The Sandia-NM Tritium Story Capabilities and R&D

PRESENTED BY Russell Jarek, R&D S&E, Materials Science Sandia National Laboratories is a multimission laboratory managed and operated by National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, th rd LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell 40 Tritium Focus Group Meeting Oct. 23 , 2018 International Inc., for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Albuquerque, New Mexico Administration under contract DE-NA0003525. Deuterium-Tritium Fusion

Deuterium & Tritium fusion results in D-T fusion cross section significantly high energy (14.1 MeV) neutrons higher than D-D and T-T

2 Neutron Generators-Functioning Neutron Generators Provide 14.1 MeV Neutrons to Initiate Nuclear Weapons

Ferroelectric (FE) Neutron Generators NGs are miniature particle accelerators The shock wave from explosive releases charge from the active ceramic elements supplying the high voltage and source current

V

Timer

I Electronic (EL) Neutron Generators Power from external supply Multiple firings

Tube Power Supply

3 Ferro-electric NG (FENG) & Electronic NG (ELNG)

Large FENG Small FENG ELNG

In Development In Development In Production and Production

4 TritiumTritium Use Useat Sandia and Control

• Tritium Handling – Only within the Tritium Envelope, with dedicated single-pass & monitored ventilation – Segregated water waste stream • Tritium Equipment – Tritium Capture System (TCS) – Production and Research Loaders (U-bed to Targets) – Mass Spectrometers (Targets desorbed-analyzed, then to TCS)

– Other Research Equipment 5 Tritium Capture SystemTritium-Tritium Capture Safety System

Valve control panel, catalytic Latent heat Calorimeter burners, sieve beds for disposal for sieve bed analysis • Effluent processed to remove prior to shipment and 80 ft3 accumulation tank tritium, verified, then released to verify our inventory • Sub-atmospheric via the building stack pressures • PLC computer controlled; semi-autonomous operation

Ensures that environmental effluent gasses have minimal tritium content 6 3 Tritium Gas LoadingNeutron onto Tube Solid StorageTarget H Loading Tritium Target Loaders – gas manifold built in a glove box, capable of 100% tritium or dilute loading of NT targets.

Provide loaded targets for Neutron Tube Production

Tritium Research & Backup Loader • Research on materials for GTS & NGE

• Support for External customers

7 Gas Analysis Capabilities 3000

+ + 2500 T , HD Optimized DT+ 2000 for (mV) D+, H + analysis of 1500 2

+ the Intensity 1000 T2 hydrogen isotopes 500

0

2 3 4 5 6 MAT-271 Mass Spectrometer Mass (m/e) . High Res & Stability Required for target analysis- 4% Invaluable support from SRNL for tritium calibration standards 2% Sensitivity

2 0%

-2% Relative Variation Weekly D Weekly -4%

2016 2017 2018 2019 Year Hydride Desorption Bell Jar - Furnace 8 Quantitative and Trace Metal Analysis

Inductively Coupled Plasma – Inductively Coupled Plasma – Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP–OES) Mass Spectroscopy (ICP – MS) • Utilized to identify and quantify • Simultaneous multi-element analysis of elemental constituents at the ppm level most metals at ultra-trace ppb levels (parts (parts per million, mg/L). per billion, µg/L) in aqueous solutions. Erbium and scandium metal analyses for hydrogen isotope load ratio determination

Primarily for metal impurity analysis and performing problem solving efforts and understanding knowledge gaps

9 Forensics and Materials Science

Optical Microscopy Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) • Magnifications of 3.5 to 1000x • Variable pressure for insulating materials • Ultraviolet light w/ Dye Penetrant • Magnifications up to 200,000x

Tritium capable tools used for product inspections, problem solving and knowledge gap work 10 Materials Science Tools Coming Soon! New FIB!

Capable of making TEM and SEM samples from Radioactively Contaminated items and parts for use in non- contaminated systems X-Ray Diffractometer (XRD) • Phase identification • Structure refinement Summer 2019 • Texture analysis

11 Surface Analysis Capabilities Auger Electron Spectrometer Oxygen Oxide Layer = ~50nm Tritium capable for production inspections, Oxide Layer = ~85nm design, and knowledge gaps Erbium X-ray Photoelectron Spectrometer Oxide Metal Chromium

Hydroxide

Passivation studies on tritium gas bottles for SRNL 12 Film Deposition, Thermal desorption Dual Chamber Thin Film Deposition • 2 electron-beam evaporation cells • Can deposit 1-3 materials per run • Experimental films can be deposited

Tools used to develop new materials, and study evolution of tritium from these materials

Thermal Desorption System

• Angular reflection time-of-flight mass spectrometer • Mass resolution ~ 212 • Multiple RGA systems over multiple ranges • ~1000 °C upper temperature limit

13 Sandia’s Ion Beam Laboratory

Tools at IBL used to study helium-3 evolution, and H-isotope profiling in materials

Measuring lithium isotopes in TPBAR ceramic

14 Acknowledgements Co-Author & Manager . Rajan Tandon Local Experts . Michael Courtney . Brittany Muntifering . Elizabeth Paisley . Henry Peebles . Clark Snow . Caitlin Taylor

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