Kinetic Study of Magnetite Precipitation: The Modification of Experimental Apparatus and Testing Procedure

Abstract

It is well known that the precipitation of metal oxides, mainly magnetite, in the primary side of typical Canada Deuterium Uranium (CANDU) stations results in the fouling and accumulation of radioactive species in the boilers. There are no high-temperature data available on the precipitation constant (k_p) of the magnetite. Knowledge of this kinetic constant and its temperature dependence would allow for more accurate predictive modelling. This work provides a modification of the experimental loop test section for study the kinetic of magnetite precipitation at the temperature pertinent to CANDU Primary Heat Transport System (PHTS) conditions. A high-temperature, high-pressure flow-through loop was used to simulate the PHTS environment. The experiment was performed, and water samples were collected to quantify the iron concentration via spectrophotometric method. The obtained data will be used to calculate and study the temperature dependence of k_p