Abstract: Work area cleanup systems and methods are described for removing tritium from the atmosphere of a work area such as inert gas gloveboxes. Systems utilize a multi-column approach with parallel processing. Tritium of a tritium-contaminated stream is converted into tritiated water and adsorbed onto the separation phase of a first column as a second, parallel column can be simultaneously regenerated. The gaseous stream that exits the column during the regeneration phase can carry a high tritium concentration. The system can also include and a separation stage during which the tritium of the gaseous regeneration stream can be separated from the remainder of the regeneration product.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
January 18, 2019
Date of Patent:
July 13, 2021
Assignee:
Savannah River National Solutions, LLC
Inventors:
Xin Xiao, Lucas M. Angelette, Paul R. Beaumont, Henry T. Sessions, Heather Mentzer, Jared L. Clark