Electrokinetic Separation for Enhanced Decontamination of Soils and Groundwater Systems

安全管理第一代核电的遗产，减少核风险和危害，近年来已成为英国和韩国（韩国）核工业的优先事项，因为在过渡期间继续缩小规模，以“新核”。据英国核退役管理局（NDA）估计，未来120年，第一代核电退役的总成本为121 B英镑，其中乏燃料和遗留废物的管理成本很高。然而，也在下一次计划使用前对场地进行补救方面作出了大量努力。土壤和地下水的修复极具挑战性，因为环境中的放射性核素污染物含量很低，而且与粘土有很强的关联，因此对受污染土壤的简单清洗是不够的。福岛第一核电站事故发生后，大量土壤被移走并储存在临时设施中，这突出表明了成功补救的挑战。不鼓励对生态系统的实质性干扰，而就地修复土壤和地下水的方法受到高度青睐。拟议的研究将考虑原位修复化学增强电动分离解吸Cs和Sr从困难的粘土类型。将探索使用非离子、可生物降解的聚合物进行化学处理，作为扩大粘土夹层和回收已被“捕获”在粘土颗粒中的离子的方法。一旦解吸，应回收移动的离子以防止其迁移。我们在韩国KAIST的合作伙伴将设计新型吸附剂，通过电化学分离和使用2D制造的复合膜吸附来分离阴极上的离子，该复合膜对选定的离子是不可渗透的，以提供快速的吸附动力学和高吸附容量。该研究将促进对从不同粘土类型中解吸离子的适当方法的理解，并成功地捕获移动的离子，局部浓缩污染物并减少最终处置的废物量。随着退役计划的推进，土壤和地下水系统的修复将成为焦点。安装现场技术，可以实现高去污水平，需要最少的工程支持，并不会对当地生态系统造成长期损害，是非常可取的，并有可能加快修复时间表，减少退役的遗产核设施的整个生命周期的成本。最后，英国-韩国的国际合作和行业伙伴关系有机会增强公众对核部门的信心，与未来的工程师和公众接触，他们将见证核部门从“维护和维护”转向积极将遗留场地恢复到理想的最终状态，所有这些都是在发展“新核”和将废物转移到地质处置设施的最终目的地的同时进行的。

Safely managing the legacy of first generation nuclear power, reducing nuclear risks and hazards, has in recent years become a priority for the nuclear industry both in the UK and Republic of Korea (ROK) as downscaling continues in the interim to 'new nuclear'. The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA, UK) estimate the total cost of decommissioning first generation nuclear power to be £121 B over the next 120 years, with significant costs associated to the management of spent fuel and legacy wastes. However, substantial effort is also directed towards remediating sites prior to their next planned use. Remediating soils and groundwater is extremely challenging due to the low-levels of radionuclide contaminants encountered in the environment and their strong association with clays, rendering simple washing of contaminated soils inadequate. The challenge to successfully remediate is pointedly highlighted by the vast quantities of soils which have now been removed and stored at interim facilities following the incident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Substantial disturbance to the ecosystem is discouraged and methods to remediate soils and groundwater in-situ are highly favored. The proposed research will consider in-situ remediation by chemical-enhanced electrokinetic separation to desorb Cs and Sr from difficult clay types. Chemical treatment using non-ionic, biodegradable polymers will be explored as a method to expand clay interlayers and recover ions which have become 'trapped' in clay particles. Once desorbed the mobile ions should be recovered to prevent their migration. Our partners at KAIST, ROK will design novel adsorbents to isolate ions at the cathode via electrochemical separation and by adsorption using 2D fabricated composite membranes that are impermeable to the selected ions to deliver rapid sorption kinetics and high adsorption capacity. The research will advance understanding on appropriate methods to desorb ions from different clay types and successfully capture mobile ions, locally concentrating the contaminants and reducing the volume of waste for ultimate disposal. As decommissioning programs advance, remediation of soils and groundwater systems will come into focus. Installing in-situ technologies which can achieve high decontamination levels, require minimal engineering support, and do not cause long-term damage to the local ecosystem are highly desired and have the potential to accelerate remediation timescales and reduce the full lifetime costs of decommissioning legacy nuclear sites. Finally, the UK-ROK international collaboration and industry partnership has an opportunity to enhance public confidence in the nuclear sector, engaging with future engineers and the general public who will witness a nuclear sector moving away from 'care and maintenance' to actively returning legacy sites to their desired end-state, all at the same time as growing 'new nuclear' and moving waste to its ultimate destination in a geological disposal facility.