Effect of crystal size on purity of uranyl nitrate hexahydrate crystalline particles grown in nitric acid medium

Nakahara, Masaumi; Nomura, Kazunori  

A relationship between crystal size and decontamination factor of impurities for uranyl nitrate hexahydrate crystals was examined with a dissolver solution of irradiated fast reactor fuel. The large crystal size reduced the specific surface area of the crystals which in turn decreased the adhesion of liquid impurities on the surface of the crystals. Therefore, high decontamination factors of liquid impurities were achieved. However, the uranyl nitrate hexahydrate crystal size did not affect the decontamination of solid impurities in the experiments.