The scientific mission of the Ion Dynamics in Radioactive Environments and Materials (IDREAM) Energy Frontier Research Center is to master the cascade of radiation chemistry that drives far-from-equilibrium speciation and reactivity in chemically complex environments, linking attosecond timescales to decadal processes. By achieving its scientific mission, IDREAM is providing the technical basis to predict and control speciation and reactivity—this can be leveraged by the Department of Energy (DOE) to support operational decisions for improved efficiency in retrieval, transport, and treatment of millions of gallons of legacy highly radioactive waste.

Plutonium production at DOE’s Hanford Site has resulted in the most complex environmental cleanup in history. Accomplishments in the last four years have uniquely positioned IDREAM to fully focus our efforts on how radiation has driven solution speciation and precipitation to yield the complex phase assemblages at the heart of the waste processing challenge. IDREAM is studying the extreme far-from equilibrium conditions that result from the interplay between high ionic strength and radiation-induced metastability across different spatiotemporal regimes (STaRs) by targeting the following project objectives: (1) Identify the instantaneous, radiation-induced changes to electronic structure that determine reactive species in concentrated electrolytes. (2) Characterize nonequilibrium ensembles and reaction cascades within concentrated alkaline electrolyte ion networks. (3) Determine how radiation drives nucleation, growth, dissolution, and aggregation of particles in concentrated electrolyte suspensions.
By achieving our project objectives over the next four years, we will create a framework to predict behavior during long-term storage of radioactive waste, not just from weapons production and contemporary fission reactors, but also from new coolants and solvents required for Generation IV nuclear reactors and beyond. These objectives will deliver scientific innovations that transcend the current understanding of radiation-driven chemical transformation and will revolutionize the way we analyze and manipulate chemical processes in extreme far-from-equilibrium conditions, allowing us to improve tank waste retrieval and processing efficiency and save the nation billions of dollars.

Michael Spradling

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