The separation of radioactive waste materials into their chemical components is at the heart of all efforts to reduce the volume of nuclear waste. In Chemical Separations in Nuclear Waste Management: The State of the Art and a Look to the Future, the authors discuss the present state and possible future directions of separations science and technology.

The book presents an overview of the environmental legacy from nuclear weapons production in the United States and the former Soviet Union, the magnitude of the cleanup efforts that are underway in both countries, and the pivotal role played in these efforts by separations science. Needs that are specific to the future development of separations science and technology are emphasized.

he book evolved from the international workshop, Technologies for Nuclear Separations: A Look to the Future, Prague, September 2000, and the authors have updated and augmented their original papers for this book. For readers who are not experts in separations science, an overview of the evolution of this science from the onset of nuclear research at the beginning of the last century to the present is given to help them understand its foundation, contributions, and significance. Actinide chemistry, fundamental to many nuclear separation techniques, is summarized.

The authors, some of the world's leading nuclear scientists, discuss the long-term needs that have to be met by all nuclear operations - the reduction of the risks to the environment and to human health, the environmental remediation of affected areas, the safe disposition of radioactive waste and fissile materials, in particular of weapons grade plutonium, and improved public acceptance of necessary nuclear activities.

Author: Choppin, Gregory R., Khankhasayev, Mikhail K., and Plendl, Hans S. Pages: 120 Date of Publication: 2002 ISBN:1-57477-121-3