Hartmut Schlenz

Monazite as a suitable actinide waste form

Abstract The conditioning of radioactive waste from nuclear power plants and in some countries even of weapons plutonium is an important issue for science and society. Therefore the research on appropriate matrices for the immobilization of fission products and actinides is of great interest. Beyond the widely used borosilicate glasses, ceramics are promising materials for the conditioning of actinides like U, Np, Pu, Am, and Cm. Monazite-type ceramics with general composition LnPO4 (Ln = La to Gd) and solid solutions of monazite with cheralite or huttonite represent important materials in this field. Monazite appears to be a promising candidate material, especially because of its outstanding properties regarding radiation resistance and chemical durability. This article summarizes the most recent results concerning the characterization of monazite and respective solid solutions and the study of their chemical, thermal, physical and structural properties. The aim is to demonstrate the suitability of monazite as a secure and reliable waste form for actinides.

Performance of DFT+U method for prediction of structural and thermodynamic parameters of monazite‐type ceramics

We performed a density functional theory (DFT) study of the monazite‐type ceramics using DFT+U method, where the Hubbard U parameters are derived ab initio, with the main goal in testing the predictive power of this computational method for modeling of f‐electron materials that are of interest in nuclear waste management. We show that DFT+U approach with PBEsol as the exchange‐correlation functional significantly improves description of structures and thermodynamic parameters of lanthanide‐bearing oxides and monazites over commonly used standard DFT (PBE) approach. We found that it is essential to use the Hubbard U parameter derived for a given element and a given structure to reproduce the structural parameters of the measured materials. We obtained exceptionally good description of the structural parameters with U parameter derived using the linear response approach of Cococcioni and de Gironcoli (Phys. Rev. B 2005, 71, 035105). This shows that affordable methods, such as DFT+U with a clever choice of exchange‐correlation functional and the Hubbard U parameter can lead to a good description of f‐electron materials.

High-temperature phase transitions, spectroscopic properties, and dimensionality reduction in rubidium thorium molybdate family.

Four new rubidium thorium molybdates have been synthesized by high-temperature solid-state reactions. The crystal structures of Rb8Th(MoO4)6, Rb2Th(MoO4)3, Rb4Th(MoO4)4, and Rb4Th5(MoO4)12 were determined using single-crystal X-ray diffraction. All these compounds construct from MoO4 tetrahedra and ThO8 square antiprisms. The studied compounds adopt the whole range of possible structure dimensionalities from zero-dimensional (0D) to three-dimensional (3D): finite clusters, chains, sheets, and frameworks. Rb8Th(MoO4)6 crystallizes in 0D containing clusters of [Th(MoO4)6](8-). The crystal structure of Rb2Th(MoO4)3 is based upon one-dimensional chains with configuration units of [Th(MoO4)3](2-). Two-dimensional sheets occur in compound Rb4Th(MoO4)4, and a 3D framework with channels formed by thorium and molybdate polyhedra has been observed in Rb4Th5(MoO4)12. The Raman and IR spectroscopic properties of these compounds are reported. Temperature-depended phase transition effects were observed in Rb2Th(MoO4)3 and Rb4Th(MoO4)4 using thermogravimetry-differential scanning calorimetry analysis and high-temperature powder diffraction methods.

Chemical and Structural Evolution in the Th–SeO32–/SeO42– System: from Simple Selenites to Cluster-Based Selenate Compounds

While extensive success has been gained in the structural chemistry of the U-Se system, the synthesis and characterization of Th-based Se structures are widely unexplored. Here, four new Th-Se compounds, α-Th(SeO3)2, β-Th(SeO3)2, Th(Se2O5)2, and Th3O2(OH)2(SeO4)3, have been obtained from mild hydrothermal or low-temperature (180-220 °C) flux conditions and were subsequently structurally and spectroscopically characterized. The crystal structures of α-Th(SeO3)2 and β-Th(SeO3)2 are based on ThO8 and SeO3 polyhedra, respectively, featuring a three-dimensional (3D) network with selenite anions filling in the Th channels along the a axis. Th(Se2O5)2 is a 3D framework composed of isolated ThO8 polyhedra interconnected by [Se2O5](2-) dimers. Th3O2(OH)2(SeO4)3 is also a 3D framework constructed by octahedral hexathorium clusters [Th6(μ3-O)4(μ3-OH)4](12+), which are interlinked by selenate groups SeO4(2-). The positions of the vibrational modes associated with both Se(IV)O3(2-) and Se(VI)O4(2-) units, respectively, were determined for four compounds, and the Raman spectra of α- and β-Th(SeO3)2 are compared and discussed in detail.

New insights into phosphate based materials for the immobilisation of actinides

Abstract This paper focuses on major phosphate-based ceramic materials relevant for the immobilisation of Pu, minor actinides, fission and activation products. Key points addressed include the recent progress regarding synthesis methods, the formation of solid solutions by structural incorporation of actinides or their non-radioactive surrogates and waste form fabrication by advanced sintering techniques. Particular attention is paid to the properties that govern the long-term stability of the waste forms under conditions relevant to geological disposal. The paper highlights the benefits gained from synergies of state-of-the-art experimental approaches and advanced atomistic modeling tools for addressing properties and stability of f-element-bearing phosphate materials. In conclusion, this article provides a perspective on the recent advancements in the understanding of phosphate based ceramics and their properties with respect to their application as nuclear waste forms.

The structural effects of alkaline- and rare-earth element incorporation into thorium molybdates

Four novel thorium molybdates containing alkaline-earth or rare-earth metals were isolated from high-temperature solid-state synthesis. The incorporation of divalent and trivalent cations into the thorium molybdate system results in complex structural topologies. A2MgTh3(MoO4)8 (A = K, Rb) which crystallizes in the space group C2/c is the first instance among the thorium molybdate family that incorporates alkaline-earth metals. Its crystal structure is based on complex channels composed of ThO8 square antiprisms and MoO4 tetrahedra arranged in a corner-sharing manner. K2SrTh2(MoO4)6, as the first thorium polymolybdate compound, is constructed from ThO8 square antiprisms and Mo4O16 tetramers. The Mo4O16 tetramers, lying in the (001) plane, are built from four edge-sharing MoO6 octahedra. Nd2Th3(MoO4)9 is the first thorium molybdate containing rare-earth cations. The resemblance of Nd2Th3(MoO4)9 with hexagonal-ThMo2O8 reveals its potential as a host for different trivalent transuranium elements. Raman spectra analysis shows that the different Mo polyhedral geometries (MoO4 tetrahedra and MoO6 octahedra) have significant effects on the vibrational bands of these compounds. The thermal behavior and stability of the newly obtained materials have been studied.