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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.
Taihyeop Lho, Yong-Sup Choi, HyonJae Park
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 63 | Number 1 | May 2013 | Pages 106-110
doi.org/10.13182/FST13-A16882
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Hydrogen solubility of FLiNaK (LiF 46.5 mol% + NaF 11.5% + KF 42 mol%) were investigated with hydrogen plasma interaction. To use molten salt as liquid wall for fusion device, tritium retention property of the molten salt should be studied. Although there have been some reports on hydrogen solubility of FLiNaK, retention property of FLiNaK with hydrogen plasma interaction has not been reported yet. Hydrogen outgassing of molten FLiNaK was measured with RGA after interaction of hydrogen plasma. Hydrogen partial pressure of the RGA was calibrated with an H2 mass flow controller of 5sccm. Hydrogen plasma was generated with 500W ECR source and the molten FLiNaK was contained with heated crucible of diameter of 46mm and depth of 40mm. By measuring hydrogen ion density near the surface of FLiNaK, we evaluated dose of hydrogen to the FLiNaK and calculated retention percentage with measured outgassing amount of hydrogen. Compared to Henry's law, plasma-interacted-FLiNaK showed significantly large amount of hydrogen retention such as 10000 times.