Application of Ion Beam Techniques to the Study of Glass Durability: Enhanced Dissolution in Saline and Radiation Effect
- PDF / 500,795 Bytes
- 9 Pages / 420.48 x 639 pts Page_size
- 73 Downloads / 158 Views
Inc.
641
APPLICATION OF ION BEAM TECHNIQUES TO THE STUDY OF GLASS DURABILITY: ENHANCED DISSOLUTION IN SALINE AND RADIATION EFFECTS*
C. BURMAN,
WANG KE-MING AND W.A.
LANFORD+
Department of Physics, SUNY/Albany,
Albany, N.Y. 12222
ABSTRACT
Nuclear reaction analysis, Rutherford backscattering and ion implantation techniques are applied to the study of the reaction between glass and aqueous solutions. The use of these techniques is described as are some of the results obtained. Solutions of NaCl are seen to etch some glasses several orders of magnitude faster than distilled water. Radiation damage created by high energy heavy ion bombardment is seen to have great effects on the penetration of hydrogen (water) into glass. INTRODUCTION
Glass is one of the most durable materials commonly made. Indeed, it is because of its durability and ease of manufacture that glass has been commonly used to make containers for both commercial and scientific wares for thousands of years. The relatively recent need to develop materials to consolidate and isolate radioactive wastes for long periods of time presents new challenges both for more durable materials and for new procedures for characterizing durability. Central to the question of glass durability is the reaction between water (or aqueous solutions) and glass. The present paper describes the application of ion beam analysis techniques to the study of the reactions between water and
glass and presents some of our results. While it is glass's durability that makes it an interesting material, it is this same property that makes it difficult to study the chemical reaction between water and glass. Traditional analytical methods become difficult to apply when the amount of reaction product becomes too small. While a number of clever techniques have been developed to obviate these difficulties, generally these methods rely on rather indirect evidence to try to deduce what is happening at the glass-water interface. However, by applying ion beam analysis techniques, such as Rutherford backscattering spectrometry and nuclear reaction analysis, one can measure the concentration vs depth of the active elements (such as H, Na, K, Ca, Cs, etc) at and near the surfaces of glasses which have been exposed to water. These techniques not only are quantitative but also have good sensitivity and depth resolution, and, hence, can provide key information useful to help understand the mechanisms which govern this chemical reaction. In addition, by using ion implantation to imbed a "marker" into a glass sample which is subsequently exposed to an aqueous solution, one can measure the dissolution (etch) rate of glasses with great sensitivity. *Research supported in part by the Office of Naval Research (R. Pohanka). +An Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Fellow.
642 DESCRIPTION OF THE METHODS While the use of high energy ion beams to characterize surfaces, thin films and interfaces is relatively new, it is already a highly developed field with major international conferences held at least annually [1,2
Data Loading...
