In-pile tritium release behavior and the post-irradiation experiments of Li4SiO4 fabricated by melting process

Autor: Linjie Zhao, Mao Yang, Chengjian Xiao, Yu Gong, Guangming Ran, Xiaojun Chen, Jiamao Li, Lei Yue, Chao Chen, Jingwei Hou, Heyi Wang, Xinggui Long, Shuming Peng
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2024
Předmět:
Zdroj: Nuclear Engineering and Technology, Vol 56, Iss 1, Pp 106-113 (2024)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 1738-5733
DOI: 10.1016/j.net.2023.09.014
Popis: Understanding the tritium release and retention behavior of candidate tritium breeder materials is crucial for breeder blanket design. Recently, a melt spraying process was developed to prepare Li4SiO4 pebbles, which were subsequently subjected to the in-pile tritium production and extraction platform in China Mianyang Research Reactor (CMRR) to investigate their in-situ tritium release behavior and irradiation performance. The results demonstrate that HT is the main tritium release form, and adding hydrogen to the purge gas reduces tritium retention while increasing the HT percent in the purge gas. Post-irradiation experiments reveal that the irradiated pebbles darken in color and their grains swell, but the mechanical properties remain largely unchanged. It is concluded that the tritium residence time of Li4SiO4 made by melt spraying method at 467 °C is approximately 23.34 h. High-density Li4SiO4 pebbles exhibit tritium release at relatively low temperatures (<600 °C) that is mainly controlled by bulk diffusion. The diffusion coefficient at 525 °C and 550 °C is 1.19 × 10−11 cm2/s and 5.34 × 10−11 cm2/s, respectively, with corresponding tritium residence times of 21.3 hours and 4.7 hours.
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