Study on the Temperature Effect on Regeneration of Cesium Form of Resin into Ferric Form

The pressurized heavy water reactors which are used for power production make use of heavy water in moderator and in primary heat transport system. The cationic fission products produced during the reactor operation such as cesium, strontium, cobalt, palladium, ruthenium and anions iodide, iodate, ruthenate, etc. contaminate the heavy water and hence the need for purification of the moderator and primary heat transport system to nuclear grade to achieve the desired efficiency arises. Columns containing ion exchange resins in online are used for purification. Also ion exchange resins are used in purification of fuel storage pond water. In this purification process, the resins pick up activity and ionic impurities. The activity-loaded resin so formed is called spent resin. It is imperative to treat the spent resin into innocuous form, highly inert towards exchange with any external radioactivity. Hence, an attempt has been made to convert the Cs-containing spent resin into ferric form and to study the role of temperature in the exchange reactions. Results show that the spent resin of Cs form could be completely converted into ferric form in batch study. Also the extent of exchange to ferric form was found to come down with temperature resulting in the release of -59.46 KJ/mole with cesium form of resin.