Synthesis and characterization of cerium containing iron phosphate based glass-ceramics

The structure and properties of xCeO2-(100-x)(40Fe2O3-60P2O5), where x = 0, 2, 4, 6 and 8 mol%, glass-ceramics prepared by melting and slow cooling method have been investigated by using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), differential thermal analysis (DTA) and the Product Consistency Test (PCT). The results show that the 40Fe2O3-60P2O5 sample is homogeneously amorphous and the sample containing 2 mol% CeO2 has a small amount of FePO4 phase embedded. For the sample containing up to 4 mol% CeO2, monazite CePO4 and a small amount of FePO4 appear. Spectra analysis show that the structure networks of the glass-ceramics mainly consist of orthophosphate, along with pyrophosphate and a small amount of metaphosphate units. Moreover, the leaching rates of Fe and Ce are about 3.5 × 10−5 g m−2 d−1 and 5.0 × 10−5 g m−2 d−1 respectively after immersion in deionized water at 90 °C for 56 days, indicating their good chemical durability. The conclusions imply that the prepared method may be a promising process to immobilize nuclear waste into glass-ceramic matrix.