Microwave heating is a distinctive thermal processing technique where heat is generated within the target material, unlike conventional furnace heating, where heat propagates inward from the surface. This characteristic enables selective heating of specific compounds in a mixture and thereby intensifying the process. To explore the potential of microwave heating for process intensification in uranium processing, various uranium compounds— i.e. ammonium diuranate (ADU), uranium oxides (UO₂, U₃O₈, UO₃), and uranium tetrafluoride (UF₄)—were subjected to a 2.45 GHz microwave source. Experimental observations reveal considerable differences in the temperature rise among these compounds due to variations in their dielectric properties. The dielectric coefficients, which determine their response under an RF field, were quantified through an experimental setup involving S21 parameter measurements using a vector network analyzer (VNA). A notable outcome of these experiments is the demonstration that microwave-assisted calcination of ADU can be significantly enhanced by introducing U₃O₈ as a seed material. Due to its higher microwave absorption compared to ADU, U₃O₈ initiates localized reactions that progressively convert ADU to U₃O₈, ultimately enabling near-complete transformation. This study presents this novel approach of employing U₃O₈ as a seed material for microwave-based calcination of ADU. XRD of mixed compound at different stages of heating clearly indicate effective dehumidification and calcinations of ADU and formation of U3O8.Quality of obtained U3O8 is analyzed to find O/U ratio of 2.67, average particle size of 25–30 µm and specific surface area of 4.8 m2/gm.
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