Conceptualization and Development of a Helium Liquefier at BARC, Mumbai

Indigenous development of helium liquefiers is regarded as a high priority area at BARC, Mumbai. A pre-cooled Collin's cycle based helium liquefier conceived to work between pressure limits of 0.105 and 1.3 MPa(a) and with mass flow rate of 62 g/s is reported in the present paper. The system is designed to achieve a liquefaction rate of about 57 l/hr with the lowest temperature as 4.86K. Effect of different heat exchanger effectiveness and turbine efficiency values on the liquefier performance has also been theoretically studied and reported here. Design and development methodology of the liquefier cold box has been dealt with. The present paper also describes the current state of installation and commissioning activities of the above described helium liquefier at BARC, Mumbai. First trial runs are expected soon after the completion of the transferline circuit from the liquefier cold box to the liquid helium receiver vessel.