Depressurization as a means of leak checking large vacuum vessels

Abstract

A common problem associated with large vacuum vessels used in magnetic confinement fusion experiments is that leak checking is hampered by the inaccessibility to most of the vacuum vessel surface. This inaccessibility is caused by the close proximity of magnetic coils, diagnostics and, for those vessels that are baked, the need to completely surround the vessel with a thermal insulation blanket. These obstructions reduce the effectiveness of the standard leak checking method of using a mass spectrometer and spraying a search gas such as helium on the vessel exterior. Even when the presence of helium is detected, its entry point into the vessel cannot always be pinpointed. This paper will describe a method of overcoming this problem. By slightly depressurizing the vessel, an influx of helium through the leak is created. The leak site can then be identified by personnel within the vessel using standard sniffing procedures. There are two conditions which make this method of leak checking practical. First, the vessel need only be depressurized 2 psi, thus allowing personnel inside to perform the sniffing operation. Second, the sniffing probe used (Leybold–Heraus ‘‘Quick Test’’) could detect a change in helium concentration as small as 100 ppb, which allows for faster scanning of the vessel inferior. Use of this technique to find an elusive 10−3 Torr⋅l/s leak in the Doublet III tokamak vacuum vessel will be presented.