UNIFORMLY REACTIVE URANIUM DIOXIDE FROM A SINGLE OXIDATION-REDUCTION CYCLE [electronic resource]
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| Online Access: |
Online Access |
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| Format: | Government Document Electronic eBook |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Washington, D.C. : Oak Ridge, Tenn. :
U.S. Atomic Energy Commission ; distributed by the Office of Scientific and Technical Information, U.S. Department of Energy,
1963.
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| Subjects: |
| Abstract: | 35p. By use of a modified thermobalance and reactor as the primary experimental tool for sample preparation and evaluntion, a process was developed by which parent uranium feed materials of widely variable reactivity and composition may be converted to a uniformly reactive uranium dioxide. Although numerous methods have been devised for improving the gas-solid reactivity of uranium dioxide toward hydrogen fluoride, none has overcome completely the initial variability of the available materials. Oxygen enrichment of uranium dioxide by incomplete reduction or partial reoxidntion accompanied by intermediate cooling increased hydrofluorination reactivity by as much as 50 per cent. However, this intentional introduction of uranyl fluoride as an impurity in the uranium tetrafluoride product incurs a fluorine penalty'' in its final conversion to uranium hexafluoride. Furthermore, uranyl fluoride impurity levels of this order cannot be tolerated in uranium tetrafluoride intended for reduction to metal. Complete atmospheric reoxidntion following the initial reduction of uranium feed materials to uranium dioxide produced urano-uranic oxide from which a stoichiometric uranium dioxide possessing uniform and much improved reaction characteristics could be made. Gains made available by the process are pointed out and problems remaining to be solved are formulated. (auth) |
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| Item Description: | Published through SciTech Connect. 08/28/1963. "k-1573" Orrick, N. C.; Jones, C. G.; Hale, C. F.; Barber, E. J.; Rapp, K. E. Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion Plant, Tenn. |