Test results from the GA technologies engineering-scale off-gas treatment system
One method for reducing the volume of HTGR fuel prior to reprocessing or spent fuel storage is to crush and burn the graphite fuel elements. The burner off-gas (BOG) contains radioactive components, principally H-3, C-14, Kr-85, I-129, and Rn-220, as well as chemical forms such as CO/sub 2/, CO, O/sub 2/, and SO/sub 2/. The BOG system employs components designed to remove these constitutents. Test results are reported for the iodine and SO/sub 2/ adsorbers and the CO/HT oxidizer. Silver-based iodine adsorbents were found to catalyze the premature conversion of CO to CO/sub 2/. Subsequent tests showed that iodine removal could not be performed downstream of the CO/HT oxidizer since iodine in the BOG system rapidly deactivated the Pt-coated alumina CO catalyst. Lead-exchanged zeolite (PbX) was found to be an acceptable alternative for removing iodine from BOG without CO conversion. Intermittent and steady-state tests of the pilot-plant SO/sub 2/ removal unit containing sodium-exchanged zeolite (NaX) demonstrated that decontamination factors greater than or equal to 100 could be maintained for up to 50 h. In a reprocessing flowsheet, the solid product from the burners is dissolved in nitric or Thorex acid. The dissolver off-gas (DOG) contains radioactive components H-3, Kr-85, I-129, Rn-220 plus chemical forms such as nitrogen oxides (NO/sub x/). In the pilot-scale system at GA, iodine is removed from the DOG by adsorption. Tests of iodine removal have been conducted using either silver-exchanged mordenite (AgZ) or AgNO/sub 3/-impregnated silica gel (AC-6120). Although each sorbent performed well in the presence of NO/sub x/, the silica gel adsorbent proved more efficient in silver utilization and, thus, more cost effective.
- Research Organization:
- GA Technologies, Inc., San Diego, CA (USA)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AT03-84SF11964
- OSTI ID:
- 6716780
- Report Number(s):
- GA-A-17634; CONF-840806-1; ON: DE84014693
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 18. DOE nuclear airborne waste management and air cleaning conference, Baltimore, MD, USA, 13 Aug 1984
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
COMBUSTORS
OFF-GAS SYSTEMS
DISSOLVERS
IODINE 129
ADSORPTION
PERFORMANCE TESTING
SULFUR DIOXIDE
ADSORBENTS
CARBON MONOXIDE
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
FUEL REPROCESSING PLANTS
HTGR TYPE REACTORS
KRYPTON 85
NITROGEN OXIDES
OXIDATION
PILOT PLANTS
RADON 220
TRITIUM
ALPHA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
CARBON COMPOUNDS
CARBON OXIDES
CHALCOGENIDES
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
DATA
EVEN-EVEN NUCLEI
EVEN-ODD NUCLEI
FUNCTIONAL MODELS
GAS COOLED REACTORS
GRAPHITE MODERATED REACTORS
HEAVY NUCLEI
HOURS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
HYDROGEN ISOTOPES
INFORMATION
INTERMEDIATE MASS NUCLEI
INTERNAL CONVERSION RADIOISOTOPES
IODINE ISOTOPES
ISOMERIC TRANSITION ISOTOPES
ISOTOPES
KRYPTON ISOTOPES
LIGHT NUCLEI
NITROGEN COMPOUNDS
NUCLEAR FACILITIES
NUCLEI
NUMERICAL DATA
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
RADIOISOTOPES
RADON ISOTOPES
REACTORS
SECONDS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
SORPTION
SULFUR COMPOUNDS
SULFUR OXIDES
TESTING
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
052001* - Nuclear Fuels- Waste Processing
500300 - Environment
Atmospheric- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport- (-1989)
500200 - Environment
Atmospheric- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport- (-1989)