. The liquids are radioactive high-level liquid waste and the solution obtained on dissolving the spent nuclear fuel in nitric acid (dissolver solution). The solid is the undissolved fuel residue (dissolver residue). The processes described here have been particularly developed to recover platinoids or, if aimed at the separation of actinides, platinoid recovery is included. Hydrometallurgical processes are predominantly based on solvent extraction, electrodeposition and ion exchange, and less frequently on precipitation and extraction chromatography. Pyrochemical processes are based on extraction or distillation.