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Colin Judge: Testing structural materials in Idaho’s newest hot cell facility
Idaho National Laboratory’s newest facility—the Sample Preparation Laboratory (SPL)—sits across the road from the Hot Fuel Examination Facility (HFEF), which started operating in 1975. SPL will host the first new hot cells at INL’s Materials and Fuels Complex (MFC) in 50 years, giving INL researchers and partners new flexibility to test the structural properties of irradiated materials fresh from the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) or from a partner’s facility.
Materials meant to withstand extreme conditions in fission or fusion power plants must be tested under similar conditions and pushed past their breaking points so performance and limitations can be understood and improved. Once irradiated, materials samples can be cut down to size in SPL and packaged for testing in other facilities at INL or other national laboratories, commercial labs, or universities. But they can also be subjected to extreme thermal or corrosive conditions and mechanical testing right in SPL, explains Colin Judge, who, as INL’s division director for nuclear materials performance, oversees SPL and other facilities at the MFC.
SPL won’t go “hot” until January 2026, but Judge spoke with NN staff writer Susan Gallier about its capabilities as his team was moving instruments into the new facility.
Birgit Wierczinski, Günther Müllen, Andreas Türler
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 48 | Number 1 | July-August 2005 | Pages 783-786
Technical Paper | Tritium Science and Technology - Biology, Health, and Radiation | doi.org/10.13182/FST05-A1037
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Humic and fulvic acid can be combined under the term 'humic substances' and are natural substances with a complex structure. The structural details are not known, however, due to the functional groups present in these compounds the formation of hydrogen bonds is easily attained. Several humic substances were investigated for their potential use as compounds, which are applicable for tritium enrichment from aqueous solution. For comparison a simple compound, malonic acid, representing only few functional groups was investigated. The experiments were performed using a cryosublimation apparatus, which was run well below equilibrium vapor pressure to avoid any isotope fractionation of HTO and H2O. A higher enrichment factor was found for natural humic acid compared to fulvic acid, however, no enrichment could be found for a synthetic humic acid and malonic acid. Interpretation of the results is difficult since no detailed information on the chemical structure of humic substances is known.