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Effect of Microbial Action on the Corrosion Potential of Austenitic Alloy Containers for High-Level Nuclear Waste

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 February 2011

P. Angell
Affiliation:
Center for Nuclear Waste Regulatory AnalysesSouthwest Research Institute6220 Culebra Rd., San Antonio, TX 78238-5166, [email protected]
D. S. Dunn
Affiliation:
Center for Nuclear Waste Regulatory AnalysesSouthwest Research Institute6220 Culebra Rd., San Antonio, TX 78238-5166, [email protected]
G. A. Cragnolino
Affiliation:
Center for Nuclear Waste Regulatory AnalysesSouthwest Research Institute6220 Culebra Rd., San Antonio, TX 78238-5166, [email protected]
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Abstract

The safe disposal of high-level nuclear waste (HLW) entails the ability to ensure the integrity of waste containers for prolonged time periods. It is generally accepted that under certain conditions, microbial action may change local benign environments to those in which localized corrosion can be actively promoted. The use of repassivation potential (Erp) in relation to the value of the corrosion potential (Ecorr) has been proposed as a means of assessing the propensity of a metallic material to localized corrosion. Microbial activity is known to influence Ecorr however, the precise mechanism is unresolved. Shewanella putrefaciens, a bacteria with many of the characteristics of sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB), are being grown under controlled conditions on 316L stainless steel (SS) surfaces to understand the relationship between Ecorr and metabolic activity. It has been observed that the growth of the bacteria under aerobic conditions, without the production of metabolic sulfide, leads to only minor variation in Ecorr. These changes possibly correlate to the periods of active bacterial growth.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1996

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