A design study for tritium recovery system from cooling water of a fusion power plant

Several systems for the tritium recovery from cooling water of a blanket of a fusion power plant have been designed. The tritium concentration in the cooling water and the tritium permeation rate to the coolant is assumed to be 370 GBq(10 Ci)/kg, 13 and 130 g/day, respectively. For the case of 13 g/day, the system can be composed of a water distillation (WD: 2.6 m inner diameter and ∼50 m height) and a catalytic exchange column with an electrolysis cell (0.7 m inner diameter and 22 m in height). The WD column can be replaced by a system of catalytic exchange columns in vapor and liquid phases. For the case of 130 g/day, no solution can be found as long as quite a large flow rate to a main fuel cycle for its final treatment is permitted. Otherwise, an electrolysis cell that can be used under a high concentration of tritium water will need to be developed. The tritium inventory of the WD column is appreciably large, so that it is desirable to develop a system having a high separation factor and with no liquid phase.