REMOVAL OF IODINE VAPOUR FROM AIR BY METALLIC COPPER

Technical Report · Mon Oct 01 04:00:00 EDT 1962

OSTI ID:4757876

Morris, J B; Stinchcombe, R A; Gray, M D; Logsdail, D H

S>The adsorption of iodine vapor by metallic copper was studied under dynamic and static conditions at ambient temperature. In the dynamic experiments two types of wire mesh and a ring packing were used. Inlet iodine concentrations of 0.5 mu g/m/sup 3/ to 50 mg/m/sup 3/, inlet loadings of up to 10/sup 4/ monolayers, and air velocities of 1 to 17 ft/sec were employed. Desorption experiments under dynamic conditions showed the vapor pressure of cuprous iodide to be about 2 x 10/sup -9/ mm of mercury at 20 deg C. When the loading was less than about one monolayer, the vapor pressure exerted was less than the normal value. The vapor pressure of silver iodide was below the limit of detection, viz. below about 10/sup -11/ mm of mercury at 20 deg C. Copper which had not been specially cleaned was not normally very reactive toward iodine vapor, the solid- phase transfer coefficient k/sub s/ varying from 0.1 to 0.5 cm/sec in dynamic experiments. However, a treatment with 2N nitric acid was sufficient to transfer rate control to the gas phase. when k/sub s/ must have been at least 20 cm/sec. The static experiments, carried out at an iodine concentration of 2.8 g/m/sup 3/, indicated a fall in k/sub s/ when more than about 10 monolayers had accumulated. An increase in the amount of surface oxide also reduced k/sub s/. Copper which had been exposed to weather for 18 months possessed an appreciable reactivity, a 6 ft column exerting an average efficiency of 98% over 6 hours use. (auth)

• Research Organization: United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority. Research Group. Atomic Energy Research Establishment, Harwell, Berks, England
• NSA Number: NSA-17-014197
• OSTI ID: 4757876
• Report Number(s): AERE-R-4114
• Country of Publication: United Kingdom
• Language: English

Related Subjects

ADSORPTION
AIR
CHEMISTRY
COPPER
COPPER IODIDES
EFFICIENCY
IMPURITIES
IODINE
NITRIC ACID
PRESSURE
SILVER IODIDES
SOLUTIONS
VAPORS
WIRES