Assessment of lead tellurite glass for immobilizing electrochemical salt wastes from used nuclear fuel reprocessing

Abstract This paper provides an overview of research evaluating the use of lead tellurite glass as a waste form for salt wastes from electrochemical reprocessing of used nuclear fuel. The efficacy of using lead tellurite glass to immobilize three different salt compositions was evaluated: a LiCl-Li 2 O oxide reduction salt containing fission products from oxide fuel, a LiCl-KCl eutectic salt containing fission products from metallic fuel, and SrCl 2 . Physical and chemical properties of glasses made with these salts were characterized with X-ray diffraction, bulk density measurements, differential thermal analysis, chemical durability tests, scanning and transmission electron microscopies, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. These glasses were found to accommodate high salt concentrations and have high densities, but further development is needed to improve chemical durability.