Neptunium and plutonium sorption to Snake River Plain, Idaho soil

Abstract

Summary The behavior of Np and Pu on soil collected from the subsurface disposal area at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory was investigated by performing short-duration, sorption experiments to measure sorption isotherms. Neptunium sorption can be described with a Freundlich isotherm; however, Pu sorption can only be described in this fashion as a conservative estimate of minimum sorption. Geochemical modeling predictions suggest that initial sorption of Np is controlled predominantly by surface complexation on clay minerals, while Pu is controlled by a competition between complexation with iron oxyhydroxides and the precipitation of hydrolysis products. Longer-term sorption is governed by the transformation of these species to oxide minerals. Solution ionic strength and carbonate alkalinity did not significantly affect Np or Pu soil sorption.