A New Approach to Simulation of Extraction Equilibria in the PUREX Process

Abstract

A new approach to simulation of interphase equilibrium at extraction of actinides in various valent states, some fission products, and admixed acids from nitric acid media in the presence of salting out agents by diluted TBP has been developed. It is based on a set of simultaneous chemical reactions, including salvation, hydrolysis, complexing, etc., characterized by apparent concentration constants. A software package was created for simulation of spent fuel component distribution in multistage countercurrent extraction processes.

Keywords:

• actinides
• solvent extraction
• tributyl phosphate
• nitric acid
• admixed acids
• salting-out
• equilibrium constants
• computer simulation
• Purex-process

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors would like to thank Prof. K. Nash (WSU, USA), Drs T.A. Todd (INL, USA) and V.N. Romanovskiy (KRI, Russia), as well as the SE&IE reviewers for advice in preparation of the paper for Solvent Extraction and Ion Exchange.

The authors would like also to thank MAIK Nauka/Interperiodica, Pleiades Publishing, Inc. for permission to reprint some Figures and Tables from our original papers, published in the journal Radiochemistry.