A resin-bead loading and calcination technique developed at the Transuranium Processing Plant (TRU) of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is used routinely for producing uniform particles of curium-americium oxide in the size range desired for the fabrication of targets for irradiation in the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR). TRU is the storage, production, and distribution center for the heavy-element research program of the U. S. Department of Energy. Target rods are remotely fabricated at TRU, irradiated in the HFIR, and then processed chemically at TRU for the separation and purification of the heavy actinide elements. Berkelium, californium, einsteinium, and fermium are distributed to researchers. Unburned curium and americium that is recovered during the chemical processing is refabricated into targets for additional irradiation. About 200 g of curium-americium oxide is produced annually for use in fabricating HFIR targets. 50Start First Page Here. 35technique allows this criterion to be met easily even though remote operation is necessary for curium oxide production.In the following sections, a brief chronology of the development of this process is presented; the materials, equipment, and basic operations relating to the resin-bead loading and calcination method of producing sized curium-americium oxide microspheres at TRU are described; and typical production data are presented. Process DevelopmentDo Not Type Below This Line.During the mid-1960's, the feed material for the HFIR targets was 242p u . Plutonium oxide was prepared in glove box operations using hydroxide precipitation, calcination, andgrinding {]_)» When curium became available for use in HFIR targets, a sol-gel method for preparing curium oxide remotely was developed and was used from 1968 through 1970 (8).However, the sol-gel process was not well-suited for the small batch sizes that are involved in the TRU program. F.quipnient startup and shutdown were a major part of the operating time.The processing was plagued with erratic operation, poor yields, and production of oversize oxide particles that required undesirable grinding and screening operations. A simpler, more reliable oxide preparation method that was adaptable to remote operation was needed.The resin-bead loading and calcination process was deve- hich 150 g of curium oxide was successfully prepared and subequently used in HFIR targets. Two resins, which required lifferent process steps, were tested. The process using Dowex 0W resin, which contains sulfonic acid exchange groups, was elected for continued curium oxide production over a similar irocess using Amberlite IRC-50 resin, which contains carboxylic acid exchange groups. The Dowex 50W process (Fig. 1) requires ewer steps and is better suited for remote operation. In the )owex SOW process, pre-sized Dowex 50W-X8 resin beads are oaded to saturation from a dilute nitric acid solution of rurium-americium. The resin is rinsed with water and then the esin matrix is destroyed by calcination to form dense actinide 3xide micro...

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Experiments on tri-n-butyl phosphate solvent extraction of uranium and plutonium at-full activity levels (Campaigns 3 and 4) were conducted in the Solvent Extraction Test Facility (S E T F) , located in one of the heavily shielded cells of the Transuranium Processing Plant. The primary objectives were (1) to demonstrate and evaluate the first two cycles of the Hot Engineering Facility flowsheets (codecontamination and partial partitioning), and (2) to investigate and evaluate the use of HN02 as the reductant for tetravalent plutonium during reductive stripping operations. Secondary objectives were to determine the solvent extraction behavior of feed solutions prepared by dissolving fuel from a boiling water reactor (BWR) and to improve the solvent extraction feed clarification.

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High pressure cation exchange is used routinely at the Transuranium Processing Facility (TRU) to separate decigram quantities of transplutonium elements that have been produced in the High Flux Isotope Reactor. The process is based on chromatographic elution from Dowex 50W-X8 resin using ammonium alpha-hydroxyisobutyrate (AHIB) as the eluent [I). Since 1967, a total of 4.6 g of 252cf, 0.5 g of 249 B k, 19 m g o f 253 ESj and 10 pg of 257p m (estimated) have been separated at TRU using this procedure. Original development of this process at ORNL was done by Campbell and Buxton (J2,3)» and was later adapted for processing at high activity levels at TRU by Baybarz, et al (4_). The use of high pressure with very small resin has helped mitigate two problems associated with processing highlyradioactive solutions of transplutonium elements. First, radiation damage is reduced since higher flow rates and quicker separations are possible; and second, radiolytic gassing is suppressed.