Uranium partition tests

The 2.54-cm diameter Electropulse Column shown in Figure 1, after completion of uranium runs, was installed at Battelle Memorial Institute (Columbus, Ohio) for uranium-plutonium partition tests. Six electrolytic runs were made under conditions corresponding to partitioning in the first process cycle to determine the effect of uranium reduction efficiency R(u) on t le separation process. The organic feed contained 80 to 83 grams/L of uranium and 0.71 to 0.82 grams/L of plutonium. The nitric acid concentration in the aqueous feed was 2.5 to 2.8 M and in the organic feed 0.2 to 0.3 M. 

In 1968, an electrolytic reduction process was proposed by A. Schneider and A. L. Ayers (6) to circumvent the above disadvantages. A research program was carried out in the Allied Chemical Corporation s laboratories during the years 1968 to 1972 to develop the process and equipment. The work resulted in the development of the Electropulse Column ( 7) for the continuous (differential) electrolytic uranium-plutonium partition process, which was later scaled up, fabricated, and installed in the Allied-General Nuclear Services reprocessing plant at Barnwell, South Carolina. About the same time, a stagewise electrolytic uranium-plutonium partition process was tested on a mini mixer-settler unit in Germany. (8)... 

Oliver, I.W., Graham, M.C., MacKenzie, A.B., Ellam, R.M. Farmer, J.G. (2008) Distribution and partitioning of depleted uranium (DU) in soils at weapons test ranges—investigations combining the BCR extraction scheme and isotopic analysis. Chemosphere, 72 (6), 932-939. 

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