Effect of Redox Conditions on the Fission Products Release from Irradiated Oxide Fuel

An in-house designed system for inductive vaporization (InVap) enables the investigation of the fission product (FP) release from irradiated fuel at temperatures up to 2300°C and under different redox conditions. Via the direct connection of the InVap device to an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICP-MS) the on-line monitoring of the FP release is possible. Theoretically modeled and data experimentally determined on thermal treatment of irradiated fuel and release of volatile FPs (Cs, I), semi-volatile FPs (Sr, Ba, Tc, Mo, Ru) and actinides (U, Pu or Am) are discussed regarding to the nuclear fuel reprocessing technology.