Experimental study on the feasibility for noble gases (Xe, Kr) trapping using Metal-Organic Framework

Julie Nguyen Sadassivame (1) , Philippe Nerisson (1) , Laurent Cantrel (1) , Jérémy Dhainaut (2) , Sébastien Royer (2) , Thierry Loiseau (2) , Christophe Volkringer (2)

1 IRSN/PSN-RES/SEREX/L2EC - Laboratoire d'Expérimentation Environnement et Chimie
2 UCCS - Unité de Catalyse et Chimie du Solide - UMR 8181

Xenon and krypton are noble gases produced by fission reactions in nuclear fuel. In accident situations, these potential gas releases can lead to significant radioactive doses in the short and medium term, particularly for on-site operators. These radioactive isotopes have various half-life, from several years (10.8 years for Kr-85) to several days (5.3 days for Xe-133, short term nuclear accident tracer). Almost chemically inert, these gases are difficult to trap (nuclear mitigation) and separate (industrial applications). Until recently, the trapping of these rare gases had never been deeply investigated because only complex and expensive methods or processes existed, difficult to implement in industry. However, for more than a decade, new porous materials named MOF (Metal-Organic Framework) have demonstrated efficient trapping capacities towards volatile compounds such as the capture of fission products I2 or RuO4[1] as well as trapping of CO2. Indeed, these hybrid metal-ligand materials, organized in a network, are flexible with very variable pore diameters. They also have an unlimited functionalization linked to the organic part which can promote a selective adsorption of gases. So, the objective of this PhD work (2020-2023) is to study the feasibility of rare gas trapping by innovative porous materials such as MOFs in a nuclear context. This will contribute to better characterize the efficiency of filtration or purification devices in order to reduce radioactive releases in normal and accidental operation. Based on recent works[2][3], a first study has been carried out on promising MOFs. Synthesized by hydrothermal process at UCCS (Lille), the influence of doping MOFs with silver, copper or palladium nanoparticles on the adsorption of noble gases (static conditions at room temperature) has been investigated. The MOFs are also tested under dynamic conditions on the SAFARI experimental bench of IRSN under thermohydraulic conditions representative of accidental situations (flow velocity, temperature, humidity...). Some preliminary results will be presented.

Mots clés: Noble gases; Metal-organic frameworks; trapping; severe accident; experimental stud

Domaines: Chimie

Julie Nguyen Sadassivame, Philippe Nerisson, Laurent Cantrel, Jérémy Dhainaut, Sébastien Royer, et al.. Experimental study on the feasibility for noble gases (Xe, Kr) trapping using Metal-Organic Framework. ERMSAR2022 - The 10th European Review Meeting on Severe Accident Research, May 2022, Akademiehotel, Karlsruhe, Germany. ⟨hal-03902397⟩