RADIUM AND THORIUM SORPTION BY MONOSODIUM TITANATE (MST) AND MODIFIED MST (mMST)

A series of tests were planned to examine the removal of Ra and Th by monosodium titanate (MST) and modified monosodium titanate (mMST). Simulated waste solutions were prepared containing Ra and Th, along with Sr, Np, Pu, and U. Following simulant preparation the simulants were filtered through 0.45-m filters. Analysis of the simulants indicated no Th in the filtered solution. This is due to the very low solubility of Th in alkaline solutions. Based on the reported detection limits for {sup 228}Th by gamma analyses, the solubility of Th in the simulant solutions is < 3.0E-10 g/L or < 1.3E-12 M. Therefore, data could not be obtained regarding the removal of Th by MST and mMST; however, testing proceeded to examine the removal of Ra. Sorption testing indicated that Ra, like Sr, is very rapidly removed from solution by both MST and mMST. The Ra concentration in solution fell below the method detection limit (MDL) within 30 minutes of contact with MST, and within 2 hours of contact with mMST, when tested at 25 C using a 5.6 M Na simulant. Additional testing examined the effects of ionic strength and temperature on the MST and mMST performance. Results from these tests showed that the majority of samples still reached a Ra concentration below the MDL, indicating excellent removal. For the highest ionic strength solution (6.6 M Na), there did appear to be a slight decrease in the Ra removal by mMST, as indicated by a larger number of samples just above the MDL. The effect of temperature on {sup 226}Ra removal is indeterminate for either MST or mMST in the temperature range (25-60 C) and concentrations studied since the final soluble concentration of Ra remained at or below the detection limits for all tests. Desorption testing was also performed using decontaminated salt solution (DSS) diluted to sodium concentrations of 2 M and 0.5 M, to represent the intermediate and final stages of washing. Results from these tests indicated no desorption of any sorbents, with the exception of Pu from mMST, which desorbed slightly (0.02%). Rather, the testing showed additional sorption of sorbates, likely due to the higher sorbent concentrations in these tests compared to the concentrations used for loading (i.e. 13 g/L vs. 0.4 g/L). SRNL recommends additional testing to confirm the low solubility of Th in a range of simulants representing SRS HLW. We also recommend additional sorption testing with simulants containing a higher concentration of {sup 226}Ra, to allow for the determination of actual DF values, rather than the minimum DF values reported here