Self-Radiolysis of Tritiated Water Stored in Zeolites 4A: Production and Behavior of H2 and O2

Radiolysis of confined water and self-radiolysis of tritiated water give rise to several unanswered questions. To take into account this double specificity, we studied systems of zeolites 4A containing tritiated water at different water loading ratios. Two tritiated waters were synthesized at the volumetric activities of 27 and 60 TBq L–1. For each one, five samples were prepared, differentiated by their water loading ratios, expressed in percentage, close to 4%, 7%, 11%, 14%, and 19%. The study of the radiolysis in those systems revealed a double role of zeolites 4A: first, they increase the decomposition of water. Then they enhance the recombination of the major stable radiolytic products detected. We actually evidenced a total recombination between H2 and O2, which is catalyzed by the zeolites.