HYDROMETALLURGICAL PROCESS FOR THE TREATMENT AND RECYCLING OF SPENT FUEL SALT FROM A MOLTEN CHLORIDE NUCLEAR REACTOR

A hydrometallurgical process for recycling spent fuel salts from molten chloride nuclear reactors recovers actinides and chlorine through dissolution, precipitation, electrolysis, and liquid-liquid extraction, addressing the need for efficient recycling and waste reduction in nuclear fuel treatment.

FR3170694A1Pending Publication Date: 2026-06-26COMMISSARIAT A LENERGIE ATOMIQUE ET AUX ENERGIES ALTERNATIVES +1
4 Cites 0 Cited by

Patent Information

Application Number
FR2024014789
Authority / Receiving Office
FR · FR
Patent Type
Applications
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date
2024-12-20
Publication Date
2026-06-26

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Existing technologies lack an efficient and environmentally friendly process for recycling spent fuel salts from molten chloride nuclear reactors, particularly for recovering valuable actinides and chlorine for reuse, while minimizing the use of reagents and waste production.

Method used

A hydrometallurgical process involving dissolution in nitric acid with metal nitrates, precipitation, electrolysis, liquid-liquid extraction, and conversion steps to recover actinides and chlorine, enabling the production of a new fuel salt for molten chloride nuclear reactors.

Benefits of technology

The process effectively recovers actinides and chlorine from spent fuel salts, reducing waste and reagent use, and produces a new fuel salt suitable for reuse in molten chloride reactors, maintaining criticality and minimizing environmental impact.

✦ Generated by Eureka AI based on patent content.
Patent Text Reader

Abstract

The invention relates to a hydrometallurgical process for the treatment and recycling of spent fuel salt from a molten chloride nuclear reactor, comprising at least the steps of: a) precipitation of chloride ions present in the spent fuel salt by: - ​​dissolving the spent fuel salt in an aqueous solution of nitric acid comprising a nitrate of a metal M; or - dissolving the spent fuel salt in an aqueous solution of nitric acid and adding the nitrate of metal M to the resulting solution; thereby obtaining a two-phase medium consisting of a precipitate of chloride of metal M and an aqueous nitric phase comprising the metals of the spent fuel salt in the form of nitrates; b) separation of the precipitate of chloride of metal M from the aqueous nitric phase; c) dissociation of the precipitate of chloride of metal M obtained in step b) into chlorine and metal M, with recovery of the chlorine;d) selective recovery of at least one of the actinides present in the aqueous nitric phase obtained in step b) by implementing at least one liquid-liquid extraction-deextraction process; ete) use of the dichlorine recovered in step c) and of said at least one actinide recovered in step d) to produce a new fuel salt for a molten chloride nuclear reactor.;
Need to check novelty before this filing date? Find Prior Art