Development of quantitative analysis method for tritium using by hydrophobic platinum catalyst

Edao, Yuki; Iwai, Yasunori; Hayashi, Takumi

Nuclear Materials and Energy (Internet), 9, p.273 - 277, 2016/12

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nme.2016.06.013

Evaluation of tritium release behavior from LiTiO during DT neutron irradiation by use of an improved tritium collection method

Edao, Yuki; Kawamura, Yoshinori; Hoshino, Tsuyoshi; Ochiai, Kentaro

Fusion Engineering and Design, 112, p.480 - 485, 2016/11

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fusengdes.2016.06.013

The accurate measurement of behavior of bred tritium released from a tritium breeder is indispensable to understand the behavior for a design of a tritium extraction system. The tritium collection method combined a CuO bed and water bubbles was not suitable to measure transient behavior of tritium released from LiTiO during neutron irradiation because tritium released behavior was changed to be delayed due to adsorption of oxidized tritium on the CuO. Hence, the tritium collection method with hydrophobic catalyst instead of the CuO was demonstrated and succeeded the accurate release measurement of tritium from LiTiO. With the method, we assessed the behavior of tritium release under the various conditions since tritium should be released from LiTiO as the form of HT as much as possible from the view point of the fuel cycle. Our results indicated; promotion of isotopic exchange reaction on the surface of LiTiO by addition of hydrogen in sweep gas is mandatory in order to release tritium smoothly from LiTiO irradiated with neutrons; the favorable sweep gas to release as the form of HT was hydrogen added inert gas; and the temperature of LiTiO was the dominant parameter to control the chemical form of tritium released from the LiTiO.

A new blanket tritium recovery experiment with intense DT neutron source at JAEA/FNS

Ochiai, Kentaro; Edao, Yuki; Hoshino, Tsuyoshi; Kawamura, Yoshinori; Ota, Masayuki; Kwon, Saerom; Konno, Chikara

Fusion Engineering and Design, 109-111(Part B), p.1143 - 1147, 2016/11

We have performed the tritium release experiment on the fusion reactor blanket at JAEA/FNS since 2009, and then clarified the ratio of tritium release and the recovered tritium chemical form. In order to acquire the more detail tritium recovery performances, we have started a new blanket tritium recovery experiment with ionization chamber (IC) at JAEA/FNS. For the appropriate tritium measurement with IC, we improved the experimental container and carried out with an intense DT neutron source at JAEA/FNS. From our new experiment, the tritium recovery radioactivity from the LSC measurement corresponds with the calculation within 6%. However, it was pointed out that the further improvement on the quantitative tritium measurement by IC method was needed.

Experimental investigation on feasible bioreactor using mechanism of hydrogen oxidation of natural soil for detritiation system

Edao, Yuki; Iwai, Yasunori; Sato, Katsumi; Hayashi, Takumi

Applied Radiation and Isotopes, 114, p.40 - 44, 2016/08

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apradiso.2016.05.003

We have focused on bacterial oxidation of tritium by hydrogen-oxidizing bacteria in natural soil to realize a passive reactor for tritium oxidation at room temperature. The purpose of this study was to examine the feasibility of a bioreactor with hydrogen-oxidizing bacteria for detritiation system from a point of view of engineering. The efficiency of the bioreactor was evaluated by kinetics. The bioreactor packed with natural soil shows a relative high conversion rate of tritium under the saturated moisture condition at room temperature, which is obviously superior to that of a Pt/AlO catalyst generally used for tritium oxidation in the existing tritium handling facilities. The order of reaction for tritium oxidation with soil was the pseudo-first order as assessed with Michaelis-Menten kinetics model. Our engineering suggestion to increase the reaction rate is the intentional addition of hydrogen at a small concentration in the feed gas on condition that the oxidation of tritium with soil is expressed by the Michaelis-Menten kinetics model. We reach a conclusion that a bioreactor using hydrogen-oxidizing bacteria in natural soil has the feasibility to be applied in the DS as a passive reactor.

Hydrophobic platinum honeycomb catalyst to be used for tritium oxidation reactors

Iwai, Yasunori; Kubo, Hitoshi*; Oshima, Yusuke*; Noguchi, Hiroshi*; Edao, Yuki; Taniuchi, Junichi*

Fusion Science and Technology, 68(3), p.596 - 600, 2015/10

https://doi.org/10.13182/FST14-921

We have newly developed the hydrophobic platinum honeycomb catalysts applicable to tritium oxidation reactor since the honeycomb-shape catalyst can decrease the pressure drop. Two types of hydrophobic honeycomb catalyst have been test-manufactured. One is the hydrophobic platinum catalyst on a metal honeycomb. The other is the hydrophobic platinum catalyst on a ceramic honeycomb made of silicon carbide. The fine platinum particles around a few nanometers significantly improve the catalytic activity for the oxidation tritium at a tracer concentration. The hydrogen concentration in the gaseous feed slightly affects the overall reaction rate constant for hydrogen oxidation. Due to the competitive adsorption of hydrogen and water molecules on platinum surface, the overall reaction rate constant has the bottom value. The hydrogen concentration for the bottom value is 100 ppm under the dry feed gas. We have experimentally confirmed the activity of these honeycomb catalysts is as good as that of pellet-shape hydrophobic catalyst. The results support the hydrophobic honeycomb catalysts are applicable to tritium oxidation reactor.

Recent progress on tritium technology research and development for a fusion reactor in Japan Atomic Energy Agency

Hayashi, Takumi; Nakamura, Hirofumi; Kawamura, Yoshinori; Iwai, Yasunori; Isobe, Kanetsugu; Yamada, Masayuki; Suzuki, Takumi; Kurata, Rie; Oyaizu, Makoto; Edao, Yuki; et al.

Fusion Science and Technology, 67(2), p.365 - 370, 2015/03

https://doi.org/10.13182/FST14-T31

Measurement of tritium penetration through concrete material covered by various paints coating

Edao, Yuki; Kawamura, Yoshinori; Kurata, Rie; Fukada, Satoshi*; Takeishi, Toshiharu*; Hayashi, Takumi; Yamanishi, Toshihiko

Fusion Science and Technology, 67(2), p.320 - 323, 2015/03

https://doi.org/10.13182/FST14-T20

The present study aims at obtaining fundamental knowledge for tritium transfer behavior and interaction between tritium and paint coated on concrete walls. The amounts of tritium penetration and release in cement paste with epoxy and urethane paint coatings were measured. The tritium penetration amounts were increased with the HTO exposure time. Time to achieve each saturate tritium value was more than 60 days for cement paste coated with epoxy paint and with urethane paint, while cement paste without paint took 2 days to achieve it. Tritium penetration rates were estimated by an analysis of diffusion model. Although their paint coatings were effective for reduction of tritium penetration through the cement paste exposed to HTO for a short period, the amount of tritium trapped in the paints became large for a long time. This work has been performed under the collaboration research between JAEA and Kyushu University.

Penetration of tritiated water vapor through hydrophobic paints for concrete materials

Edao, Yuki; Kawamura, Yoshinori; Yamanishi, Toshihiko; Fukada, Satoshi*

Fusion Engineering and Design, 89(9-10), p.2062 - 2065, 2014/10

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fusengdes.2014.02.059

Tritium transfer behavior through hydrophobic paints, epoxy resin and acrylic-silicon resin, was investigated experimentally. The authors measured the amount of tritium permeated through the paint membranes which exposed in HTO atmosphere of 2100 Bq/cm. The most of tritium permeated through the paints in the form of HTO at room temperature. Tritium permeation through the acrylic-silicon paint was explained a linear sorption/release model and that through the epoxy paint was suggested to be controlled by a one-dimensional diffusion model. While effective diffusivity was 1.0101.810 m/s at 21C26C for epoxy membrane, the diffusivity was found to be hundreds times larger than that for cement-paste coated with epoxy paint. Hence, tritium diffusivity through interface between cement-paste and the epoxy paint was considered to be most effective in the overall tritium transfer process. Tritium transfer behavior in the interface is important to explain the mechanism of tritium transfer behavior in concrete walls.

Hydrogen isotope behavior on a water-metal boundary with simultaneous transfer from and to the metal surface

Hayashi, Takumi; Isobe, Kanetsugu; Nakamura, Hirofumi; Kobayashi, Kazuhiro; Oya, Yasuhisa*; Okuno, Kenji*; Oyaizu, Makoto; Edao, Yuki; Yamanishi, Toshihiko

Fusion Engineering and Design, 89(7-8), p.1520 - 1523, 2014/10

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fusengdes.2014.03.069

Tritium confinement is the most important safety issue in the fusion reactor. Tritium behavior on the water metal boundary is very important to design tritium plant with breading blanket system using cooling water. A series of tritium permeation experiment into pressurized water or water vapor jacket with He or Ar have been performed through pure iron piping with/without 7 micro-meter gold plating, which contained about 1 kPa of pure tritium gas at 423 K, with monitoring the chemical forms of tritium. Also, deuterium permeation experiments from heavy water vessel through various metal piping, such as pure iron (Fe), nickel (Ni), stainless steel (SS304), and pure iron with 10 micro-meter gold plating, were performed at 573 K and at 15 MPa. Recently, using the above heavy water system, we have succeeded to detect simultaneous hydrogen isotopes transfer from and to the metal surface by introducing H gas to the metal piping after stabilized deuterium permeation was detected.

Adsorption rate of hydrogen isotopes on Ca-mordenite

Kawamura, Yoshinori; Edao, Yuki; Yamanishi, Toshihiko

Fusion Engineering and Design, 88(9-10), p.2255 - 2258, 2013/10

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fusengdes.2013.05.021

To develop an adsorbent that is suitable for a separation column of gas chromatograph for hydrogen isotope analysis, the mordenite-type zeolite of which cations (Na) were exchanged with other cations have been prepared and their hydrogen isotope adsorption behavior is being investigated. Then, it has been shown experimentally that mordenite-type zeolite of which cation has been exchanged with Ca (Ca-MOR) has fairly large adsorption capacity. So, breakthrough curves of H (or D) adsorption on Ca-MOR at 194 K and 175 K have been observed and mass transfer coefficients have been estimated from them. The rate-controlling step of hydrogen adsorption is hydrogen diffusion in porous adsorbent. And, isotopic difference of effective diffusivity in Ca-MOR is larger than that in Na-MOR. Therefore, in comparison with Na-MOR, use of Ca-MOR is expected to enhance the hydrogen isotope separation capability.