Title
Raman identification and characterization of chemical components included in simulated nuclear fuel debris synthesized from uranium, stainless steel, and zirconium
Author
Ryoji Kusak,Yuta Kumagai, Masayuki Watanabe,Takayuki Sasaki, Daisuke Akiyama, Nobuaki Sato, & Akira Kirishima
Year
2022
Journal
Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology
Abstract
Raman spectroscopy is a powerful technique for studying nuclear materials. However, it has been scarcely utilized for nuclear fuel debris. Here, we present a Raman study of several types of simulated nuclear debris synthesized from uranium, stainless steel, and zirconium to identify and characterize chemical components included in the simulated debris. Raman spectroscopy sensitively identified many kinds of chemical components: cubic UO2, U3O8, (Fe,Cr)UO4 (iron–chromium uranate), spinel oxides, monoclinic ZrO2, tetragonal ZrO2, and Zr3O. Some details concerning the chemical states of each component included in the simulated debris were obtained (e.g. spinel oxides were suggested to consist of Fe, Cr, Ni, Zr, and U). The results obtained here will be helpful in the Raman analysis of actual nuclear debris, such that in the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plants.
Instrument
JASCO NRS-4500
Keywords
Raman, Nuclear fuel debris, Chemical states