Response of electrochemical sensors to ionizing radiation in high-temperature aqueous environments

Journal Article · Fri Feb 01 00:00:00 EST 1991 · Corrosion (Houston); (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.5006/1.3585226· OSTI ID:7239051

Taylor, D F ^[1]

---

1. General Electric Co., Schenectady, NY (United States). Corporate Research and Development Center

This paper reports that a high energy electron linear accelerator (LINAC) generated intense electromagnetic bremsstrahlung that approximated the gamma dose rate in the core of the boiling water nuclear reactor (BWR). Experiments with polymer-free platinum, pH, and silverl silver chloride electrodes at BWR operating temperatures in a stainless steel (SS) autoclave showed reversible, stable voltage offsets that depended on water chemistry and radiation intensity. These changes occurred slowly, and the potentials required several minutes to attain a steady state. Even with a remote reference, it is not possible to determine unequivocally the magnitude and direction of the shift for a specific electrode, but these measurements are most consistent with substantial (100 mV) offset for silverl silver chloride electrodes, and relatively stable operation for zirconia-membrane pH electrodes. Radiation had no significant effect on high-temperature conductivity. Chemical interactions with radiolytic species offer the simplest explanation for the transitions.

• OSTI ID: 7239051
• Journal Information: Corrosion (Houston); (United States), Vol. 47:2; ISSN 0010-9312
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS
37 INORGANIC
ORGANIC
PHYSICAL AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS
36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
BWR TYPE REACTORS
REACTOR CORES
REACTOR COOLING SYSTEMS
WATER CHEMISTRY
REACTOR MONITORING SYSTEMS
ELECTROCHEMISTRY
STAINLESS STEELS
CORROSION
BREMSSTRAHLUNG
CHEMICAL REACTION KINETICS
IONIZING RADIATIONS
LINEAR ACCELERATORS
MATERIALS TESTING
MEMBRANES
PHYSICAL RADIATION EFFECTS
REACTOR SAFETY EXPERIMENTS
SILVER CHLORIDES
THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY
THERMODYNAMICS
ZIRCONIUM OXIDES
ACCELERATORS
ALLOYS
CHALCOGENIDES
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
CHEMISTRY
CHLORIDES
CHLORINE COMPOUNDS
COOLING SYSTEMS
ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION
ENRICHED URANIUM REACTORS
HALIDES
HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
HIGH ALLOY STEELS
IRON ALLOYS
IRON BASE ALLOYS
KINETICS
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
POWER REACTORS
RADIATION EFFECTS
RADIATIONS
REACTION KINETICS
REACTOR COMPONENTS
REACTORS
SILVER COMPOUNDS
STEELS
TESTING
THERMAL REACTORS
THERMODYNAMIC PROPERTIES
TRANSITION ELEMENT COMPOUNDS
WATER COOLED REACTORS
WATER MODERATED REACTORS
ZIRCONIUM COMPOUNDS
220900* - Nuclear Reactor Technology- Reactor Safety
400400 - Electrochemistry
210100 - Power Reactors
Nonbreeding
Light-Water Moderated
Boiling Water Cooled
360106 - Metals & Alloys- Radiation Effects