Nuclear Waste Reduction Using Molecularly Imprinted Polymers

Abstract

Nuclear power accounts for just over twenty percent of America’s electrical output and does not contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. Unfortunately, nuclear power does produce a deleterious by-product known as radioactive waste. One of the primary goals of nuclear power proponents is the development of methods that reduce the volume of radioactive waste, such as cobalt. Radioactive cobalt is usually accompanied by non-radioactive iron, making it more difficult to solely extract the harmful cobalt atoms. The application of molecularly imprinted polymers and chitosans increase the effectiveness of the removal of radioactive cobalt from cooling medium in order to reduce the overall volume of nuclear waste by having a high selectivity for the radioactive cobalt ions even in the presence of similar particles. This method’s efficacy will be analyzed and compared to the current procedures for removing radioactive cobalt from cooling medium. A relevant explanation of a nuclear reactor’s inner workings, radioactive waste formation, along with societal implications of cleaner nuclear power, and the benefits of its successful implementation, will also be discussed.