Recrystallization of Ra-223 with barium sulfate

Artikel i vetenskaplig tidskrift, 2014

In this work, the kinetics of barium sulfate recrystallization has been studied in acidic 0.01 mol dm -3 sodium sulfate solution using Ra-223 and Ba-133 tracers at very low total radium concentration, i. e. less than 10(-13) mol dm(-3). It was found that the system follows the homogeneous recrystallization model and that recrystallization rates, inferred by the decrease of Ra-223 and Ba-133 in the aqueous solution, are fast. Therefore, even at very low concentrations, below the solubility limit, radium will be retained by barium sulfate-a mineral present in the deep underground repository.