An efficient palladium isotope chromatograph (EPIC) for hydrogen

Technical Report · Tue Jun 20 00:00:00 EDT 1989

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/6094592· OSTI ID:6094592

Rutherford, W. M.

The efficient palladium isotope chromatography (EPIC) system is based on a palladium displacement chromatograph developed and tested for the preparative scale separation of the isotopes of hydrogen. Rapid cycling and high efficiency are obtained by use of high-performance packing operating at an elevated temperature (80/degree/C) and elevated pressure (1.5 atm). The process, which was tested with a 50/50 mixture of hydrogen and deuterium, depends on the exploitation of thermally driven pressure differences to recover and recycle the mixed transition zone between the bands of the pure components and also to recover and recycle the hydrogen gas used as the displacing agent. The purity of the product is significantly enhanced by partially backfilling the column with pure deuterium at the beginning of each displacement cycle. The computer-controlled system operates continuously, and it is capable of separating 2.2 std L/hr of feed at product assays of 99.86 at. % hydrogen and 99.992 at. % deuterium. 11 refs., 5 figs., 1 tab.

• Research Organization: EG and G Mound Applied Technologies, Miamisburg, OH (USA)
• DOE Contract Number: AC04-88DP43495
• OSTI ID: 6094592
• Report Number(s): MLM-3596; ON: DE89014581
• Resource Relation: Other Information: Portions of this document are illegible in microfiche products
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

37 INORGANIC
ORGANIC
PHYSICAL AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
DEUTERIUM
SEPARATION PROCESSES
HYDROGEN
TRITIUM
BUFFERS
CHROMATOGRAPHY
PALLADIUM
TEMPERATURE EFFECTS
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
ELEMENTS
HYDROGEN ISOTOPES
ISOTOPES
LIGHT NUCLEI
METALS
NONMETALS
NUCLEI
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
ODD-ODD NUCLEI
PLATINUM METALS
RADIOISOTOPES
STABLE ISOTOPES
TRANSITION ELEMENTS
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
400105* - Separation Procedures