Published online by Cambridge University Press: 15 February 2011
Remobilization of solidified high-level waste by corrosion and transport of radionuclides by groundwater are the only likely events for radioactivity to find its way back to the environment. The interaction of the waste form with aqueous solutions is the most important mechanism and must be known for safety and risk analysis. It has been shown that the activity release depends on a number of experimental and environmental parameters. The corrosion mechanisms of the waste forms control the leach rate of individual components. Of particular importance to the resistance against water attack of various glass compositions is the formation of layers on the glass surface. The results for leaching in deionized water reveafed that the mechanism was strongly influenced by the formation of a surface layer which determined the further attack on the glass. In this work the specific weight losses of the glass after leaching in rock salt and MgCl2–MgSO4-NaCl-KCl solutions were measured and surface layers investigated.