Use of thermal treatment with CaCl2 and CaO to remove 137Cs in the soil collected from the area near the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant

Facun Jiao; Norikazu Kinoshita; Masato Kawaguchi; Motoyuki Asada; Maki Honda; Keisuke Sueki; Kenji Koido; Yoshihiko Ninomiya

doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2020.123364

Use of thermal treatment with CaCl₂ and CaO to remove ¹³⁷Cs in the soil collected from the area near the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant

J Hazard Mater. 2021 Jan 5:401:123364. doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2020.123364. Epub 2020 Jul 3.

Authors

Facun Jiao¹, Norikazu Kinoshita², Masato Kawaguchi², Motoyuki Asada², Maki Honda³, Keisuke Sueki⁴, Kenji Koido⁵, Yoshihiko Ninomiya⁶

Affiliations

¹ Department of Applied Chemistry, Chubu University, 1200 Matsumoto-Cho, Kasugai, Aichi, 487-8501, Japan; School of Chemical Engineering, Anhui University of Science and Technology, No.168 Taifeng Road, Huainan, Anhui, 232001, PR China. Electronic address: fcjiao@aust.edu.cn.
² Institute of Technology, Shimizu Corporation, 3-4-17 Etchujima Koto-ku, Tokyo, 135-8530, Japan.
³ Graduate School of Pure and Applied Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8577, Japan.
⁴ Faculty of Pure and Applied Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8577, Japan.
⁵ Faculty of Symbiotic Systems Science, Fukushima University, 1 Kanayagawa, Fukushima, Fukushima, 960-1296, Japan.
⁶ Department of Applied Chemistry, Chubu University, 1200 Matsumoto-Cho, Kasugai, Aichi, 487-8501, Japan. Electronic address: ninomiya@isc.chubu.ac.jp.

PMID: 32763681
DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2020.123364

Abstract

A massive amount of soils and inflammable materials of plants etc. contaminated by radiocesium are generated from decontamination work in the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (FDNPP) accident affected area. In present study, the removal experiments of ¹³⁷Cs in a soil collected from the FDNPP accident affected area were carried out in a lab-scale electrical heating horizontal furnace through thermal treatment with CaCl₂ addition over a temperature of 900 - 1300 °C. The results indicated that the average radioactive concentration of ¹³⁷Cs in the soil was 52.8 Bq/g. The removal ratio of ¹³⁷Cs in the soil treated at 1300 °C was 96.3 % when 20 % CaCl₂ was added. The addition of CaCl₂ and CaO mixture exhibited a synergistic effect on the removal of ¹³⁷Cs, relative to the addition of CaCl₂ alone. Accordingly, the addition of CaCl₂ or its mixture with CaO during thermal treatment is suggested to remove ¹³⁷Cs in the soil collected from the FDNPP accident affected area. Additionally, segregation of the soil sample to fine and coarse fraction and then treated individually are also recommended.

Keywords: Calcium chloride; Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant; Fukushima; Removal of (137)Cs; Soil; Thermal treatment.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Calcium Chloride
Cesium Radioisotopes
Fukushima Nuclear Accident*
Japan
Nuclear Power Plants
Radiation Monitoring*
Soil
Soil Pollutants, Radioactive*
Water Pollutants, Radioactive* / analysis

Substances

Cesium Radioisotopes
Soil
Soil Pollutants, Radioactive
Water Pollutants, Radioactive
Cesium-137
Calcium Chloride