Determination of concentration of formaldehyde in high level waste during the destruction of nitric acid in PUREX process

AbstractA simple titrimetric procedure has been developed for the determination of the concentration of formaldehyde present in nitric acid. The procedure is based on well-known condensation reaction between carbonyl compounds and hydrazine. This method has been validated for the determination of concentration of formaldehyde in samples obtained from evaporator during the decomposition of nitric acid in high level waste generated in PUREX process. Interference studies were performed in presence of commonly available contaminants such as uranium, dissolved TBP, fission products such as Zr, Ru in predicted concentration range and no significant interference was detected. The coefficient of variation on the determination of formaldehyde in samples obtained during destruction of nitric acid in PUREX process was found to be within acceptable range of  ± 3%.
Source: Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry - Category: Nuclear Medicine Source Type: research