Estimation of oxygen consumption amount in LBE-cooled accelerator-driven system

Sugawara, Takanori  ; Komatsu, Atsushi 

It is required to control the oxygen concentration in lead-bismuth eutectic (LBE) to prevent the corrosion of structures in LBE-cooled nuclear system. This study estimated the oxygen consumption amount in the LBE-cooled accelerator-driven system (ADS). We used the evaluation formula for the oxide layer thickness, which were derived by various experiments, to estimate the oxygen consumption amount. It was found that the maximum oxide layer thicknesses for the fuel assembly and the beam window were about 35 [m] and 20 [m], respectively. Based on these results, the oxygen consumption amount for the ADS plant was estimated as 30 [kg] during one cycle (one year). Through this study, it was indicated that an oxygen supply device which could supply 3-4 [g/h] oxygen in the normal operation, 150 [g/h] in the peak and about 30 [kg] during one cycle was necessary.