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Tritium Extraction from Molten Salt using Heat Exchanger Geometries

Aug. 2024 - June 2025

 

Exploring the potential of heat exchanger geometries for the extraction of tritium from FLiBe molten salt due to the close relationship of heat and mass transfer.

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  • STAR-CCM+ CFD Modeling

  • Thermodynamics

Project One-pager

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My research results:

  • Introduced the idea of breaking down and separating the velocity and passive scalar simulations to reduce computation runtime while increasing model fidelity by 36.6%

  • Demonstrated bend angle could improve mass transfer as much as 20x

  • Presented evidence that fluid flow impingement and stagnation points also greatly improve mass transfer

  • ​Ran initial literature review on accessible papers on heat transfer using Printed Circuit Heat Exchangers (PCHEs)​

  • Implemented fluid-to-solid continuity boundary conditions for mass transfer in turbulent and laminar flows

  • Utilized spreadsheets to verify results, tabulate data, and track simulation versions among three teammates​

  • Presented the project research at the 2025 American Nuclear Society Student Conference

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Bend angle geometries I studied

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Velocity flow profiles of each bend geometry

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Mass transfer coefficient (MTC, similar to heat transfer coefficient) as a function of channel length

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MTC behavior (top) in relation to the velocity profile (bottom)

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Plots showing increasing Reynolds Number and pressure drop for decreasing bend angle

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