The depleted uranium (DU) inventory in the United States exceeds 500,000 metric tons. To evaluate the possibilities for reuse of this stockpile of DU, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has created a research and development program to address the disposition of its DU(1). One potential use for this stockpile material is in the fabrication of nuclear shielding casks for the storage, transport, and disposal of spent nuclear fuels. The use of the DU-based shielding would reduce the size and weight of the casks while allowing a level of protection from neutrons and gamma rays comparable to that afforded by steel and concrete. DUAGG (depleted uranium aggregate) is formed of depleted uranium dioxide (DUO2) sintered with a synthetic-basalt-based binder. This study was designed to investigate possible deleterious reactions that could occur between the cement paste and the DUAGG. After 13 months of exposure to a cement pore solution, no deleterious expansive mineral phases were observed to form either with the DUO2 or with the simulated-basalt sintering phases. In the early stages of these exposure tests, Oak Ridge National Laboratory preliminary results confirm that the surface reactions of this aggregate proceed more slowly than expected. This finding may indicate that DUAGG/DUCRETE (depleted uranium concrete) casks could have service lives sufficient to meet the projected needs of DOE and the commercial nuclear power industry.
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