Determination of the equilibrium desorption isotherms for aged uranium tritides

The desorption isotherms of uranium tritide samples that have been stored at ambient temperature for 0, 460, 610 or 1720 d respectively under different desorption temperatures are measured. The experimental results show that the range, slope, and pressure of the plateau on the isotherm of each aged UTx samples are kept essentially unchanged in comparison with that of unaged UTx sample. Tritium heels left in the samples after desorption are negligible. No remarkable decrease in the reversible storage capacity for tritium is observed. It is concluded that the effect of tritium aging on tritium storage is very small, and uranium tritide seems suitable as a good medium for long-term storage of tritium