Electrolytic dissolution characteristics of SIMFUEL in carbonate solutions of high concentration

This work studied anodic dissolution characteristics of a SIMFUEL electrode at several potentials in carbonate solutions of a high concentration at several pHs. The electrolytic uranium dissolution of SIMFUEL was much affected by a corrosion product of UO2CO3 generated at the electrode during the dissolution in carbonate solution. The corrosion product distorted the voltammogram of SIMFUEL in the potential region of oxygen evolution and increased the overpotential of oxygen evolution at the electrode. The effective dissolution of the SIMFUEL electrode in a carbonate solution could be obtained at an applied potential such as +4 V (vs SSE) or more which had an overpotential of oxygen evolution high enough to rupture the corrosion product on the electrode surface. The corrosion potential of SIMFUEL decreased with pH in the carbonate solution, and the dissolution rate and current efficiency of the SIMFUEL increased with a decrease of pH in the carbonate solution.