APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR DISSOLVING HAZARDOUS WASTE MATERIALS BY CATALYZED ELECTROCHEMICAL DISSOLUTION

摘要

An apparatus for dissolving plutonium oxides or other waste materials by a catalyzed electrochemical dissolution process comprises a compartmented cell having an anode compartment and a cathode compartment. Both the anode and cathode are individually cooled to maintain the temperature of the cathode lower than the temperature of the anode during the dissolution process. The cathode and anode can be cylindrical and concentric, or can be in the form of parallel spaced plates. Silver catalyst is recovered by reversing the polarity of the electrodes and adding a nitrite suppressor to the acid solution in the cell.