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Sustainability
Special Issues
Challenges in the Long-Term Behaviour of Highly Radioactive Materials
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Special Issue "Challenges in the Long-Term Behaviour of Highly Radioactive Materials"

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2021.

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Michael I. Ojovan
E-Mail Website
SciProfiles
Guest Editor
1. Department of Materials, Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, Exhibition Road, London SW7 2AZ, UK
2. Radiochemistry Department, Lomonosov Moscow State University, 119991 Moscow, Russia
Interests: amorphous materials; vitrification; glasses; viscosity; nuclear materials; immobilisation; radiation effects
Special Issues and Collections in MDPI journals
Dr. Boris E. Burakov
E-Mail
SciProfiles
Guest Editor
V.G. Khlopin Radium Institute, St. Peterburg 194021, Russia
Interests: actinides; ceramic and glass waste forms; Chernobyl; radiation damage effects in solids; non-organic sorbents
Dr. Bella Y. Zubekhina
E-Mail
SciProfiles
Guest Editor
V.G. Khlopin Radium Institute, St. Peterburg 194021, Russia
Interests: materials for high-level waste immobilization; characterization of fuel debris; chemical durability of final waste forms; nuclear forensics

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Highly radioactive materials are at the core in many useful applications ranging from operating nuclear reactors to vitrified highly radioactive waste that is currently stored and will be finally disposed of in deep geological formations. The crucial question in all applications concerns the behaviour of such materials in the conditions of intense self-irradiation combined with adverse and often highly corrosive environments. The stability and durability of highly radioactive materials are highly affected by both radiations, accumulated changes caused by irradiation, and adverse actions of the environment. Even small changes can gradually lead to structural and functional changes in material properties and cause their failure with time, particularly in the long-term. Irreversible transformations and accelerated corrosion have been already reported for highly radioactive crystalline and vitreous materials that are of practical importance in limiting waste form loading and safety assessment models. Therefore, the behaviour of highly radioactive materials presents a challenge to science and technology, particularly, when considering the durability and long-term stability of materials.

This Special Issue will analyse issues related to the behaviour of highly radioactive materials. It will focus on the assessment of effects resulting from self-irradiation on crystalline, vitreous and glass crystalline materials designed for nuclear waste disposal. It will also include analysis of highly radioactive materials which resulted from nuclear accidents such as Chernobyl and Fukushima.

This Special Issue will analyse challenging aspects of highly radioactive materials behaviour in systems and activities related to peaceful utilisation of nuclear energy. It aims to support environmentally safe and sustainable utilisation of nuclear energy assessing effects resulting from self-irradiation on crystalline, vitreous and glass crystalline materials used in nuclear applications including nuclear power reactor and waste immobilisation materials.

Papers selected for this Special Issue will be subject to a rigorous peer review procedure with the aim of their rapid and wide dissemination.

Prof. Dr. Michael Ojovan
Dr. Boris E. Burakov
Dr. Bella Y. Zubekhina
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All papers will be peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • nuclear materials
  • irradiation
  • durability
  • stability

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Article
Plutonium-Doped Monazite and Other Orthophosphates—Thermodynamics and Experimental Data on Long-Term Behavior
by
Polina Mikhailova
,
Boris Burakov
,
Nikolai Eremin
,
Alexei Averin
and
Andrey Shiryaev
Sustainability 2021, 13(3), 1203; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13031203 - 24 Jan 2021
Viewed by 523
Abstract
The paper consists of two main parts: a microscopic and spectroscopic investigation of the single crystal of 17-year-old 238Pu-doped Eu-monazite, and a theoretical calculation of the properties of several structural types of orthophosphates. It is shown that actinide-doped monazite is prone to [...] Read more.
The paper consists of two main parts: a microscopic and spectroscopic investigation of the single crystal of 17-year-old 238Pu-doped Eu-monazite, and a theoretical calculation of the properties of several structural types of orthophosphates. It is shown that actinide-doped monazite is prone to the formation of mechanically weak, poorly crystalline crust, presumably consisting of rhabdophane. Its formation is likely promoted by the formation of peroxides and, potentially, acidic compounds, due to the radiolysis of atmospheric moisture. The calculations of mixing the enthalpies and Gibbs energies of binary solid solutions of Pu and rare earth element (REE) phosphates that were performed for the principal structural types—monazite, xenotime, rhabdophane—show that, in the case of light REEs, the plutonium admixture is preferentially redistributed into the rhabdophane. This process strongly affects the behavior of actinides, leached from a monazite-based waste form. The applications of these results for the development of actinide waste forms are discussed. The current data on the behavior of real actinide-doped monazite suggest that this type of ceramic waste form is not very resistant, even in relatively short time periods. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges in the Long-Term Behaviour of Highly Radioactive Materials)
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Article
Long-Term Aging of Chernobyl Fuel Debris: Corium and “Lava”
by
Bella Zubekhina
,
Boris Burakov
,
Ekaterina Silanteva
,
Yuri Petrov
,
Vasiliy Yapaskurt
and
Dmitry Danilovich
Sustainability 2021, 13(3), 1073; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13031073 - 21 Jan 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 500
Abstract
Samples of Chernobyl fuel debris, including massive corium and “lava” were collected inside the Chernobyl “Sarcophagus” or “Shelter” in 1990, transported to Leningrad (St. Petersburg) and stored under laboratory conditions for many years. In 2011 aged samples were visually re-examined and it was [...] Read more.
Samples of Chernobyl fuel debris, including massive corium and “lava” were collected inside the Chernobyl “Sarcophagus” or “Shelter” in 1990, transported to Leningrad (St. Petersburg) and stored under laboratory conditions for many years. In 2011 aged samples were visually re-examined and it was confirmed that most of them remained intact, although some evidence of self-destruction and chemical alteration were clearly observed. Selected samples of corium and “lava” were affected by static leaching at temperatures of 25, 90 and 150 °C in distilled water. A normalized Pu mass loss (NLPu) from corium samples after 140 days was noted to be 0.5 g/m2 at 25 °C and 1.1 g/m2 at 90 °C. For “lava” samples NLPu was 2.2–2.3 g/m2 at 90 °C for 140 days. The formation of secondary uranyl phases on the surface of corium and “lava” samples altered at 150 °C was confirmed. The results obtained are considered as an important basis for the simulation of fuel debris aging at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant (NPP). Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges in the Long-Term Behaviour of Highly Radioactive Materials)
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Article
What Is Suitable Leadership for High-Level Radioactive Waste (HLW) Management?
by
Maria R.H. Takeuchi
,
Tatsuya Hasegawa
,
Linda McKinley
,
Gian Powell Marquez
and
Keiichi N. Ishihara
Sustainability 2020, 12(20), 8691; https://doi.org/10.3390/su12208691 - 20 Oct 2020
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 560
Abstract
The Nuclear Waste Management Organization of Japan (NUMO) was established in 2000 as the organization responsible for the deep geological disposal of specified radioactive waste. Their siting process was initiated through open solicitation of volunteer host communities. However, no communities came forward with [...] Read more.
The Nuclear Waste Management Organization of Japan (NUMO) was established in 2000 as the organization responsible for the deep geological disposal of specified radioactive waste. Their siting process was initiated through open solicitation of volunteer host communities. However, no communities came forward with the exception of Toyo Town, which applied for the initial literature survey, but then withdrew the application due to strong opposition in 2007. To identify why the then mayor of Toyo Town failed, we analyzed his behavior and leadership characteristics, including how he collaborated with NUMO and the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy (ANRE). We identified the pattern of Machiavellian leadership, which was most likely the reason why he lost credibility and public trust. To improve the future siting process, we identified suitable leadership for high-level radioactive waste (HLW) management based on leadership theories. We determined that servant leadership is suitable because of its focus on the followers, with the achievement of organizational objectives being a subordinate outcome. With servant leadership characteristics, the leaders of NUMO, ANRE, and candidate municipalities may win trust because they value the people of the host communities and empower them to engage in decision-making during the siting process, which can help raise public acceptance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges in the Long-Term Behaviour of Highly Radioactive Materials)
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Planned Papers

The below list represents only planned manuscripts. Some of these manuscripts have not been received by the Editorial Office yet. Papers submitted to MDPI journals are subject to peer-review.

Planned Paper 1:

Title: The Passivity of Carbon Steel in Highly Alkaline Environments

Authors: Prof. Dr. Digby D. Macdonald, Prof. Dr. Jie Qiu, and Prof. Dr. George R. Engelhardt.

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