The sorption and subsequent desorption of tritium and tritiated water vapor by foamed polyvinylchloride (Ensolite) was examined under a variety of experimental conditions.nOf primary interest was the elucidation of both the rates and total extent of the sorption and desorption under isothermal conditions. It was found that Ensolite sorbed both tritium and tritiated water vapor. rapidly, achieving in most cases over 90% of the equilibrium value within 2k hr. The amount of tritium sorbed by Ensolite was found to be proportional to the initial gas-phase tritium concentration. The tritium desorbed readily, forming a gas-phase concentration that increased with the amount of tritium initially sorbed by the Ensolite. Repetitive (cyclic) desorption of tritium from Ensolite and desorption in a flow system yielded results that showed that the tritium would continually desorb until the amount remaining in the system was negligible.nThe sorption of tritiated water vapor by Ensolite was both much more rapid and extensive than the corresponding sorption of tritium. In a manner analogous to tritium, tritiated water vapor desorbed into a flow system until a very small amount of activity remained in the system.
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