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Playing the “bad guy” to enhance next-generation safety
Sometimes, cops and robbers is more than just a kid’s game. At the Department of Energy’s national laboratories, researchers are channeling their inner saboteurs to discover vulnerabilities in next-generation nuclear reactors, making sure that they’re as safe as possible before they’re even constructed.
M. Matsuyama, K. Shinmura, Z. Chen, Y. Torikai
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 60 | Number 4 | November 2011 | Pages 1491-1494
Interaction with Materials | Proceedings of the Ninth International Conference on Tritium Science and Technology (Part 2) | doi.org/10.13182/FST11-A12714
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Solubility of tritium in Cu-Be(2 mass%) alloy was determined by means of measurement of a tritium depth profile in the alloy. Tritium exposure to the samples was conducted under the following conditions: pressure, 0.4 to 2.6 kPa; temperature, 350 to 450°C; exposure time, 4 to 11 hours. Tritium depth profiles were obtained by chemical etching after the exposure. Remarkably high tritium concentration appeared in surface layers within 0.5 m, whereas almost constant concentration was observed from 10 m to the bulk. It was found, therefore, that surface tritium should be omitted in evaluation of the solubility of tritium. In addition, it was seen that dissolution of tritium into Cu-Be alloy obeys the Sieverts' law from the pressure dependence, and the solubility of tritium in Cu-Be alloy was lower than that in pure copper. From the temperature dependence of solubility, the heat of solution of tritium was determined as 17 kJ/mol.