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Real-time monitoring of uranium concentration in NaCl–MgCl2–UCl3 molten salt

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Abstract

Real-time monitoring of uranium concentration in molten salt reactors (MSR) is crucial for reactor operation and safety. However, conventional analytical methods cannot provide accurate results when uranium concentrations exceed approximately 4 wt%. We report an electrochemical technique based on repeating chronoamperometry (RCA) for precise and accurate measurements of uranium concentrations > 10 wt% in a NaCl–MgCl2–UCl3 molten salt. Uranium concentration was measured in a molten salt containing 5–12.5 wt% of uranium chloride with high precision and a linearity close to 1. The RCA technique can be used for measuring the concentration of nuclear fuel in MSRs.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Molten Salt Reactor Development Agency grant funded by the Korea government (the Ministry of Science and ICT) (Project No. RS-2023-00261146). This work was also supported by the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute Program (Project No. 522330-22). CJ acknowledges the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) for grants (2021M2E1A1085202).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Nuclear Chemistry Technology Division, Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon, 34057, Republic of Korea

    Chan-Yong Jung, Tae-Hyeong Kim & Sang-Eun Bae

  2. Department of Radiochemistry, University of Science and Technology, Daejeon, 34113, Republic of Korea

    Sang-Eun Bae

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  1. Chan-Yong Jung
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Jung, CY., Kim, TH. & Bae, SE. Real-time monitoring of uranium concentration in NaCl–MgCl2–UCl3 molten salt. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 332, 5233–5238 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-023-09000-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-023-09000-5

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