A device for the removal of hydrogen from a vacuum enclosure at cryogenic temperatures and especially high energy particle accelerators

Abstract: A device for the removal of hydrogen from a vacuum enclosure of cryogenic temperatures, especially high energy particle accelerators comprises a metal support preferably in the form of a strip of aluminium and a composition able to sorb hydrogen adherent to the support in particular on at least one surface of the strip. The composition comprises a porous absorber of H₂O, preferably powdered aluminium oxide and in contact with palladium oxide which preferably covers, at least partially, the water absorber.

Description: The present invention relates to the removal of gas, especially hydrogen, from a substantially enclosed space held at cryogenic temperatures. It finds use especially in maintaining the pressure at levels of 10⁻⁹ mbar, or even lower, in particle accelerators and storage devices. In traditional high energy particle accelerators there has been used a distributed non-evaporable getter (NEG) system for reaching the ultimate vacuum in the system. This consists of coating a metallic non-evaporable getter on one or both surfaces of a supporting strip and then disposing the strip along substantially the whole length of the vacuum chamber constituting the beam tube of the accelerator. See US-A-3,620,645 and C. Benvenuti and J-C. Decroux, Proceedings of the 7th International Vacuum Congress (Dobrozemsky, Vienna, 1977) p. 85. Unfortunately there are disadvantages related to the use of non-evaporable getters in that they have to undergo a heating process to make them active and sorb unwanted gases, including hydrogen. Such heating can place an unacceptably high thermal load on the cryogenic cooling systems associated with the accelerator. Furthermore when the NEG is cooled down to the cryogenic temperature its sorption capacity becomes limited to the surface area only of the sorbing material with a consequent reduction of its ability to sorb hydrogen. In addition as the accelerator reaches higher and higher circulating beam energies synchrotron radiation becomes more important as it tends to stimulate desorption of gas from the inner wall of the beam tube. In accelerators where superconducting magnets are used this gas is essentially hydrogen, with a very small amount of CO. FR-A-2143647 discloses a device for maintaining a vacuum space free from hydrogen by using a hydrogen converter that can be an oxide, a hydroxide or a hydrated compound of platinum or palladium, or mixture thereof, as described in US-A-3,103,585 and 3,315,478. These compounds react with H₂ to yield H₂O. Optionally, the device of said prior disclosure comprises, besides cited noble metal compounds, a dryer, i.e. a water adsorbing compound. However, according to this prior art, when a drying material is present, the hydrogen converter and the drying material are preferably placed at different locations inside the vacuum chamber. This feature gives rise to the drawback that the water molecules generated by the hydrogen converter are free to move inside the vacuum chamber prior to be adsorbed by the dryer. These free water molecules can impair the operation of the vacuum device, particularly in the case of high energy particle accelerators, wherein there is the absolute need to avoid any possible undesired species in the chamber, in order to prevent collisions with the accelerated particles under examination. It is therefore an object of the presente invention to provide a device for the removal of hydrogen from vacuum ar cryogenic temperatures which is free from one or more of the disadvantages of prior art hydrogen removal systems. It is another object of the present invention to provide a device for the removal of hydrogen from a vacuum at cryogenic temperatures which does not place a thermal load on the cryogenic system of the vacuum chamber. It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a device for the removal of hydrogen from a vacuum cryogenic temperatures which is not limited by the surface area in its sorption of hydrogen. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a device for the removal of hydrogen from a vacuum at cryogenic temperatures which is capable of sorbing hydrogen desorbed from the walls of a particle accelerator or storage device. These objects of the present invention are obtained by means of a device having the features of at least claim 1. The device of the invention will be described more in detail in the following with reference to the drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a cross-sectional representation of a strip useful in the present invention, showing also an enlarged portion; Fig. 2 is a representation of a vacuum enclosure of a high energy particle accelerator incorporating a strip of the present invention; Fig. 3 is a graph showing the sorption properties, for hydrogen, of a powder prepared according to the present invention; and Fig. 4 is a graph showing the sorption properties, for hydrogen, of a strip prepared according to the present invention. The present invention provides a device 10 for the removal of hydrogen from a vacuum at cryogenic temperatures. By cryogenic temperatures is meant those temperatures equal to, or below the temperature of boiling oxygen. It comprises a metal support in the form of a metal strip 12 which can be any metal to which aluminium oxide can adhere, but preferably is a metal having a high thermal conductivity such as copper, silver, molybdenum and Nichrome. Aluminium is the preferred metal. The aluminium strip has a length much greater than its width forming an upper surface 14 and a lower surface 16. The thickness of strip 12 is preferably between 25µm and 1000µm and more preferably between 100µm and 800µm. At lower thicknesses it becomes too thin to be handled without breaking. At greater thicknesses it becomes excessively bulky and rigid. A hydrogen sorbing composition of matter 18 adheres the upper surface 14 of strip 12 but could just as well adhere also to lower surface 16. Composition of matter 18 comprises aluminium oxide, or, more in general, porous physical sorbents of moisture in contact with palladium oxide. The aluminium oxide is in the form of a powder 20 and preferably has a particle size of between 5µm and 80µm. At lower particle sizes the aluminium oxide becomes dangerous to handle (health hazard) while at larger particle sizes it has a lower surface area per unit mass and is less efficient as a sorber of H₂O. The palladium oxide is preferably in the form of a thin layer 22 covering the aluminium oxide powder 20. The weight ratio of aluminium oxide to palladium oxide is from 99.9:0.1 to 50:50 and preferably is from 99.5:0.5 to 90:10. At higher ratios there is too little palladium oxide to efficiently perform its hydrogen conversion function for a sufficiently long time. At lower ratios the palladium oxide blocks the sorption of H₂O by the aluminium oxide and the additional cost is not offset by proportionally increased sorption. The palladium oxide is present therefore as a multiplicity of clusters or islands on the surface of the aluminium oxide. Hence, on contacting the composition with hydrogen the palladium oxide, at the cryogenic temperature, is transformed into palladium and H₂O, and the H₂O is sorbed directly by the aluminium oxide without going through the vapour phase. If the H₂O were to be released as vapour it would be able to condense upon the walls of the beam tube only to be released as vapor once again by the synchrotron radiation. This increase in the partial pressure of the H₂O vapour would severely degrade the quality of the circulating particles in the particle accelerator. It is known from GB-A- 921,273 to use palladium oxide in combination with an absorber of H₂O such as zeolite, but physically separated therefrom. Fig. 2 shows a vacuum enclosure 40 comprising an outer wall 42 and a beam tube 44 held at cryogenic temperatures, of a high energy particle accelerator. There is a device 46 comprising a metal strip 48 of aluminium having a length much greater than its width. It forms an upper surface 50 and a lower surface 52, with a thickness of 40 µm. A hydrogen sorbing composition of matter 54 is adherent to both surfaces. The composition 54 was produced following Example 3 (below) with the particles of aluminium oxide having an average particle size of between 3 µm and 7µm. There was 3 mg of aluminium oxide per cm². Co-deposited as clusters, on the surface of the aluminium oxide was palladium oxide. Its concentration was 0.3 mg/cm². Device 46 is held by a rod 56 on to the outside surface 58 of a beam tube 60. Beam tube 60 contains a slit 62 approximately 2 mm wide connecting the beam area 65 with annular outer side chamber 66. It will be realized that as used in the instant specification and claims the term aluminium oxide embraces hydrated aluminium oxide and all known forms which generally are known as γ -alumina. Other porous physical adsorbents efficient for H₂O sorption are also included. Any technique of applying the composition of the present invention to the metal support can be used. Non-limiting examples are given in the following Table I The invention may be better understood by reference to the following examples wherein all parts and percentages are by weight unless otherwise indicated. These examples are designed to teach those skilled in the art how to practice the present invention and represent the best mode presently known for practicing the invention. EXAMPLE 1 This example illustrates the preparation of a powder suitable for use in the present invention. 50 g of Al₂O₃ ( γ -alumina) of maximum particle size 80µm and having a surface area of 300 m²/g, were placed in a glass vessel and degassed, under vacuum, at 120°C for 40 minutes. After cooling there was added a solution of 2.5g of Pd in the form of PdCl₂ in 40 cm³ water. The solution was again evaporated under vacuum at 45°C thus depositing PdCl₂ over the surface of the Al₂O₃. A quantity of solution of NaHCO₃ was added sufficient to turn all the PdCl₂ into Pd(OH)₂ by the reaction: PdCl₂+2NaHCO₃ → Pd(OH)₂ + 2NaCl + 2CO₂. Formaldehyde was then added in sufficient quantity to reduce the Pd(OH)₂ to Pd metal. The powder was then rinsed to remove reactants and then dried in an oven at 80°C for 6 hours and then oxidized in a flow of pure O₂ at 350°C, for 3 hours. EXAMPLE 2 A sample of powder prepared exactly as in Example 1 was placed in a test apparatus designed to measure the sorption characteristics according to ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials) standard procedure N° F798-82. The test gas used was hydrogen at a pressure of 3x10⁻⁶ torr (4 x 10⁻⁶ mbar). The sample was held at a temperature of - 196°C. The test results are shown on Fig. 3 as curve 1. EXAMPLE 3 A strip of aluminium 30mm x 0.2mm x 10cm was immersed in a solution of PdCl₂ where the following reaction took place 2Al + 3PdCl₂ → 3Pd + 2AlCl₃ The solution was made slightly acid whereupon the following reaction took place 2AlCl₃ + 4H₂O → 2Al O(OH) + 6 HCl resulting in a co-deposition of Pd and hydrated aluminium oxide. The strip of coated aluminium was washed and rinsed and dried at 80°C in air and then heated in a flow of pure O₂ at 350°C. EXAMPLE 4 The test of Example 2 was repeated except that a piece of the coated strip prepared as in Example 3 was used. The test results are shown in Fig. 4 as curve 2. Although the invention has been described in detail with reference to high energy particle accelerators or storage rings it will be realized that it may be applied to any device held at cryogenic temperatures where the pumping of hydrogen is a problem. for instance in Dewars, or anywhere thermal insulation is required and insulation by liquid nitrogen is provided. Cryogenic fluid transport lines are another example. The hydrogen sorbing composition can be also held directly on structural parts of the device such as its walls. It could be placed on the baffles of a cryopump for instance.

Claims: A device (10) for the removal of hydrogen from a vacuum enclosure (40) at cryogenic temperatures comprising: A. a metal support (12); and B. a hydrogen sorbing composition of matters adherent to said support comprising a porous physical H₂O sorbent (20) and palladium oxide; characterized in that said palladium oxide is in the form of a layer (22) at least partially covering said porous physical H₂O sorbent; whereby on contacting the composition with hydrogen at cryogenic temperatures the palladium oxide is transformed into palladium and H₂O, and the H₂O is sorbed directly by the aluminium oxide without going through the vapour phase. The device according to claim 1, in which the porous physical H₂O sorbent (20) is aluminium oxide. The device according to claim 2, in which the aluminium oxide is in the form of particles having a size between 5 and 80 µm. The device according to claim 2, in which the weight ratio between aluminium oxide and palladium oxide is from 99.9:0.1 to 50:50. The device according to claim 1, in which the metal support (12) is in the form of a strip. The device according to claim 5, in which the metal strip is made of aluminium and has a thickness comprised between 25 and 1000 µm.

Inventors: BOFFITO CLAUDIO, FERRARIO BRUNO, BOFFITO, CLAUDIO, FERRARIO, BRUNO
Applicants: GETTERS SPA, SAES GETTERS S.P.A.
Application year: 1992
Main classification: H01J7
IPC codes: H05H7, B01J20, B01D53, H01J7