Experimental study of separative characteristics of cryogenic-wall thermal diffusion column for H–D and H–T mixtures

The separative characteristics of H–D and H–T mixtures have been measured by using a cryogenic-wall thermal diffusion column (CTD). The experiments were carried out under a continuous feed operation mode. Steady state was attained within 30 min for the 1.5×0.3 m φ column used. As the feed flow rate increased, the separation factor of the column decreased and the optimum pressure shifted to a larger region both in the H–D and H–T systems. The maximum separation factor was 16.4 for H–D and 26.0 for H–T at a feed flow rate of 25 cm3 min−1 (at 0.1 MPa and 273 K). The optimum pressure, where the maximum separation factor was obtained, was slightly larger in the H–T system than in the H–D system.