Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology

This study has been focused on determining the chemical composition of 14C - in terms of both organic and inorganic 14C contents - in reactor coolant from 3 different PWR';s reactor type. The purpose was to evaluate the characteristic of 14C that can serve as a basis for reliable estimation of the environmental release at domestic PWR sites. 14C is the most important nuclide in the inventory, since it contributes one of the main dose contributors in future release scenarios. The reason for this is its high mobility in the environment, biological availability and long half-life(5730yr). More recent studies - where a more detailed investigation of organic 14C species believed to be formed in the coolant under reducing conditions have been made - show that the organic compounds not only are limited to hydrocarbons and CO. Possible organic compounds formed including formaldehyde, formic acid and acetic acid, etc. Under oxidizing conditions shows the oxidized carbon forms, possibly mainly carbon dioxide and bicarbonate forms. Measurements of organic and inorganic 14C in various water systems were also performed. The 14C inventory in the reactor water was found to be 3.1 GBq/kg in PWR of which less than 10% was in inorganic form. Generally, the 14C activity in the water was divided equally between the gas- and water- phase. Even though organic 14C compound shows that dominant species during the reactor operation, But during the releasing of 14C from the plant stack, chemical forms of 14C shows the different composition due to the operation conditions such as temperature, pH, volume control tank venting and shut down chemistry.

Keywords

PWR,Radiocarbon dioxide,14C chemical form,Reactor coolant,Process sample