Westinghouse Electric Corporation

Transport Logistics International, Inc.

Ronald O Noe

Andrew K Langston

A process for recovering residual uranium from emptied uranium hexafluoride shipping cylinder during cleaning, including rinsing a uranium hexafluoride shipping cylinder with hydrofluoric acid to dissolve a heel of uranium hexafluoride therein to form a mixture of sediment, precipitates and a uranium solution; separating the uranium solution from the sediment and precipitates; mixing sodium hydroxide with the uranium solution to precipitate sodium diuranate; separating the solid sodium diuranate from the sodium fluoride solution formed; re-dissolving the sodium diuranate in sodium carbonate solution to form uranyl carbonate complex solution; and adjusting the pH of uranyl carbonate complex solution further to precipitate uranyl peroxide with the addition of hydrogen peroxide. Sodium fluoride solution produced is further treated to remove fluoride by percolating it through a calcite limestone bed to form calcium fluoride solid.

Uranium recovery from UF6 cylinders

A tilt roll table for use with uranium hexafluoride cylindrical containers securely holds the container, supported from its domed ends by spindles mounted to brackets as the container is tilted and rolled. The spindles have greater surface area over which to distribute the weight and are shaped to complement the domed container ends. The brackets supporting the spindles, stiffened by vertical and horizontal braces, can be adjusted vertically and moved axially toward and away from the domed ends of the containers by a gear drive to accommodate different sizes of cylindrical containers. In addition, bands encircle the containers to hold them onto the frame during tilting and rolling.

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Finely powdered urania scrap materials are subjected to sintering conditions (greater than 1600.degree. C.) in a hydrogen atmosphere for about 4 to 8 hours in order to remove impurities (such as Si, Fe, Ni, Sn, Cu, Na and Pb). The process upgrades the quality of the urania powder to where it can be used directly as clean scrap makeup, thereby avoiding expensive decontamination and recovery steps like solvent extraction. The novelty of the process is in the use of sintering conditions (greater than 1600.degree. C.) in a hydrogen atmosphere on finely divided powder to decontaminate urania materials.

Sintering uranium purification process

A process for extracting uranium from uranium-containing waste residues. The process dissolves the residue in hot nitric acid, and precipitates the resulting solution with sodium carbonate/sodium bicarbonate.

Uranium carbonate extraction process

Radioactive metal is recovered from solid oxides of the metal by exposing the oxide to a cocurrent flow of a first acid solution in a first contactor to form partially reacted oxides and a solution containing the metal. The first solution containing the metal is drawn off and the partially reacted oxides are passed through a countercurrent flow of a second acid solution in a second contactor to form reaction residues and a second solution containing the metal. The second solution containing the metal is drawn off and the reaction residues are passed through a countercurrent flow of wash water in a third contactor. The reaction residues are then separated from the wash water and dried.

Continuous ash extraction process

A process and apparatus for separating uranium-containing particulate matter from the off-gas stream of a calciner, without condensation of ammonium fluoride from the gas stream along with the particulate matter, wherein the off-gas is passed through a filter while maintained at a temperature in excess of 340.degree. C. Preferably, the off-gas stream is forced through the filter by an aspirator, located downstream of the filter, and the filter comprises a plurality of filter units in side-by-side relationship, each of said filter units being purged by a nitrogen gas stream while the off-gas stream continues to flow through the remainder of the filter units for a continuous filtering operation.

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Hopkins, SC, United States of America

Ronald O Noe