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A Radioactive Tracer Dilution Method for LiCl-KCl Radioactive Eutectic Salts

Hardtmayer, Douglas E
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1523375325275413

Abstract Details

2018, Master of Science, Ohio State University, Nuclear Engineering.
Radioactive Tracer Dilution (RTD) is a new method where a radioactive tracer isotope is dissolved in a given substance, and the dilution thereof corresponds to the mass and volume of the substance in which the tracer was dissolved. This method is being considered commercially as a means of measuring the mass of Lithium Chloride-Potassium Chloride (LiCl-KCl) eutectic salt in electrorefiners where spent nuclear fuel has been reprocessed. Efforts have been ongoing to find an effective and efficient way of measuring the mass of this salt inside of an electrorefiner for nuclear material accountancy purposes. Various methods, including creating volume calibration curves with water and molten salt, have been tried but have numerous shortcomings, such as needing to recalibrate the fitted volume curve for a specific electrorefiner every time a new piece of equipment is added or removed from the device. Research at The Ohio State University has shown promise using Na22 as a tracer in LiCl-KCl eutectic salt, and that the interference from a common fission product found in an electrorefiners salt, Eu154, could be accounted for, and an accurate mass measurement could be determined. To more closely mimic the conditions in which this technique would be used, Cs137 was added to a larger mass of LiCl-KCl salt, to see if this would affect the measurement of the salt mass. Self-shielding effects were noticed with larger salt masses, and MCNP was utilized to validate and quantify this self-shielding effect. To further Increase this interference, button sources of Cs137 were utilized to artificially raise the Cs137 activity to increase the dead time of a standard High Purity Germanium Detector. It was found that the addition of Cs137, and using a larger salt mass, did not affect the overall methodology used to determine salt mass, and in fact, simulation packages such as MCNP can be further used to increase the accuracy of this methodology. It was also found that idealistic correctional models could account for higher dead times incurred by the introduction of additional Cs137.
Lei Cao (Advisor)
Vaibahv Sinha (Committee Member)
53 p.
Nuclear Chemistry; Nuclear Engineering
Electrorefining, Mass Determination, Radioactive Tracer, Molten Salt Reactor, Molten Salt,

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Hardtmayer, D. E. (2018). A Radioactive Tracer Dilution Method for LiCl-KCl Radioactive Eutectic Salts [Master's thesis, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1523375325275413

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Hardtmayer, Douglas. A Radioactive Tracer Dilution Method for LiCl-KCl Radioactive Eutectic Salts. 2018. Ohio State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1523375325275413.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Hardtmayer, Douglas. "A Radioactive Tracer Dilution Method for LiCl-KCl Radioactive Eutectic Salts." Master's thesis, Ohio State University, 2018. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1523375325275413

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1523375325275413
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This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.