ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
Explore the many uses for nuclear science and its impact on energy, the environment, healthcare, food, and more.
Explore membership for yourself or for your organization.
Conference Spotlight
2026 ANS Winter Conference & Expo
November 15–18, 2026
Phoenix, AZ|Arizona Grand Resort & Spa
Latest Magazine Issues
Sep 2026
Jan 2026
2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
October 2026
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Westinghouse, Nordion, and PSEG team up to produce Co‑60 in the United States
This past January, Westinghouse Electric Company, Nordion, and PSEG Nuclear formalized agreements to implement newly developed cobalt-60 production technology at Units 1 and 2 of PSEG’s Salem nuclear power plant in New Jersey, with the Co-60 to be supplied to Nordion. Through an ongoing joint initiative, the companies aim to harness U.S. pressurized water reactors to produce a key medical isotope and build the first commercial-scale Co-60 production platform in the United States.
Stephen M. Goldberg, Manson Benedict, Hans W. Levi
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 47 | Number 2 | February 1972 | Pages 169-186
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE72-A22394
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Equations, tables, and charts are given which represent the equilibrium distribution of uranyl nitrate and nitric acid between aqueous solution and an organic phase consisting of 30 vol% tributyl phosphate (TBP) in a hydrocarbon diluent at 25°C. These should be useful for prediction of distribution equilibria in the Purex solvent extraction process for recovering uranium from irradiated nuclear fuel. Equations for the aqueous phase represent the activities of water, nitric acid, and uranyl nitrate hexahydrate as functions of the molality of the last two components. These equations were developed by correlating data for the partial pressure of nitric acid over aqueous solutions of nitric acid and uranyl nitrate. Distribution equilibrium data for uranyl nitrate are correlated by an equation representing the ratio of the activity coefficient of the uranyl nitrate-TBP complex to the activity coefficient of uncomplexed TBP as a function of the uranyl nitrate and nitric acid content of the organic phase. This equation was fitted to distribution data for uranyl nitrate observed in the presence of nitric acid and in the absence of nitric acid. The observed molality of uranyl nitrate in the organic phase agrees with the molality predicted by this equation within an average deviation of 5.8%. Distribution equilibrium data for nitric acid in the presence of uranyl nitrate were correlated in analogous fashion.