Chemical and mineralogical transformations caused by weathering in anti-tank DU penetrators (“the silver bullets”) discharged during the Kosovo war

Abstract

A depleted-uranium penetrator, shot in 1999 at Djakovica, Western Kosovo, and there collected in June 2001, shows evident alteration processes, perceivable as black and yellow coatings. XRD indicates that the black coating mostly consists of uraninite, UO 2, with possible presence of other more oxidized uranium forms, such as U 3O 8. The yellow material is mostly amorphous, with variable weak diffraction lines, due to minor embedded uraninite grains, or possibly to schoepite, UO 3 × 2H 2O. SEM-EDS reveals only uranium. Whereas uraninite does not show any crystal shape, the yellow material recrystallizes to flattened pseudo-hexagonal prisms, approximately 2–10 μm wide and 1–4 μm long. Raman spectra of the yellow material have peaks at 3474 and 3222 cm −1, indicative for OH groups, plus at 812 and 744 cm −1, indicative for UO 2 2 + uranyl ions. Based on the different data, the yellow material covering the depleted-uranium dart is an oxidized corrosion product, containing uranyl ions and hydroxyls and/or water molecules, akin to schoepite. Therefore, the Djakovica dart shows evident oxidation and leaching processes, progressively releasing mobile uranium forms. As uranium will be progressively dispersed far from the impact sites, at a rate controlled by the presence of effective fixing mechanisms, we feel necessary to maintain long term geochemical control of water pollution within the battlefield surroundings.