Plenary: Uranium Speciation and Fate in Environmentally Relevant Systems
Professor Katherine Morris, University of Manchester
Kath is an environmental radiochemist working on radionuclide speciation and fate in engineered and natural environments. She has won UKRI and industry funding to support her research interests and currently leads the Radioactive Waste Disposal and Environmental Remediation National Nuclear Facility, the Sellafield Effluent and Decontamination Centre of Expertise, and the Nuclear Waste Services Research Support Office.
Uranium is typically the most abundant radionuclide by mass in many radioactive waste and environmental contamination scenarios. In this keynote, I will focus on key controls on U (and related radionuclide) behaviour in a range of environmentally relevant systems we have explored and reflecting our evolving understanding of the complexity of radionuclide speciation and fate. Examples will include the impacts of (biogeo)chemistry on U speciation and fate, U colloidal behaviour, U sorption and incorporation behaviour, and uranium phases as a control on radionuclide behaviour. Throughout, I will highlight case studies where underpinning research on radionuclide speciation and fate has had a real-world impact in environmental clean-up.