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Stainless steel-zirconium waste forms from the treatment of spent nuclear fuel

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Abstract

Stainless steel-zirconium waste-form alloys have been developed for the disposal of metallic wastes recovered from spent nuclear fuel using the electrometallurgical process developed by Argonne National Laboratory. The metal waste comprises the spent-fuel cladding, noble-metal fission products, and other metallic constituents remaining after electrorefining. Two nominal waste-form compositions have been slected: stainless steel-clad fuels and zirconium-8 wt.% stainless steel for Zircaloy-clad fuels. These alloys are very corrosion resistant. Tests performed with these alloys indicate favorable behavior for use high-level nuclear waste forms.

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Additional information

S.M. McDeavitt earned his Ph.D. in nuclear engineering and materials engineering at Purdue University in 1992. He is currently a materials engineer at Argonne National Laboratory. Dr. McDeavitt is a member of TMS.

D. P. Abraham earned his Ph.D. in metallurgical engineering at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1993. He is currently a metallurgist at Argonne National Laboratory. Dr. Abraham is also a member of TMS.

J.Y. Park earned his Ph.D. in materials science and engineering at Corrnell University in 1975. He is currently a metallurgist at Argonne National Laboratory.

D.D. Keiser, Jr., earned his Ph.D. in materials engineering at Purdue University in 1992. He is currently a metallurgical engineer at Argonne National Laboratory. Dr. Keiser is also a member of TMS.

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McDeavitt, S.M., Abraham, D.P., Park, J.Y. et al. Stainless steel-zirconium waste forms from the treatment of spent nuclear fuel. JOM 49, 29–32 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02914763

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