The performance of Pt/air oxygen sensors in stagnant Pb-Bi eutectic at high temperatures

Oxygen control technology is a critical issue for compatibility of candidate structural materials with liquid lead-bismuth eutectic (LBE) in accelerator driven systems. Performances of a self-developed Pt/air sensor and another one from Karlsruher Institute of Technology (KIT) were tested in stagnant oxygen-saturated liquid LBE. Calibrations showed that the trend and values of corrected electromotive force (EMF) of the self-developed sensor, with a bias voltage of 20 mV, were consistent with theoretical results above 425 °C, and similar results were obtained in cross-calibration test with EMF value of KIT sensor as reference. In stability test at 450 °C for 100 hours, the KIT sensor performed better than the self-developed one, which showed signal fluctuations. Both sensors exhibited quick response to temperature variations in the responsiveness test. (authors)