Incorporation of Trivalent Actinides into Calcite: A Time Resolved Laser Fluorescence Spectroscopy (TRLFS) Study

Abstract

In order to characterize and quantify the substitution of Ca(II) by Cm(III) (coordination, charge compensation), homogeneous Cm(III) coprecipitated calcite was synthesized in a mixed-flow-through experiment. Two sets of experiments were conducted at pH 8.1 and at pH 12.5. At pH 8.1 two calcites, a calcite with a low Cm3+ concentration (LCMpH8.1) and a calcite with a high M3+ (Gd3+ and Cm3+) concentration (HCMpH8.1) were grown and investigated by time resolved laser fluorescence spectroscopy. The Cm(III) emission spectra of LCMpH8.1 and HCMpH8.1 show the same Cm(III) fluorescence signals for two Cm(III) species; Cm(III) species (1) with a peak maximum at 606.2 nm and Cm(III) species (2) with a peak maximum at 620.3 nm. Cm(III) species (1) has a mean lifetime of s = 386 ± 40 ls and Cm(III) species (2) has a mean lifetime of s = 1874 ± 200 ls. A lifetime of 386 ls correlates with 1.3 water molecule in the first coordination sphere of the Cm ion whereas a lifetime of 1874 ls indicates the total loss of the Cm(III) hydration sphere. According to the fluorescence emission peak position and the fluorescence emission lifetime, Cm(III) species (1) is identified as a surface sorbed species whereas Cm(III) species (2) is identified as a Cm(III) incorporated into the calcite lattice. Cm(III) fluorescence emission spectra of Cm(III) doped calcite grown at pH 12.5 (LCMpH12.5) show the same peak maxima which are found for LCMpH8.1 and HCMpH8.1 grown at pH 8.1 but an additional emission band at 608.2 nm (3) is found, which can be assigned to a further Cm(III) species. Fluorescence emission lifetime measurements show that this Cm(III) species (3) has a lifetime of s = 477 ± 25 ls, which correlates with 0.9 water molecules in the first coordination sphere. Cm(III) species (3) is suggested to be a CmOH2+ incorporated species.