Selective separation of refractory and platinum-group metals from a simulated solution of radioactive waste by titanium oxide particles

Saeki, Morihisa; Toshimitsu, Masaaki; Oba, Hironori  

One ton of high-level radioactive waste (HLRW) that is generated from nuclear power plant contains a few kilograms of refractory and platinum-group metals, such as Mo, Zr and Pd. Separation of refractory and platinum-group metals from HLRW contributes to smooth operation of vitrification process. On the other hand, titanium oxide materials adsorb metals by ion-exchange function and micronize metals by photocatalyst function. In this work, we attempted to separate the refractory and platinum-group metals from simulated solution of HLRW by using the titanium oxide nanoparticles, and investigate dependence of recovery efficiency on the particle size.