METHOD OF EXTRACTION AND RECOVERY OF PUREX-PROCESS REFINED PRODUCT FOR SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL OF NUCLEAR POWER STATIONS Russian patent published in 2005 - IPC

FIELD: recovery of spent nuclear fuel.

SUBSTANCE: proposed method includes co-extraction of transplutonium and rare-earth elements, molybdenum and zirconium fragments, and also corrosion iron by means of solution of 0.1 - 0.4 mole/l of zirconium salt of dibutyl phosphate acid in 30 volume percent of saturated-hydrocarbon tributyl phosphate. Then transplutonium elements with cerium group of rare-earth elements are re-extracted to nitric acid, concentration of the latter in re-extract washed out from molybdenum by reverse extracting agent being 3.5 - 5 mole/l. After that fragments of yttrium-containing molybdenum and of yttrium subgroup of rare-earth elements are jointly or separately re-extracted. Extracting agent is recovered by washing in part of extracting agent brought out, depending on zirconium inlet with source solution, by oxalic acid with ammonium oxalate added at extracting agent inlet, process temperature being 35-40 ^oC.

EFFECT: enhanced quality of recovered product.

7 cl, 1 dwg, 7 tbl, 8 ex