GEOPOLYMER ENCAPSULATION | WASTE MANAGEMENT
MIDAR®
geopolymer technology Lucideon’s MIDAR® technology brings together a unique
blend of materials science, formulation technologies, and expertise to provide the optimum performing geopolymer solution across a range of applications. MIDAR®
is a geopolymer technology that uses a
low-temperature chemical reaction to consolidate aluminosilicates and form a robust body with high strength and chemical stability. The material is classified as an alkali-activated cement / geopolymer that relies on minimally processed natural materials or industrial by- products to achieve a significantly lower carbon footprint than Portland cement. Incorporating a solid or liquid waste stream into the
inorganic solid matrix formed during the reaction results in a material that functions as an encapsulation and immobilisation agent, qualifying it as a suitable candidate for use as a waste encapsulant. Lucideon’s application of this geoploymer technology
for the purpose of nuclear waste encapsulation has been supported by Innovate UK for commercial scale-up under the name MALLET™
(MIDAR® -Augmented Lower-Carbon
Lower-Cost Encapsulation Technique). The Foundation Industries Sustainability Consortium (FISC) has identified a range of key workstreams as particularly high-impact areas of research for the cement, metal, glass, ceramic, paper, and chemicals industries to deliver global innovation in low-carbon resource-efficient sustainable solutions. Lucideon is taking the lead in several of these workstreams, including geopolymer scale-up. A core output of the geopolymer scale-up workstream is the establishment of a dedicated geopolymer facility, designed from the ground up to house a comprehensive selection of formulation and scale-up equipment, that brings a new level of scalability and consistency to geopolymer development.
The equipment purchasing and building of this facility
are proceeding under FISC’s first project, ‘Economic Materials Innovation for the Sustainable and Efficient Use of Resources’ (EconoMISER). EconoMISER is funded by Innovate UK as part of the Transformation Foundation Industries (TFI) Challenge and is intended to build on existing innovation capability of the FISC partners. Some of the activities were facilitated by Innovate UK Knowledge Transfer Network and were partially funded via the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Challenge Fund through Innovate UK. The scale-up work is underpinned by a comprehensive
suite of testing and characterisation capabilities co- located onsite, centralising the essential analysis processes for geopolymer technologies and minimising transit delays to allow for rapid iteration and reformulation based on test findings. The new facilities will expand capabilities in geopolymer
formulation for various forms and functions, accelerate scale-up from laboratory to demonstration level, and ease the burden of achieving acceptable criteria and standards through improved characterisation capabilities for product properties and durability. One of the ways in which this facility can be used to
address the Foundation Industries’ sustainability challenge is through the acceleration of TRL progression for encapsulant technologies.
MALLETTM : THE
MISSING PIECE OF THE PUZZLE IN TRANSFORMING NUCLEAR WASTE MANAGEMENT WORLDWIDE
TOGETHER,LE REDEFINE THE NARRATIVE OF
R,LET'S HE
NUCLEAR POWER.
www.lucideon.com
www.neimagazine.com | September 2024 | 31
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