Room-Temperature Reactor Packed with Hydrophobic Catalysts for the Oxidation of Hydrogen Isotopes Released in a Nuclear Facility

A room-temperature reactor packed with hydrophobic catalysts for the oxidation of hydrogen isotopes released in a nuclear facility will contribute to nuclear safety. The inorganic-based hydrophobic Pt catalyst named H1P has been developed especially for efficient oxidation over a wide concentration range of hydrogen isotopes at room temperature, even in the presence of saturated water vapor. The overall reaction rate constant for hydrogen oxidation with the H1P catalyst in a flow-through system using a tritium tracer was determined as a function of space velocity, hydrogen concentration in carriers, temperature of the catalyst, and water vapor concentration in carriers. The overall reaction rate constant for the H1P catalyst in the range near room temperature was considerably larger than that for the traditionally applied Pt/Al2O3 catalyst. Moreover, the decrease in reaction rate for H1P in the presence of saturated water vapor was slight compared with the reaction rate in the absence of water vapor due t...