Plasma Mass Filtering for Actinides / Lanthanides Separation
Authors: R. Gueroult and N.J .Fisch
Abstract:
Separating lanthanides from actinides is a key process in reprocessing nuclear spent fuel. Plasma mass filters, which operate on dissociated elements, offer conceptual advantages for such a task as compared to conventional chemical methods. The capabilities of a specific plasma mass filter concept, called the Magnetic Centrifugal Mass Filter (MCMF), are analyzed within this particular context. Numerical simulations indicate separation of Americium ions from a mixture of lanthanides ions for plasma densities of the order of 1012 cm–3, and ion temperatures of about 10 eV. Separating small fractions of heavy elements from a larger volume of lighter ones is shown to enhance the separation capabilities.
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Submitted to: Plasma Sources Science and Technologies (August 2013)
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Download PPPL-4944 (pdf 1.6 MB 11 pp)
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