Exposure Of NIF Relevant Polymeric Samples To Deuterium-Tritium Gas At Elevated Temperature And Pressure

The purpose of the experiments described in this paper was to expose samples of polymeric materials to a mixture of deuterium-tritium (DT) gas at elevated temperature and pressure to investigate the effects (i.e. damage) on the materials. The materials and exposure parameters were chosen with to be relevant to proposed uses of similar materials in inertial fusion ignition experiments at the National Ignition Facility. Two types of samples were exposed and tested. The first type consisted of 10 4-lead ribbon cables of fine manganin wire insulated with polyimide. Wires of this type are proposed for use in thermal shimming of hohlraums and the goal of this experiment was to measure the change in electrical resistance of the insulation due to tritium exposure. The second type of sample consisted of 20 planar polymer samples that may be used as ignition capsule materials. The exposure was at 34.5 GPa (5010 psia) and 70 C for 48 hours. The change in electrical resistance of the wire insulation will be presented. The results for capsule materials will be presented in a separate paper in this issue