This report provides some preliminary data for the consolidation of chalcogen-based aerogels. The chalcogels tested to date at PNNL show great promise as iodine sorbents and preliminary consolidation research shows that they can be melted into a phase-pure glass at moderate temperatures. The preliminary consolidation experiments show that these materials might attack fused quartz so an alternative crucible material will likely need to be used to prevent this. The next steps will be to • Consider melting other chalcogel chemistries, e.g., Sn-Sb-S, Ge-Sn-S chalcogels • Consider melting chalcogels with adsorbed iodine to monitor iodine loss during melting • Optimize the consolidation temperatures to minimize the iodine loss and volatilization
Revised: September 14, 2012 |
Published: August 31, 2012