Hot Isostatically Pressed Zirconolite Wasteforms for Actinide Immobilisation
Lewis R. Blackburn, Laura J. Gardner, Shi‐Kuan Sun, Ewan R. Maddrell, Martin C. Stennett, Claire L. Corkhill, Neil C. Hyatt
Abstract
Abstract In order to demonstrate the deployment of Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIP) for the immobilisation of Pu stocks and residues, a series of active and inactive zirconolite formulations have been processed and characterised. In this instance, Ce, U, and Th have been applied as chemical surrogates for Pu 4+ . A range of formulations targeting isovalent Zr 4+ site substitution ( i.e. to simulate CaZr 1-x Pu x Ti 2 O 7 ) have been processed by HIP and characterised by powder X-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy, in order to determine surrogate partitioning between the host zirconolite phase, and accessory phases that may have formed during the HIP process.