Batch experiments have been used to assess the sorption properties of a potential cementitious repository backfill, NRVB (Nirex reference vault backfill), using Eu3+ as a model trivalent radionuclide and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) as a competing ligand. The NRVB is an effective scavenger of Eu from solution, with most sorbed within minutes onto the crushed material and less than 1.5% remaining in solution after one day (R d values in the range 0.3–2.4 × 104 l kg−1). Ultrafiltration showed that nearly all of this remaining Eu (>94%) is attached to NRVB derived colloids or particulates that are mainly retained by a 100 kDa ultrafilter. High concentrations of EDTA (>0.01 M) reduced the extent of sorption at apparent equilibrium. The addition of EDTA to a pre-equilibrated system of Eu3+ and NRVB resulted in a temporary suspension of some Eu, but this very quickly returned to the solid phase. There is some irreversibility in these systems, with EDTA able to prevent removal of Eu(III) from solution, but unable to bring it back into solution under the same conditions.
