Publicatie Laka-bibliotheek:
Chemical and mineralogical transformations caused by weathering in anti-tank DU penetrators discharged during the Kosovo war

AuteurMellini, Riccobono
6-05-2-20-07.pdf
Datumfebruari 2005
Classificatie 6.05.2.20/07 (VERARMD URANIUM - MILITAIR - (vml) JOEGOSLAVIË)
Voorkant

Uit de publicatie:

                                               Chemosphere 60 (2005) 1246–1252
                                                                                                  www.elsevier.com/locate/chemosphere



           Chemical and mineralogical transformations caused
                by weathering in anti-tank DU penetrators
        (‘‘the silver bullets’’) discharged during the Kosovo war
                                Marcello Mellini a, Francesco Riccobono                               b,*

                                     a
                                       Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, University of Siena, Italy
                    b
                        Dipartimento di Scienze Ambientali, University of Siena, Via Laterino 8, Siena I-53100, Italy

                   Received 2 February 2004; received in revised form 27 January 2005; accepted 1 February 2005
                                                  Available online 21 March 2005




Abstract

    A depleted-uranium penetrator, shot in 1999 at Djakovica, Western Kosovo, and there collected in June 2001, shows
evident alteration processes, perceivable as black and yellow coatings. XRD indicates that the black coating mostly con-
sists of uraninite, UO2, with possible presence of other more oxidized uranium forms, such as U3O8. The yellow mate-
rial is mostly amorphous, with variable weak diffraction lines, due to minor embedded uraninite grains, or possibly to
schoepite, UO3 · 2H2O.
    SEM-EDS reveals only uranium. Whereas uraninite does not show any crystal shape, the yellow material recrystal-
lizes to flattened pseudo-hexagonal prisms, approximately 2–10 lm wide and 1–4 lm long. Raman spectra of the yellow
material have peaks at 3474 and 3222 cmÀ1, indicative for OH groups, plus at 812 and 744 cmÀ1, indicative for UO2þ    2
uranyl ions.
    Based on the different data, the yellow material covering the depleted-uranium dart is an oxidized corrosion product,
containing uranyl ions and hydroxyl