Process optimization of a closed-chamber distillation system for the recovery of FLiNaK molten salt

• 作者: Jun-Xia Geng Yang Yang Hai-Ying Fu Yan Luo Qiang Dou Qing-Nuan Li
• 来源期刊: 核技术（英文版）
• 年，卷（期）: 2021,（1）
• 所属期刊栏目: NUCLEAR ENERGY SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING
• 页码范围: 17-26
• 页数: 10页
• 语种: 英文

摘要

Low-pressure distillation has been proposed as a suitable technique for the recovery of carrier salt from molten salt reactor spent fuel. A closed-chamber distilla-tion system, in which the pump is stopped and pressure-induced salt distillation is performed, was arranged for fluoride salt treatment. A stair-step optimization process was demonstrated to improve the recovery efficiency by up to 99％. The pressure change curve was feasible for esti-mating the distillation process, and a method for displaying the pressure value online in order to determine the end-point was also developed. The decontamination factor of Nd in the condensate salt was deduced to be greater than 100 with 1 wt％ NdF3–FLiNaK distillation. The optimal conditions developed in this study showed a high recovery ratio for the fluoride carrier salt and a high separation efficiency for rare earth products.