Tritium release in Li4SiO4 and Li4.2Si0.8Al0.2O4 ceramics

Li4+xSi1−xAlxO4 solid solution materials, which were designed as the advanced tritium breeders, were obtained by indirect solid state reactions. The behaviors of tritium release from Li4SiO4 and Li4.2Si0.8Al0.2O4 powders were investigated by temperature programmed desorption. The tritium release curves show different characteristics for the Li4SiO4 and Li4.2Si0.8Al0.2O4 ceramics. The main tritium release peak in the Li4SiO4 and Li4.2Si0.8Al0.2O4 powders is at approximately 600 °C after a high dose irradiation. Moreover, the temperature of the tritium release from Li4.2Si0.8Al0.2O4 was lower than that of the release from Li4SiO4. This suggests a possible advantage to using the solid solutions as the advanced tritium breeding materials.