6533b873fe1ef96bd12d5d6b

RESEARCH PRODUCT

Conditioning metallic aluminum in magnesium phosphate cements

subject

description

This work deals with the stabilization / solidification of radioactive waste using cement.More particularly, it aims at assessing the chemical compatibility between metallic aluminum and mortars based on magnesium phosphate cement. The physical and chemical processes leading to setting and hardening of the cement are first investigated. X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetry (TGA) and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (31P and11B MAS-NMR) arefirst used to characterize the solid phases formed during hydration, while inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy analysis (ICP-AES), electrical conductimetry and pH measurementsprovide information on the pore solution composition. Then,the corrosion of metallic aluminum in magnesium phosphate mortars is studied by monitoring the equilibrium potential and by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS).Magnesium phosphate cement is prepared from a mix of magnesium oxide (MgO) and potassium dihydrogen orthophosphate (KH2PO4). In the presence of water, hydration occurs according to a dissolution – precipitation process. The main hydrate is K-struvite (MgKPO4.6H2O). Its precipitation is preceded by that of two transient phases: phosphorrösslerite (MgHPO4.7H2O) and Mg2KH(PO4)2.15H2O. Boric acid retards cement hydration by delaying theformation of cement hydrates. Two processes may be involved in this retardation: the initial precipitation of amorphous or poorly crystallized minerals containing boron and phosphorus atoms, and/or the stabilization of cations (Mg2+, K+) in solution.As compared with a Portland cement-based matrix, corrosion of aluminum is strongly limited in magnesium phosphate mortar. The pore solution pH is close to neutrality and falls within the passivation domain of aluminum. Corrosion depends on several parameters: it is promoted by a water-to-cement ratio (w/c) significantly higher than the chemical water demand of cement (w/c = 0.51), and by the addition of boric acid. On the contrary, lithium nitrate, dissolved in the mixing solution, acts as a corrosion inhibitor.A 4-step mechanism makes it possible to model the impedance diagrams. The evolution of the corrosion rate and of the amount of dihydrogen released with ongoing hydration is then calculated The results are in good agreement with the experimental determination of the H2 production by aluminum sheets embedded in magnesium phosphate mortar.