CAN RADIOACTIVE WASTE BE IMMOBILIZED IN GLASS FOR MILLIONS OF YEARS?

How do you handle nuclear waste that will be radioactive for millions of years, keeping it from harming people and the environment?

It isn't easy, but Rutgers researcher Ashutosh Goel has discovered ways to immobilize such waste in glass and ceramics.

Goel is the primary inventor of a new method to immobilize radioactive iodine in ceramics at room temperature. He's also the principal investigator (PI) or co-PI for six glass-related research projects totaling $6.34 million in federal and private funding, with $3.335 million going to Rutgers.

"Glass is a perfect material for immobilizing the radioactive wastes with excellent chemical durability," said Goel. Developing ways to immobilize iodine-129, which is especially troublesome, is crucial for its safe storage and disposal in underground geological formations.

The half-life of iodine-129 is 15.7 million years, and it can disperse rapidly in air and water. If it's released into the environment, iodine will linger for millions of years. Iodine targets the thyroid gland and can increase the chances of getting cancer.

Creating glass with radioactive waste is expected to start in around 2022 or 2023, Goel said, and "the implications of our research will be much more visible by that time."

The research may eventually help lead to ways to safely dispose of highly radioactive spent nuclear fuel that is stored now at commercial nuclear power plants.

Thanks to: sciencedaily.com