The Copenhagen Atomics pumped molten salt loop comes complete with control software, which can be operated from a mobile-phone app.
Operating conditions are logged, cloud hosted, and can be viewed online or downloaded as a .CSV file using a customer specific log-in and password.
Copenhagen Atomics specialists are available for hands-on assistance during installation at the customer location.
Fully integrated molten salt test platform running up to 700 °C integrated with our proprietary automated operation and alarm system and cloud based data logging system.
Loop operation up to 700 °C and flow up to 300l/min. Fully contained inside the loop cabinet.
Cloud data acquisition/interface to process test data with other systems and data export feature.
Delivered and tested with highly purified salt from Copenhagen Atomics.
Comes with a double barrier safety concept and Ability to swap components and to customize test loop.
Accelerates time scales and reduces project risks on science experiments and a versatile foundation for any molten salt experiments.
Copenhagen Atomics’ portable salt loop is designed as an accessible testing and development platform for researchers and engineers.
The loop can be used to perform various experiments e.g. components testing such as tests of gaskets, flanges, filters, valves, pumps, pressure sensors, flow meters, and heat exchangers, etc., at a wide range of flow conditions, temperatures, salt composition, etc.
The loop is also well suited for material and chemistry experiments, e.g. salt material compatibility testing, graphite salt entrainment testing, corrosion testing, plate out, radiolysis, bobbling extraction of volatile compounds etc.
The ability to test materials, components and technologies at relevant dynamic conditions enables fast development and demonstrate the durability and feasibility required for approval. The loop is constructed in a modular fashion which enables the user to swap and connect different components.
Each loop is constructed and tested with FLiNaK or another custom salt at the factory, by Copenhagen Atomics, before shipping.
The molten salt loop is suitable for rapid prototype validation, long durability testing, salt compatibility testing, and many types of experiments that requires a molten salt flow.
Components such as gaskets, flanges, filters, valves, pumps, pressure sensors, flow meters, and heat exchangers, etc. can be tested in a dynamic molten salt environment.
The internal volume of the loop’s furnace is approximately 350 liters and have been tested up to 700˚ Celcius. Depending on the configuration, about half of this volume is available for customization to suit various experiments and test.
The salt circulates from the salt tank via the pump and back, completing a loop. The piping is equipped with salt pressure sensors, flow meter, bypass filtration, valves, and can be customized to house other equipment, such as sample chambers, salt heater, salt heat exchanges, etc.
The salt tank contains 25L of molten salt that can be FLiNaK or another fluoride or chloride salt.
Significant value in a Copenhagen Atomics pumped loop is the hardware and the high quality salt. The rest is the software and the data handling.
The test loop is operated by a mobile phone or a computer via a web interface. Ability to start, stop and run scripts, and to adjust temperatures and pump speed. Unique login with assigned privileges for each loop user.
This is also where you update software, firmware and scripts and change the naming of your sensors and set alarms.
This is how you view everything going on inside the loop, while it is running. You can view data recorded in real time from home or from your mobile phone. Zoom in on data and download data as .csv files (or Excel files).
With the Copenhagen Atomics plotsUI it is easy to set up individual views. And the user interface makes it easy to browse historical data.
Download: Loop Datasheet
A more technical and in-depth document
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There are many different applications for molten salt. We are building a molten salt reactor and we need a lot of highly purified salt for this. More than 10 tonnes this year alone. Other applications include concentrated solar power, thermal storage, fusion projects and general scientific research on flow, corrosion and more. So we see a growing interest to use this technology and we are happy to make our salts available for the market.
You have to go through a very time consuming and labor intensive process in order to mix the unrefined salt into the eutectic composition. In addition, molten salts that contain a large amount of moisture, oxide and metal contaminants are highly corrosive. We have created a special production method to reduce oxides in the salt to below 20 ppm and from extensive testing we see that this has a great impact on corrosion. Our goal is to supply the highest purified salt for others to focus on their technological development rather than battling corrosion.
No. We supply a great number of salts such as, but not limited to, FLiBe and Chloride Salts.
The salts are offered in three forms. Lab grade for less than 1 kg quantity, 50-100 kg. Canisters and ton scale for industrial use. The containers and the salt-loader, which allows you to load the molten salt in liquid state, are returned after the salt is loaded into your own system. The salt-loader melts the salt and ensures it is kept free from moisture and oxygen during the melting and transfer process. This data is logged digitally and a purity measurement certificate of each canister from the production day will be provided. The transfer happens by pushing the liquid salt from the caister into your tanks by use of pressure through an insulated 6 mm stainless steel pipe. Similar procedures apply to industrial scale deliveries.
Salt from Copenhagen Atomics is highly purified compared to other salts available, especially due to the fact that other commercially available salts are provided in powder form. Not only is it difficult to handle, it also needs to be mixed into the eutectic composition, which is very time and labor consuming, and often contains a large and variable amount of moisture, oxide and metal contaminants. Moreover, there is around 10 times the amount of moisture uptake in the powdered salt compared to this salt due to a lower surface area.
It is possible to use SS316L with these salts and get very low corrosion rates, if the salt is handled in a way where they do not get contaminated and cover gas in the system is also very pure, e.g. less than 50 ppm oxygen in the cover gas. We find that very expensive materials like Hasteloy do not perform much better than SS 316 in such a clean environment. Both the heat exchangers and the pump used in Copenhagen Atomics are also made from SS316L.
Samples received from Copenhagen Atomics are always vacuum packed in special containers to minimize the moisture uptake during transport. It is important to always unpack these inside a glovebox with 100 ppm oxygen and moisture. We can provide sensors which can help monitor this. We provide the salt in bars or in tanks, because this minimizes the moisture uptake per minute by a factor of 10 compared to powder. When you purchase salt from Copenhagen Atomics, we provide instructions on how to handle it to minimize oxygen and moisture exposure while you load the salt, in order to avoid corrosion in your own system.