As the global energy need is continually increasing, alternative processes to meet this demand while limiting the emission of greenhouse gases is essential. Nuclear energy is of great interest as a cost-effective alternative to the traditional carbon-based fossil fuels (i.e. coal and crude oil) that currently supply about 85% of the energy used globally. However, one of the key challenges for innovative closed fuel cycles is the economic isolation of noble gases, Xe and Kr, from the off-gas waste stream that evolves from reprocessing spent fuels. Currently, the only commercial process that is used to separate these gases is cryogenic distillation which is an energy-intensive and costly process. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have shown great promise in this application due to their porous and selective nature, although their manufacture is not scalable with current processes. With this SBIR grant, Tetramers expertise in MOFs and specialty material manufacturing will be leveraged to produce a lab-scale continuous process of the targeted MOFs and ensure that the resulting materials exhibit the desired properties and their production is cost-effective. Resultant MOFs developed during this SBIR program will be characterized via X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis, BET surface area, and Xe/Kr capacity. The high selectivity of these MOFs has the potential to significantly reduce the volume of radioactive waste and provide a means to remediate spent nuclear fuel. The development of a continuous process will significantly increase the technology readiness of MOFs for applications in nuclear waste separations and enhance the commercial value of MOFs in additional applications such as water treatment, chemical/biological agent decontamination, and gas separations. Tetramer will work with current companies in nuclear waste management to support the developing market for innovative nuclear fuel cycles and capture the value from noble gas products.
