Research on Changes of Nitrate Interactions with Metals under the Wastes Disposal Environment Containing TRU Nuclide

Wada, Ryutaro*; Nishimura, Tsutomu*; Masuda, Kaoru*; Fujiwara, Kazuo*; Imakita, Tsuyoshi*; Tateishi, Tsuyoshi*

There exists the waste including a nitrate ion as a salt in the TRU waste materials. This nitrate ion can be transferred to the nitrite ion and/or ammonia by reducing materials such as metals in the waste disposal environment, and has the possibility to affect on the disposal environment and nuclide transfer parameters. Therefore, electrochemical tests were conducted to evaluate the reaction rate parameters of the nitrate ion and metals under the low oxygen environment. The long-term reaction test using the glass-seal vessel was also conducted to grasp precisely the nitrate ion transition reaction rate and the gas generation rate caused by the reaction of metal and the nitrate ion coexist solution. (1)}Reaction rate constants under various environments were obtained performing the potentiostatic holding tests with the parameters of the solution pH, temperature, and the nitrate and nitrite ion concentrations. The formula of the nitrate ion transition reaction rate was also examined based on these obtained data. (2) Conducting the immersion tests under the environment of the low oxygen and high-pH rainfall underground water site, the long-term reaction rate data were obtained on the reaction products (ammonia, hydrogen gas etc.) of metals (carbon steel, stainless steel and zircaloy etc.) with nitrate ion. The tests under the same conditions as in the past were also conducted to evaluate the test accuracy and error range of the long-term reaction test with the glass-seal vessels.