Journal Article

Radiation stability of gadolinium zirconate: A waste form for plutonium disposition

Begg, B. D., Weber, W. J., Kutty, K. V. Govidan, Ewing, R. C., Wang, S. X., Wang, L. M.

1999

Overview

Zirconate and titanate pyrochlores were subjected to 1 MeV of Kr+ irradiation. Pyrochlores in the Gd2(ZrxTi1-x)2O7 system (x = 0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1) showed a systematic change in the susceptibility to radiation-induced amorphization with increasing Zr content. Gd2Ti2O7 amorphized at relatively low dose (0.2 displacement per atom at room temperature), and the critical temperature for amorphization was 1100 K. With increasing zirconium content, the pyrochlores became increasingly radiation resistant, as demonstrated by the increasing dose and decreasing critical temperature for amorphization. Pyrochlores highly-enriched in Zr (Gd2Zr2O7, Gd2Zr1.8Mg0.2O6.8, Gd1.9Sr0.1Zr1.9Mg0.1O6.85, and Gd1.9Sr0.1Zr1.8Mg0.2O6.75) could not be amorphized, even at temperature as low as 25 K.

• Publisher: Cambridge University Press,Springer Nature B.V
• Subject: Amorphization / AMORPHOUS STATE / CERAMICS / Critical temperature / EXPERIMENTAL DATA / Gadolinium / GADOLINIUM OXIDES / KRYPTON IONS / MAGNESIUM OXIDES / MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE WASTES, AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES / MATERIALS SCIENCE / Metallic glasses / MEV RANGE 01-10 / PHASE TRANSFORMATIONS / PHYSICAL RADIATION EFFECTS / PLUTONIUM / Pyrochlores / Radiation effects / Radiation tolerance / RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL / Room temperature / STABILITY / STRONTIUM OXIDES / TEMPERATURE DEPENDENCE / TEMPERATURE RANGE 0013-0065 K / TEMPERATURE RANGE 0065-0273 K / TEMPERATURE RANGE 0273-0400 K / TEMPERATURE RANGE 0400-1000 K / TITANIUM OXIDES / Transition temperature / ZIRCONIUM OXIDES