Institute of Chemistry, Saint-Petersburg State University, 7/9 Universitetskaya Emb., 199034 St. Petersburg, Russia.
Federal State Unitary Enterprise "Alexandrov Research Institute of Technology", 72, Koporskoe Shosse, 188540 Sosnovy Bor, Russia.
Sensors (Basel). 2023 Jan 10;23(2):812. doi: 10.3390/s23020812.
Controlling oxygen content in the primary circuit of nuclear reactors is one of the key tasks needed to ensure the safe operation of nuclear power plants where lead-bismuth eutectic alloy (LBE) is used as a coolant. If the oxygen concentration is low, active corrosion of structural materials takes place; upon increase in oxygen content, slag accumulates due to the formation of lead oxide. The generally accepted method of measuring the oxygen content in LBE is currently potentiometry. The sensors for measuring oxygen activity (electrochemical oxygen sensors) are galvanic cells with two electrodes (lead-bismuth coolant serves as working electrode) separated by a solid electrolyte. Control of corrosion and slag accumulation processes in circuits exploring LBE as a coolant is also based on data obtained by electrochemical oxygen sensors. The disadvantages of this approach are the low efficiency and low sensitivity of control. The alternative, Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) Sensors, are proposed for Real-Time Corrosion Monitoring in LBE system. Currently their applicability in static LBE at temperatures up to 600 °C is shown.
控制核反应堆主回路中的含氧量是确保使用铅铋共晶合金（LBE）作为冷却剂的核电站安全运行的关键任务之一。如果氧浓度低，结构材料会发生活性腐蚀；如果氧含量增加，由于氧化铅的形成，会积累炉渣。目前测量 LBE 中氧含量的常用方法是电位法。用于测量氧活度（电化学氧传感器）的传感器是两个电极的原电池（铅铋冷却剂用作工作电极），由固体电解质隔开。控制 LBE 作为冷却剂的回路中的腐蚀和炉渣积累过程也基于电化学氧传感器获得的数据。这种方法的缺点是控制效率低和灵敏度低。提出了阻抗谱（EIS）传感器作为 LBE 系统实时腐蚀监测的替代方法。目前已证明其在高达 600°C 的静态 LBE 中的适用性。
