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Sodium Zirconium Phosphate (NaZr 2 (PO 4) 3 , hereinafter NZP) and monazite are both potential materials for immobilization of nuclear waste. In this work, novel (1- x)Sr 0.5 Zr 2 (PO 4) 3 - x NdPO 4 composite ceramics (x = 0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, and 1.0) for simultaneously immobilizing the simulated fission product (FP) Sr and trivalent minor actinide (MA) Nd were prepared by one-step microwave sintering technique, in which Sr and Nd were immobilized into NZP and monazite type structures, respectively. The phase evolution and microstructure of the samples were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman, and backscattering scanning electron microscopy (BSE). The results showed that the expected composite ceramics were successfully obtained by one-step microwave sintering at 1050 °C for 2 h. The as-prepared samples consisted of Sr 0.5 Zr 2 (PO 4) 3 and NdPO 4 phases, and the content of the two phases varied regularly as x changed, generally conforming to the designed nominal chemical composition. Importantly, the composite ceramics presented the homogenous and dense microstructure. The relative density of the composite ceramics was more than 95%, meanwhile, the Vickers-hardness of the samples was higher than 600 MPa. It was indicated that NZP-monazite type composite ceramics could be a potential matrix for the simultaneous immobilization of actinide and fission product. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, 0.6Sr 0.5 Zr 2 (PO 4) 3 -0.4Ce 1- x Nd x PO 4 (x = 0–1) multiphase ceramics were fabricated using a one-step microwave sintering technique, where Sr and Ce/Nd were utilized as the substitutes for the fission products 90Sr and actinide nuclides in high-level radionuclide wastes, respectively. The influences of Sr/Ce/Nd co-incorporation on the phase evolution, crystal structure, micromorphology, densification, and chemical stability of the as-prepared multiphase ceramic waste forms were systematically investigated. It was detected that the multiphase ceramics were composed of Sr 0.5 Zr 2 (PO 4) 3 (SrZP) phase and monazite phase regardless of x value, and (Ce, Nd)PO 4 monazite solid solution was formed with Ce/Nd substitution. Rietveld refinement results further verified the cell parameters of (Ce, Nd)PO 4 monazite solid solution regularly decreased with increasing Nd replacement, and the structural change of crystalline monazite did not affect the structure of SrZP phase. All samples presented a well-compacted and homogeneous microstructure, and their micromorphology did not change significantly with the replacement of Ce by Nd. Moreover, the relative density of the as-prepared multiphase ceramics all reached more than approximately 94.5 %, demonstrating excellent densification. Importantly, the good compatibility of SrZP and (Ce, Nd)PO 4 monazite phases brought out superior chemical stability. The normalized elemental leaching rate showed no significant change for different Ce/Nd substituted samples, whose normalized leaching rates of Sr, Ce, and Nd were about 10−4 g/(m2·d), 10−7 g/(m2·d), and 10−6 g/(m2·d) order of magnitude, respectively. It is demonstrated that SrZP-(Ce, Nd)PO 4 multiphase ceramics can be used as candidate materials for simultaneously immobilizing fission products and actinide nuclides of high-level nuclear wastes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dense NaZr 2 (PO 4) 3 (NZP) ceramics were successfully prepared by a microwave sintering process with x wt.% ZnO as a sintering aid (where x = 0, 0.5, 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0). The effects of ZnO additive on the crystal structure, microstructure and sintering behavior of as-prepared NZP ceramics were systematically investigated. The single NZP phase can be achieved in the wide temperature range of 900–1200 °C holding for 2 h by microwave-sintering technology. The addition of ZnO sintering aid would not noticeably change the crystal structure of NZP. Importantly, ZnO additive significantly promoted the densification and 1.0 wt% ZnO-added sample possessed the maximum relative density of 96.5% after sintering at 1100 °C, considerably higher than that of pure NZP sample. Besides, the Vickers hardness of the above sample could attain near 800 MPa, which is about four times as hard as the pure NZP ceramics without ZnO additive. It was suggested that the combination of microwave sintering with appropriate addition of ZnO sintering aid would provide a convenient and efficient method for rapid fabrication of dense NZP ceramics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]