Tc and Re Behavior in Borosilicate Waste Glass Vapor Hydration Tests

Technetium, found in some nuclear wastes (such as those generated from spent fuel reprocessing), is of particular concern with regard to long-term waste storage because of its long half-life (2.13 × 105 years) and high mobility in the environment. One method of stabilization of such waste is through vitrification to produce a durable borosilicate glass matrix. The fate of Tc under hydrothermal conditions in the vapor hydration test (VHT) was studied to assess and possibly predict the long-term rate of release of Tc from borosilicate waste glass. For comparison, the fate of rhenium, the preferred nonradioactive surrogate for Tc, was similarly studied. X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) measurements were made on each original borosilicate glass and the corresponding sample after the VHT. Tc K-edge XAS indicates that, despite starting with different Tc(IV) and Tc(VII) distributions in each glass, both corresponding VHT samples contain 100% Tc(IV). The Tc reduction with...