Strippable coatings from polysaccharide-based gel for the removal of radioactive contamination from metal surfaces

This paper proposes the use of polysaccharide-based gels as decontamination agents for metal surfaces contaminated with radioactive material to eliminate radioactive contamination of facilities, reduce the radiation dose and reduce the volume of equipment and materials that need to be disposed of. To decontaminate metal surfaces contaminated with radionuclides, polysaccharide-based gels have been formulated that can form easily strippable coatings. Anionic polysaccharides (pectin, sodium alginate, gum Arabic, xanthan gum, Guar gum, etc.) were prepared under different conditions. Strippable Coating forming gels were selected and applied to different metal specimens (stainless steel, aluminum, Inconel and Zircaloy) previously contaminated with different radionuclides and their respective decontamination factors were determined. The gels with the best decontamination performance and the coatings formed were characterized. The pectin-based gels showed the best decontamination performance of radioactive cations deposited on metal surfaces. The decontamination process with polysaccharide-based gels is based on the retention of the contaminant by the formation of complexes between the radioactive cations and the free functional groups in the polysaccharide structure.