ЭКОЛОГИЧЕСКИЕ ПРОБЛЕМЫ АРКТИЧЕСКОГО ПОБЕРЕЖЬЯ И ТИТАНО-СИЛИКАТЫ КОЛЬСКИХ ХИБИН: ОТ БИОНИКИ К ГЕОНИКЕ

The ongoing program of cleansing the Arctic Coast of Russia from liquid radioactive waste (LRW) accumulated in the course of nuclear fleet operation faces the problem of deactivation of huge amounts of routine LRW as well as small and medium volumes of LW, for which there are no technological regulations concerning their processing. Currently, there are no technological processes for a comprehensive one-stage treatment of LRW in a way providing for the possibility of further long-term disposal of treatment products. Our studies have shown that a new nanocrystalline sorbent LHT-9 (layered hydrazin titanate) is capable of removing more than 50 chemical elements from aqueous solutions, including most radionuclides, namely 137Cs, 90Sr, 93Zr, 151Sm, 154Eu, 99Tc, 79Se, 107Pd, 126Sn, 238U, 235U, 239Pu, 237Np, and 243Am, and thus may be successfully used for LRW treatment. Rapid one-stage purification of routine LRW produced by water-water energetic type reactors from radionuclides, such as Cs, Sr and Co, can be achieved using another new sorbent, i.e. ivanyukite mineral (microporous sodium titanosilicate), wich is selective for these elements. Simultaneous or successive use of the newly developed sorbents, with account for their stability in solutions of any grade of acidity or alkalinity, provides for the complete solution of the problem of decontamination and curing of LRW of almost any chemical composition. A new term “geonics” is suggested, by analogy to bionics, to designate technological reproduction and use of unique properties of natural minerals.