Surface tension and adsorption of components in the sodium-potassium alloy systems: Effective liquid metal coolants promising in nuclear and space power engineering

The current state of studies on surface tension (ST) of the sodium-potassium binary alloy systems is briefly reviewed. Studies on ST of Na-K alloys prepared in identical conditions are carried out. The ST measurements are performed in the entire concentration range of the alloy compositions which were obtained at a single load of a measuring device with high-purity Na and K starting components. It is shown that there is no minimum in the ST isotherm of the examined system, though it was observed there according to the earlier literature. The potassium component exhibits positive adsorption on the alloy surfaces, which goes through a maximum in alloys with the K content of about 13 at %.