A comparison of HLW-glass and PWR-borate waste glass

Glass can incorporate a wide variety of wastes ranging from high level wastes (HLW) to low and intermediate level wastes (LILW). A comparison of HLW-Glass and PWR-borate waste glass is given in this paper. The HLW glass formulation named GC-12/9B and 90-19/U can incorporate 16–20 wt% HLW at 1100°C or 1150°C. The borate waste glass named SL-1 can incorporate 45 wt% borate waste generated from PWR. Their physical properties, characteristic temperatures, chemical durability and leach behavior are summarized here. The comparison indicates: the PWR-glass SL-1 can incorporate up to 45 wt% waste oxides at lower melting temperature (1000°C) in agreement with minimum additive waste stabilization (MAWS) approach; owing to the PWR-borate glass contain less Si and more B and Na, its mass loss is higher than HWR-glass; both HLW-glass and PWR-borate glass have favorable chemical durability and the same leaching phenomena, i.e., Na is mostly depleted, but Ca, Mg, Al and Ti are enriched in the leached surface layer.