Durable, Low-Cost Sorbents for Iodine Capture

Statement of the problem or situation that is being addressed:Nuclear fission generates volatile iodine isotopes which must be captured for safe disposal. This project will develop improved sorbents, which include reusable sorbents and sorbents that comply with the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, for the capture and disposal of iodine-129.General statement of how this problem is being addressed:This project will develop new iodine capture sorbents with improved stability for long term storage and disposal. Sorbents are developed under experimental conditions that test for durability when exposed to heat, variable chemical environments, and radiolysis. These durable sorbents will function as drop-in replacements for the more costly and less effective iodine sequestration sorbents that are currently used.What is to be done in Phase I:In Phase I, a set of 500,000 sorbents will be tested for their ability to sequester iodine from prototypical off-gas conditions. Iodine loading weight percent, speed, and environmental performance for the sorbents will be determined.Commercial Applications and Other Benefits:This project will deliver novel iodine sorbents designed to capture iodine-129 without the the production of waste covered by the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. Iodine capture is a small portion of the cost of nuclear fuel processing, but it must be performed safely and in compliance with regulations. Improved sorbents are needed for US government and private sector requirements nuclear fuel processing and disposal. In order to expedite commercial use of the proposed sorbent technology, the proposed new high-performance sorbents are designed to function with the current fuel processing infrastructure.