During nuclear waste vitrification, loss of sodium (Na) and boron (B) occurs, as these elements are highly volatile at high temperatures, which causes fluctuations in composition and consequently affects the properties of the glass products. In this study, we investigated the volatilization behaviors of Na and B from a simulated high-level waste glass as functions of heating temperature and dwelling duration. Based on the data obtained regarding the composition of Na and B and the structure of the glass, a hypothetical model was proposed to explain the volatilization behaviors of Na and B from a structural viewpoint. As the loss of Na and B during vitrification, the crystallization of the glass occurred. Thus, the crystallization behavior of the simulated waste glass upon composition deviation was studied.

Volatile organic compounds(VOCs) are toxic carcinogenic compounds found in wastewater. VOCs require rapid removal because they are easily volatilized during wastewater treatment. Electrochemical advanced oxidation processes(EAOPs) are considered efficient for VOC removal, based on their fast and versatile anodic electrochemical oxidation of pollutants. Many studies have reported the efficiency of removal of various types of pollutants using different anodes, but few studies have examined volatilization of VOCs during EAOPs. This study examined the removal efficiency for VOCs (chloroform, benzene, trichloroethylene and toluene) by oxidization and volatilization under a static stirred, aerated condition and an EAOP to compare the volatility of each compound. The removal efficiency of the optimum anode was determined by comparing the smallest volatilization ratio and the largest oxidization ratio for four different dimensionally stable anodes(DSA): Pt/Ti, IrO2/Ti, IrO2/Ti, and IrO2-Ru-Pd/Ti. EAOP was operated under same current density (25 mA/cm2) and electrolyte concentration (0.05 M, as NaCl). The high volatility of the VOCs resulted in removal of more than 90% within 30 min under aerated conditions. For EAOP, the IrO2-Ru/Ti anode exhibited the highest VOC removal efficiency, at over 98% in 1 h, and the lowest VOC volatilization (less than 5%). Chloroform was the most recalcitrant VOC due to its high volatility and chemical stability, but it was oxidized 99.2% by IrO2-Ru/Ti, 90.2% by IrO2-Ru-Pd/Ti, 78% by IrO2/Ti, and 75.4% by Pt/Ti anodes The oxidation and volatilization ratios of the VOCs indicate that the IrO2-Ru/Ti anode has superior electrochemical properties for VOC treatment due to its rapid oxidation process and its prevention of bubbling and volatilization of VOCs.

This study provides an experimental result of thermal mercury reduction and condensation characteristics for inventing a mercury recovery technology from the waste sludge which contains high concentration of mercury. Thermal treatment was conducted in the temperature range of up to 900oC from 600oC with different residence time using a waste sludge from domestic industrial facility. Properties of powder material condensed after thermal treatment were analyzed to assess the effectiveness of thermal processing. Leaching characteristics of bottom ash and condensed powder material were analyzed by Korean Standard Leaching Test method (KSLT). Cold vapor atomic absorption spectroscopy (CVAAS) Hg analyzer was used for the analysis of mercury content in solid and liquid samples. We found that mercury contents was concentrated compared with waste sludge. However, the mercury concentration of leached solution from the condensed powder material was very low. The chemical characteristics of condensed powder material was estimated using experimental analysis and literature survey. In order to recover purified elemental mercury, the further researches of refining experiments would be required.

The fumigant 1,3-dichloropropene (1,3-D) was recently proposed as a direct replacement for methyl bromide (CH3Br) in soil fumigation. This study was conducted to better understand behavior phase partitioning, diffusion and volatilization of 1,3-D as affected by isomer. The Henry's law constant(KH) of cis-1,3-D and trans-1,3-D was 0.058 and 0.037 at 20℃, respectively. KH of cis form of 1,3-D was higher than that of trans form of 1,3-D. To compare with volatilization of 1,3-D isomer, soil column [70 cm (length)×12 cm (i.d.)] included a shank injection at 30 cm with 300 kg ha-1. Maximum cis-1,3-D and trans-1,3-D concentration reached 57 mg L-1 and 39 mg L-1 at 30 cm depth at 1h after application. Cumulatively, after 10 days, 51.8% and 43.57% of applied cis-1,3-D and trans-1,3-D was emitted via volatilization, respectively. The total losses of cis-1,3-D were significantly greater than that of trans-1,3-D. Finally, cis-1,3-D and trans-1,3-D, such as isomer are dominant of 1,3-D fates in soil.

Ammonia (NH3 ) volatilization from a silty clay loam paddy soil applied with non, straight urea, and coated urea, respectively, under transplanting in Milyang, Korea from 2002 and 2003 was simulated by a Water and Nitrogen Management Model (WNMM). Based on the data from the in-situ measurements, NH3 volatilization during the rice growth was 6.04% and 1.46% of the applied nitrogen (N) from straight urea and coated urea, respectively. The bulk aerodynamic approach in WNMM satisfactorily predicted the difference in NH3 loss during the given rice growing seasons from the two urea fertilizers. R2 for the correlation between the predicted and observed NH3 loss during the calibration year (2002) was 0.53 less than 0.68 of the application year (2003). This difference could be due to the weather condition such as heavy rainfall and temperature during the calibration year.