Cement As a Waste Form for Nuclear Fission Products: The Case of 90Sr and Its Daughters

One of the main challenges faced by the nuclear industry is the long-term confinement of nuclear waste. Because it is inexpensive and easy to manufacture, cement is the material of choice to store large volumes of radioactive materials, in particular the low-level medium-lived fission products. It is therefore of utmost importance to assess the chemical and structural stability of cement containing radioactive species. Here, we use ab initio calculations based on density functional theory (DFT) to study the effects of ⁹⁰Sr insertion and decay in C-S-H (calcium-silicate-hydrate) in order to test the ability of cement to trap and hold this radioactive fission product and to investigate the consequences of its β-decay on the cement paste structure. We show that ⁹⁰Sr is stable when it substitutes the Ca²⁺ ions in C-S-H, and so is its daughter nucleus ⁹⁰Y after β-decay. Interestingly, ⁹⁰Zr, daughter of ⁹⁰Y and final product in the decay sequence, is found to be unstable compared to the bulk phase of the element at zero K but stable when compared to the solvated ion in water. Therefore, cement appears as a suitable waste form for ⁹⁰Sr storage.

Conference on nuclear fission and radiochemical research associated with nuclear reactors, June 14-15, 1949.

Includes bibliographical references.

Nuclear fission and atomic energy/

"Originated in a series of seminars ... held in the Physics Department of the University of Pennsylvania in the fall of 1945."

Reactores a tório: o futuro da energia nuclear de fissão

Dissertação para a obtenção do grau de mestre em Engenharia Electrotécnica Ramo de Energia

Estimation of temperature effects on fission barriers

An accurate mass formula at finite temperature has been used to obtain a more precise estimation of temperature effects on fission barriers calculated within the liquid drop model.

The slowing down distribution from a point source of fission neutrons in light water /

Work performed at the Physics Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee.

Alpha particles from fission as recorded by photographic emulsions /

Work performed at the Argonne National Laboratory.