Europium Structural Effect on a Borosilicate Glass of Nuclear Interest

Short and middle range order structure of a borosilicate glass of nuclear interest doped with europium oxide was investigated in this study. Neutron diffraction and Wide Angle X-ray Scattering were used as experimental techniques. Furthermore, Reverse Monte Carlo simulation technique was also applied to build reliable atomistic models of the different glasses involved. Simulation results show that europium is more efficiently 6-coordinated in the borosilicate glasses concerned, with a Eu-O distance of 2.31 ű 0.01 Å. Partial pair distribution functions and atom count mainly indicate that europium appears in both silicate and borate environments and that IVB/IIIB ratio decreases with europium oxide increase.