HYDROGEN EXTRACTION FROM PB-17LI - TESTS WITH A PACKED-COLUMN

Tests of hydrogen extraction from the liquid metal Pb-17Li have been p erformed in MELODIE loop at 673 and 713 K, using a gas liquid contacto r. The tested extractor is a 60 cm high packed column equipped with th ree 54.7 mm diameter cylinders of Sulzer Mellapak 750Y structured pack ing. The investigated flow rates were 0.07-0.1 m(3) h(-1) for Pb-17Li and 3-9 N 1 h(-1) for the extracting gas (argon). Most of the tests ha ve been carried out with a hydrogen partial pressure of 1000 Pa in Pb- 17Li at the extractor inlet. The results show that an extraction effic iency of about 25% can be achieved, in the present experimental condit ions. However, it appears that the hydrogen mass balance is not correc t when using our experimental data and the usual Sievert constant valu es. Several explanations have been discussed and calculations have bee n done assuming that the K-s values have to be corrected. (C) 1998 Pub lished by Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.