HELIOS3: A stirred bubble column for oxygen addition or reduction in lead-bismuth eutectic

Abstract Oxygen control is one of the key technologies to limit corrosion or coolant oxidation in lead bismuth eutectic cooled nuclear reactors. In this paper, we show that a stirred bubble column reactor can be an efficient tool for addition and extraction of dissolved oxygen from lead-bismuth eutectic. The design criteria and the resulting layout of the HELIOS3 reactor are detailed and typical results obtained are described. Dissolved oxygen extraction rates are only given at high oxygen activity, as dissolved corrosion products and oxides can strongly influence the rate of addition or extraction of dissolved oxygen at low oxygen activity.