Tritium Measurements for ⁶Li-Enriched Li₂TiO₃ Breeding Blanket Experiments with D-T Neutrons

The JAERI Fusion Neutronics Source (FNS) group has carried out experiments with breeding blanket mock-ups composed of layers of beryllium, ferritic steel F82H and ⁶Li enriched lithium titanate ceramics, Li₂TiO₃. Pellets of enriched Li₂TiO₃ with a diameter of 12 mm and a thickness of 2 mm were used as detectors inside the tritium breeding layer. After irradiation, the pellets were dissolved and the tritium activity in the sample solution was measured by liquid scintillation counting.The experimentally obtained tritium production profile in the lithium titanate layer agreed well with MCNP calculations within the estimated error range of the experimental values (10%). Tritium loss from the pellet during storage time at room temperature, a few days, was experimentally found to be negligible.