Spectroscopic studies on natural fluorapatites irradiated with 10 MeV electrons

Fluorapatites are one of the candidate matrices for hosting the nuclear waste from molten salt reactors. To assess their radiation stability and long-term performance, natural analogue study approach was undertaken. Naturally occurring fluorapatites containing with carbonate substitutions were irradiated with 10 MeV electron beam radiation for doses 20 MGy. X-ray diffraction, Raman and Fourier Transform infrared spectroscopy show no evidence of structural degradation or phosphate condensation. However, a change in the intensity of nu 3 Phosphate Raman bands was observed indicating that the phosphate tetrahedra is affected by the electron beam consistent with the displacement cross-section calculations for each constituent element. Overall, the study confirmed that fluorapatite possess good structural stability against electron radiation upto 20 MGy.