Investigation of lead-iron-phosphate glass for SRP waste

Development of a host solid for immobilizing nuclear waste has focused on various vitreous wasteforms. Recently, lead-iron-phosphate (LIP) glasses have been proposed for solidifying all types of high-level liquid waste (HLLW). Investigation of this glass for vitrifying Savannah River Plant (SRP) waste demonstrated that the phosphate glass is incompatible with current borosilicate glass processing. Although the durability of the LIP glasses in deionized water was comparable to current borosilicate waste glass formulations, many of the defense waste constituents have low solubility in the phosphate melt, producing a nonhomogeneous or nonvitreous product. Although the LIP glass has a low melt-temperature, it is highly corrosive, which prevents the use of current melter materials such as Inconel and alumina, and requires more exotic materials of construction such as platinum