Transient separation behavior in tritiated water distillation tower packed with materials having ability to adsorb water is investigated analytically and experimentally for nuclear reactor safety. Analytical equations based on the stage model are set up for simulation of the transient behavior of tritium (T) separation from wastewater. It is found that a dimensionless time defined in terms of the inside vapor flow rate and the liquid holdups in tower, reboiler and condenser can correlate variations over time to achieve a steady-state T concentration. However, when mixing with different T concentrations at a feed point occurs, the transition time period becomes longer than expected. Effects of the reflux ratio, the stage separation factor and the total stage number on the transient and steady-state T concentrations are numerically calculated. Variations over time to achieve each steady-state value are compared with experimental data using a small-scale tower. Long time distillation experiment for one month has been completed, and it is confirmed that a distillation column packed with ceramic Raschig rings coated with zeolite 13X adsorbent is hardly affected by water corrosion.
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