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TECHNOLOGY LICENSING OPPORTUNITY Triple Bubbler System Bubbler type instrument to measure density, surface tension and depth of stagnant or minimal motion fluid all simultaneously. Opportunity: Idaho ... TECHNOLOGY LICENSING OPPORTUNITY Triple Bubbler System Bubbler type instrument to measure density, surface tension and depth of stagnant or minimal motion fluid all simultaneously. Opportunity: Idaho National Laboratory (INL), managed and operated by Battelle Energy Alliance, LLC (BEA), is offering the opportunity to enter into a license and/or collaborative research agreement to commercialize the Triple Bubbler System. Overview: Electrochemical (i.e. pyroprocessing) technology is being widely studied throughout the world as a potential alternative to aqueous reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel (SNF). Central to this process is the electrorefiner (ER), in which the useful uranium in the SNF is electrochemically transported through a molten salt electrolyte to a cathode for later recovery. As part of this process, uranium, plutonium, and other actinides accumulate in the ER salt over time. Determining the actual mass of these materials in the ER presents a significant challenge because the density and volume of the salt within the vessel is largely unknown. INL has explored a bubbler type instrument to measure down to the top surface of the salt within 1.1%. The triple bubbler sensor is capable of determining the density, surface tension, and depth of a fluid in near real-time and has been tested in aqueous fluids. These experiments have shown accuracies on the order of 1% at 16 cm depth. Accuracies are dependent on fluid depth, fluid density, and pressure transducer selection. Description: INL’s Triple Bubbler System simultaneously measures density, surface tension and depth of a stagnant or minimal motion fluid in a vessel using a maximum bubble pressure technique in near real-time. The sensor consists of four sensing probes placed into a vessel, where the first probe monitors the atmosphere above the fluid level, and the other three probes are submerged in the fluid. Three differential pressure transducers reference the atmospheric prove and individually monitor each fluid probe. Three separate mass flow controllers are utilized to meter an inert gas into the three fluid sensing probes at the desired flowrate. Measurements for density, surface tension, and depth were determined by monitoring the maximum pressure signals from the three sensing probes during slow gas application. Benefits: Simultaneously measure density, surface tension, and depth in near real-time Accuracies on the order of 1% for 16 cm depth Not obscured by foam floating on surface or misty atmosphere in tank Applications: Molten Salt Electrolysis (MSE) Molten salt batteries Molten metal batteries Smelting of molten metals Molten salt thermal storage vessels General Industry Applications Energy Mining Mineral processing Waste recycling Development Status: TRL 3. Proof-of-concept is being completed. IP Status: Provisional Patent Application No. 62/990,712, “Triple Bubbler System, Fast-bubbling Approach, and Related Methods,” BEA Docket No. BA-1036. INL is seeking to license the above intellectual property to a company with a demonstrated ability to bring such inventions to the market. Exclusive rights in defined fields of use may be available. Please visit Technology Deployment’s website at https://inl.gov/inl-initiatives/technology-deployment for more information on working with INL and the industrial partnering and technology transfer process.