Corrosion and fate of depleted uranium penetrators under progressively anaerobic conditions in estuarine sediment

The testing of armor-piercing depleted uranium (DU) "penetrators" has resulted in the deposition of DU in the sediments of the Solway Firth, UK. In this study, DU-amended, microcosm experiments simulating Solway Firth sediments under high (31.5) and medium (16.5) salinity conditions were used to investigate the effect of salinity and biogeochemical conditions on the corrosion and fate of DU, and the impact of the corroding DU on the microbial population. Under suboxic conditions, the average corrosion rates were the same forthe 31.5 and 16.5 salinity systems at 0.056 ± 0.006 g cm-2 y-1, implying that complete corrosion of a 120 mm penetrator would take approximately 540 years. Under sulfate-reducing conditions, corrosion ceased due to passivation of the surface. Corroding DU resulted in more reducing conditions and decreased microbial diversity as indicated by DNA sequencing and phylogenetic analysis. The lack of colloidal and particulate DU corrosion products, along with measurable dissolved U and a homogeneous association of U with the sediment suggest that U was transported from the penetrator surface into the surrounding environment through dissolution of U(VI), with subsequent interactions resulting in the formation of secondary uranium species in the sediment © 2009 American Chemical Society.