Radioactive decontamination in low-temperature environments by using a novel high-strength strippable coating

Abstract

Accidents involving nuclear leakage and radioactive source diffusion will result in a substantial amount of radioactive pollution, posing a threat to the world's environment as well as human safety. To get rid of the pollution, this work describes a new type of strippable detergent coating designed to remove radioactive contamination, especially in low-temperature conditions. In situ polymerization was employed to make EC/PUA/PVAc detergent from degradable ethyl cellulose (EC), tea polyphenols (TP), and polyvinyl acetate (PVAc), and polytetramethylene ether glycol bis-para-aminobenzoate (P1000). The film-forming performance, decontamination efficiency, and mechanical properties of the decontamination coating formed by the detergent were studied. Designed to work in a low-temperature environment, the detergent can be sprayed and peeled to remove surface radioactive staining. A universal material testing machine was used to assess the low-temperature rheometry, SEM, EDX, FT-IR, and other variables and to characterize the decontamination coating and the decontamination mechanism of the detergent. At -10–10 °C, the EC/PUA/PVAc detergent has good fluidity and sprayability and forms a strippable coating. The tensile strength of the decontamination coating can be as high as 26.4 MPa, and its 180° peel strength on ceramic tile, glass, stainless steel, cement, marble are 0.49 ± 0.08 N/m, 1.82 ± 0.41 N/m, 3.03 ± 1.65 N/m, 35.60 ± 1.17 N/m, 44.43 ± 4.10 N/m, respectively. The decontamination factors ranged from 3.32 to 10.02, with a decontamination rate above 85%.