Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology

Polymer-modified cement is the composite material made by partially replacing and strengthening the cement hydrate binders of conventional mortar with polymeric modifiers such as polymer latexes and redispersible polymeric modifiers. It is known that the addition of polymer to cement mortar leads to improved quality, which would be expected to have a high chemical resistance.Therefore, the purpose of this study is to identify the improved chemical resistance, such as low permeability and low ion diffusivity, of the polymermodified cement as a solidification agent for the radwaste. First, polymer-modified cement specimens by latex modification were prepared according to the polymer content from 0 % to 30% to select the optimized polymer content. At those specimens, the water-to-cement (W/C) ratio was maintained to 33% and 50% respectively. After the much curing time, the structural integrity of specimens was evaluated through the compressive strength test and the porosity evaluation by the water immersion method. From the results, 10% of the polymer content at 33% of the W/C ratio was shown to have the most improved quality. Finally, the leaching test referredfrom ANS 16.1 for the specimens having the most improved quality was conducted. Dedicated specimens for the leaching test were then mixed with radioisotopes of 60Co and 137Cs at the specimen preparation.

Keywords

Polymer-modified cement,Integrity,Compressive strength,Porosity,Immersion,Leaching