Design of a catalytic exhaust clean-up unit for ITER

A fuel clean-up process for torus exhaust gases specified for ITER based on permeation of hydrogen isotopes through palladium/silver, catalytic cracking or conversion reactions, and isotopic swamping has been developed. The different steps of the process, which was designated Caper, have already been demonstrated with relevant concentration of tritium at the laboratory scale and for the most part, also at a technical scale. The experimental results have been used to form the basis of the detailed engineering and design of a torus exhaust clean-up plant for ITER. This paper describes all the essential parts of the clean-up facility along with principal experimental results, outlines key safety features and summarizes the P&I diagram.