Cell design for laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy measurements on reactive gas samples

Kathryn M. Peruski, Tara A. Davis, George C.Y. Chan, Xianglei Mao, Lee Trowbridge, Leigh R. Martin

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

6 Scopus citations

Abstract

Uranium hexafluoride (UF6) is the primary material used for the enrichment of uranium in the production of light water nuclear reactor fuels worldwide. Accurate, rapid quantification of uranium isotopic composition in nuclear materials is required for safeguards programs and nonproliferation purposes. One potential technique for isotopic measurements in uranium species in the field is laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS). Safe and effective application of LIBS to UF6 for enrichment measurements is uniquely challenging due to the chemical and physical properties of UF6, which necessitate specific handling procedures. The objective of this work is to design a cell for isotopic analysis of UF6 that is (1) compatible with chemical and physical properties of UF6, (2) compatible with LIBS laser, and (3) portable-sized for nuclear safeguards applications. Along with cell design, initial testing of the cell for basic performance and chemical compatibility is performed. As designed and constructed, the portable gas cell was gas-tight, chemically compatible with UF6, and withstood long-duration laser exposure. The cell has proven capability for handling reactive gasses, such as UF6, with specification application to isotopic analysis.

Original languageEnglish
Article number109951
JournalJournal of Fluorine Chemistry
Volume255-256
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 2022

Funding

This manuscript has been authored by UT-Battelle, LLC, under contract DE-AC05–00OR22725 with the US Department of Energy (DOE). The US government retains and the publisher, by accepting the article for publication, acknowledges that the US government retains a nonexclusive, paid-up, irrevocable, worldwide license to publish or reproduce the published form of this manuscript, or allow others to do so, for US government purposes. DOE will provide public access to these results of federally sponsored research in accordance with the DOE Public Access Plan ( http://energy.gov/downloads/doe-public-access-plan ). This work is supported by the NNSA Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Office of Research and Development of the U.S. Department of Energy under contract numbers DE-AC05?00OR22725 at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and DE-AC02?05CH11231 at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. This work is supported by the NNSA Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Office of Research and Development of the U.S. Department of Energy under contract numbers DE-AC05–00OR22725 at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and DE-AC02–05CH11231 at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

FundersFunder number
NNSA Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Office of Research and Development
U.S. Department of EnergyDE-AC05?, 00OR22725, DE-AC05–00OR22725
Oak Ridge National LaboratoryDE-AC02–05CH11231
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

    Keywords

    • Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy, Reactive gas
    • Uranium hexafluoride

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