We present a four beam ratiometric setup for an integrating sphere based gas cell, which can correct for changes in pathlength due to sphere wall contamination. This allows for the gas absorption coefficient to be determined continuously without needing to recalibrate the setup. We demonstrate the technique experimentally, measuring methane gas at 1651nm. For example, contamination covering 1.2% of the sphere wall resulted in an uncompensated error in gas absorption coefficient of ≈41%. With the ratiometric scheme, this error was reduced to ≈2%. Potential limitations of the technique, due to subsequent deviations from mathematical assumptions are discussed, including severe sphere window contamination.

A novel suite of instrumentation for the characterisation of materials held inside an airtight tube furnace operated up to 250 °C has been developed. Real-time detection of released gases (volatile organic compounds (VOCs), CO 2 , no, no 2 , So 2 , co and o 2) was achieved combining commercial offthe-shelf (COTS) gas sensors and sorbent tubes for further qualitative and semi-quantitative analysis by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry coupled to thermal desorption (TD-GC-MS). The test system was designed to provide a controlled flow (1000 cm 3 min −1) of hydrocarbon free air through the furnace. The furnace temperature ramp was set at a rate of 5 °C min −1 with 10 min dwell points at 70 °C, 150 °C, 200 °C and 250 °C to allow time for stabilisation and further headspace sampling onto sorbent tubes. Experimental design of the instrumentation is described here and an example data set upon exposure to a gas sample is presented.

Pressure tubes for CANada Deuterium Uranium (CANDU) reactors are extruded from billets of Zr-2.5Nb, at a temperature of ∼815°C, and then cold drawn to give a final length of ∼6 m. The manufacturing process often results in a variation of properties along the length of a tube including grain structure, texture, dislocation density, and phase distribution. This variation affects the mechanical and deformation properties as well as the aqueous oxidation and deuterium uptake behavior along the installed pressure tube. The orientation of the installed pressure tube in the reactor, with its axial variation of properties, is an important factor in the effective optimization of its service life. This work reports on the differences in aqueous oxidation and deuterium uptake between the extruded front- and back-end sections of a number of pressure tubes. The corrosion tests were conducted in heavy water in static autoclaves at Chalk River Laboratories and in a heavy water re-circulating loop in the Halden Boiling Water Reactor. The test conditions, such as water chemistry and temperature, were similar to those in the primary heat transport system of a CANDU reactor. The results indicate that under some exposure conditions, the deuterium uptake may be up to 40 % lower for back-end coupons compared to front-end coupons. Several microstructural factors including texture, grain size, and concentrations of alloying elements may cause the observed differences in deuterium uptake. The results will be discussed within the current mechanistic understandings of Zr-2.5Nb corrosion and deuterium ingress.

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