Measurement of melting point and density of fluoride salt mixtures

There are several possible candidate classes of coolants for future fusion reactors, including molten salts, liquid metals, gases, and supercritical fluids. Some liquid coolants have advantageous thermophysical properties over other types of coolant. In particular, molten salts demonstrate good heat transfer, allow low pressure operation, and do not suffer from disadvantageous MHD effects as liquid metals do. To determine the feasibility of fluoride molten salts for this application, it is necessary to accurately determine the properties of salt mixtures at and around the melting point.

The purpose of this project is to accurately determine the density and melting point of a range of fluoride salt mixtures. Compositions of five fluoride salts will be provided, and the melting point and density should be investigated. Specifically, the melting point of each composition and the density as a function of temperature around the melting point should be accurately determined. These measurements should be repeated for five variations of each base composition, including the base composition itself. A high purity should be maintained throughout the production and testing of the salts, to ensure accurate measurements are recorded.