Revaporization behavior of cesium and iodine compounds from their deposits in the steam-boron atmosphere

Rizaal, M.   ; Miwa, Shuhei  ; Suzuki, Eriko   ; Imoto, Jumpei ; Osaka, Masahiko  ; Goullo, M.*

This paper presents our investigation on cesium and iodine compounds revaporization from cesium iodide (CsI) deposits on the surface of stainless steel type 304L, which were initiated by boron and/or steam flow. A dedicated basic experimental facility with a thermal gradient tube (TGT) was used for simulating the phenomena. The number of deposits, the formed chemical compounds, and elemental distribution were analyzed from samples located at temperature range 1000-400 K. In the absence of boron in the gas flow, it was found that the initial deposited CsI at 850 K could be directly re-vaporized as CsI vapor/aerosol or reacted with the carrier gas and stainless steel (CrO layer) to form CsCrO on the former deposited surface. The latter mechanism consequently gave a release of gaseous iodine that was accumulated downstream. After introducing boron to the steam flow, a severe revaporization of iodine deposit at 850 K occurred (more than 70% initial deposit). This was found as a result of the formation of two kinds of cesium borates (CsBO5HO and CsBO4HO) which contributed to a large release of gaseous iodine that was capable of reaching outlet of TGT ( 400 K). In the case of nuclear severe accident, our study have demonstrated that gaseous iodine could be expected to increase in the colder region of a reactor after late release of boron or a subsequent steam flow after refloods of the reactor, thus posing its near-term risk once leaked to the environment.