Tritium release from a codeposited layer of carbon and tritium during air exposure

Journal Article · Mon May 01 00:00:00 EDT 1989 · J. Vac. Sci. Technol., A; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1116/1.576233· OSTI ID:6164503

Causey, R A; Chrisman, W L; Hsu, W L; Anderl, R; Wishard, B

In fusion reactors containing large quantities of graphite, one of the principal processes causing the retention of tritium in the torus is codeposition of eroded carbon with the tritium. When tritium operations begin in the Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor (TFTR) and eventually in the Compact Ignition Tokamak (CIT), this process will result in a significant in-vessel inventory of tritium. If there is an accidental loss of vacuum for the torus resulting in air entering the vacuum vessel, much of this tritium could be released. Experiments on the stability of similar tritium/carbon films in air, nitrogen, and helium have been performed at Sandia, Livermore using the Tritium Plasma Experiment (TPX) along with an ionization chamber/tritiated water collection system provided by the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory. Results show that tritium is released primarily in a form removed by a glycol bubbler, presumably tritiated water, at room temperature, and that the release rate is increased significantly by heating. Additional experiments were performed using deuterium in the Laser Plasma Materials Experiment (LAMPE) at Sandia, Livermore where 200-nm-thick codeposited films were produced. Long-term monitoring of the deuterium remaining in these films indicated that the amount was still decreasing after 300 days in air. The results of all of these experiments emphasize the need to minimize the amount of tritium in these layers through glow-discharge cleaning or some other technique.

• Research Organization: Sandia National Laboratories, Livermore, California 94550
• OSTI ID: 6164503
• Journal Information: J. Vac. Sci. Technol., A; (United States), Vol. 7:3
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY
CARBON
COATINGS
THERMONUCLEAR REACTORS
IMPURITIES
TRITIUM
DEPOSITION
FILMS
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
NUCLEAR FUELS
PLASMA
SURFACE TREATMENTS
TFTR TOKAMAK
TORI
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
DATA
ELEMENTS
ENERGY SOURCES
FUELS
HYDROGEN ISOTOPES
INFORMATION
ISOTOPES
LIGHT NUCLEI
MATERIALS
NONMETALS
NUCLEI
NUMERICAL DATA
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
RADIOISOTOPES
REACTOR MATERIALS
TOKAMAK TYPE REACTORS
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
700209* - Fusion Power Plant Technology- Component Development & Materials Testing