187. Organophosphorus-Modified Lanthanide Nitrates as Potential Actinide Oxide Aerosol Surrogates

Timothy J. Boyle, Xavier J. Robinson, Fernando Guerrero, Diana Perales, Joshua A. Hubbard, and Roger E. Cramer; Inorganic Chemistry; (2020); DOI: 10.1021/acs.inorgchem.0c02428

In search of suitable simulants for aerosol uranium waste products from Plutonium Uranium Redox Extraction (PUREX) process burns, a series of lanthanide nitrate hydrates ([Ln(κ2-NO3)3·nH2O]) were dissolved in the presence of tributylphosphate (O═P(O(CH2)3CH3)3) referred to as TBP) in kerosene or triphenylphosphate (O═P(O(C6H5) referred to as TPhP) in acetone. The crystal structure of the TPhP derivatives of the lanthanide nitrate series and uranium nitrate were solved as [Ln(κ2-NO3)3(TPhP)3] (Ln = La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu) and [U(O)22-NO3)2(TPhP)2] (U), respectively. The lanthanide-TBP, Ln, and U were further characterized using FTIR spectroscopy, 31P NMR spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, and X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy. Further, thermal treatment of the lanthanide-TBP, Ln, and U using a box furnace to mimic pyrolysis conditions was found by PXRD analyses to generate a phosphate phase [LnP3O9 or UP2O7) for all systems. The resultant nuclear waste fire contaminant particulates will impact both aerosol transport and toxicity assessments.