REACTIONS AND PRODUCTS IN THE CS-ZR-I-O SYSTEM RELEVANT TO FISSION-PRODUCT CHEMISTRY - A REVIEW

Some results and problems associated with the known chemistry of cesium and iodine in the presence of Zr/ZrO//2 at 400-600 degree C and under anaerobic conditions are described and discussed. These aspects include (1) the recently synthesized cesium zirconates Cs//2ZrO//3 and Cs//4ZrO//4 and some of their thermal and hydrolytic properties; (2) the demonstration that the supposedly stable CsI reacts with ZrO//2 at 400-700 degree C to form Cs//2ZrO//3 and ZrI//4 (as Cs//2ZrI//6) and its implications regarding cesium and iodine distributions; (3) present knowledge of binary zirconium iodides, their contamination reactions, and the limited inhibition of the reduction of ZrI//4 by metal provided by static ZrO//2 films; (4) newly discovered ternary and quaternary zirconium iodides that are obtained in the presence of many common impurity atoms.