Solidification of the Strip Solution with Cesium-137 Using Porous Inorganic Material “Gubka”

At the Khlopin Radium Institute, during the development of extractive partitioning of the liquid high-level radioactive waste (HLW), a strip solution containing up to 6.0 × 1011 Bq/dm3 (16.3 Ci/dm3) of 137Cs in the form of a nitric acid solution was collected and temporary was stored. To solidify this solution, a batch process using Gubka (sponge) porous inorganic material (PIM) was developed and implemented. Since that time, about 18 dm3 of HLW was solidified into 12 sets of Gubka, reducing the liquid HLW volume by a factor of about 50. Gubka sets were placed into special containers, which after sealing by welding were delivered to the long-time storage of the RosRAO Branch in Sosnovy Bor.