Electrolysis of plutonium nitride in LiCl-KCl eutectic melts

The electrolysis of plutonium nitride, PuN, was investigated in the LiCl-KC l eutectic salt with 0.54 wt% PuCl3 at 773 K in order to understand the dis solution of PuN at the anode and the deposition of metal at the cathode fro m the viewpoint of the application of a pyrochemical process to nitride fue l cycle. It was found from cyclic voltammetry that the electrochemical diss olution of PuN began nearly at the theoretically evaluated potential and th is reaction was irreversible. Several grams of plutonium metal were success fully recovered at the molybdenum electrode as a deposit with a current eff iciency of about 90%. although some fractions of the deposited plutonium of ten fell from the molybdenum electrode. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.