Water Chemistry Control for the Target/Blanket Region of the Accelerator Production of Tritium

摘要

High-energy particle interactions in thevarious components of the target/blanket region of theAccelerator Production of Tritium lead to heatgeneration and deposition. Heavy-water and light-water systems are used to cool the target/blanketsystem and associated equipment. Structural materialsinclude Inconel alloy 718, aluminum-clad lead rods,aluminum tubes containing helium-3 and tritium gas,and stainless steel components. Proper coolantchemistry is required to maximize neutron production,minimize corrosion of components, and minimizeactivity buildup. Corrosion-related phenomena anddevelopment of coolant and moderator corrosioncontrol for both power and defense fission reactorshas been studied extensively over the past 50 years.Less is known, however, about cooling systems foraccelerators where a variety of transient chemicalspecies and spallation products may be formed. Thefollowing provides a discussion on the issues thatneed to be addressed for proper water chemistry control for the APT system.