Dihydrogen gas emission of a 250kW(th) research reactor

Georg Steinhauser; Mario Villa

doi:10.1016/j.apradiso.2011.05.010

Dihydrogen gas emission of a 250kW(th) research reactor

Appl Radiat Isot. 2011 Nov;69(11):1618-20. doi: 10.1016/j.apradiso.2011.05.010. Epub 2011 May 11.

Authors

Georg Steinhauser¹, Mario Villa

Affiliation

¹ Vienna University of Technology, Atominstitut, Stadionallee, Austria. georg.steinhauser@ati.ac.at

PMID: 21601464
DOI: 10.1016/j.apradiso.2011.05.010

Abstract

The Vienna TRIGA pool-type reactor emits tiny gas bubbles at 250kW. They add up to a total volume of ∼2.4L in 7h of daily operation. The bubbles consist of nitrogen (72.5vol%), hydrogen (17.2%), oxygen plus argon (12.0%) and carbon dioxide (0.23%). The emission of constituents of air is caused by degassing of dissolved air in the hot regions of the reactor. Hydrogen results from neutron-induced radiolysis of the cooling water. This emission should be kept in mind for reasons of fire protection even for low-power reactors.