Tritium Solutions
Equipment built by people who handle tritium every day
Tritium is a radioactive isotope of hydrogen. It is used in medical applications, in luminescent light sources for watches and optics, as a tracer in groundwater monitoring and — alongside deuterium — as fuel in nuclear fusion. In all of these applications, safe and precise handling of the gas is essential.
Why our equipment is different
We build what we use ourselves
smolsys does not only manufacture tritium equipment — we operate our own tritium laboratory. Every product is shaped by that daily practice: highly reliable, designed with safety margins beyond the standard, and simple to put into operation. That is what we mean by «Plug & Produce»: you connect it and you produce, instead of spending weeks on commissioning.
Safety by design — not as an afterthought, but as the starting point of every construction.
Tritium compatible, highest quality, tested against international standards and beyond.
Optimised usability. Plug & Produce instead of weeks of commissioning.
Enhanced service life, reduced maintenance and less radioactive waste.
Products
Isotope handling equipment
Specially designed and manufactured tritium valves, fittings and transfer components — based on our long experience in tritium handling.
Valves & fittings
¼" to 1.5"
All metal sealed, built for the smallest molecule
Metal bellows valves, face seal fittings, pneumatic actuators, lockable handwheels and the rail system that holds them together. Every part is designed for hydrogen isotopes — and for a service life that keeps radioactive waste low.
Measurement
Tritium analytics
Knowing what is in the gas, while it is flowing. Our analytics range covers the full isotopologue composition by Raman spectroscopy and the absolute tritium content by solid scintillation.
Micro Raman spectroscopy
Licensed by KIT
Micro Raman spectrometer
Developed by KIT, the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, this device has proven its ability for years in a real tritium gas cycle. It is now exclusively available through smolsys as a compact and easy to use instrument — a great tool for every tritium or nuclear fusion researcher.
- Resolves H₂, HD, HT, D₂, DT and T₂ in a single measurement
- Inline use up to 1 bar, higher pressure on request
- Temperature range 0–50 °C
- Robust and compact, Plug & Produce setup
In operation
Three clicks to the first measurement
A reliable device for every fusion fuel cycle gas mix. Close to real-time measurement without sample loss. Traceable raw data and connectivity to custom HMIs allow easy integration into existing systems.
Accessories for the spectrometer
High pressure cell
Extends the Raman measurement beyond the standard inline range. The cell takes the sample gas at elevated pressure and keeps the optical path and the laser focus stable, so the spectrum stays comparable to a measurement at ambient conditions.
Glove-box feedthrough for the Raman fibre
A KF flanged transit that takes the armoured fibre of the spectrometer through a glove box or containment wall without breaking the barrier. The electronics stay outside in the clean area, the probe sits where the gas is.
Tritium GS sensor
Solid scintillation
Concentration and pressure sensor
A measuring principle of its own, independent of the spectrometer. It measures the tritium gas concentration at a known pressure — or, the other way round, the pressure of a tritium gas of known concentration. The sensor uses the beta radiation of tritium to generate radioluminescence, which is read out by a photodiode.
- Wide concentration range
- Fast response time
- Pressure range 0–20 bar
- Temperature range 0–50 °C
Cut-away view
Glow Sensor 2505.0701.CF
Solid state scintillation sensor for pure gases and for gas mixes containing tritium. The sensor responds to tritium alone — the gas has to carry a tritium fraction to be detected. Combined with the pressure data of your system, it can alternatively determine the purity of the tritium gas.
Containment
Inert gas glove boxes
High-security glove boxes, tested and approved through years of beryllium and tritium handling at KIT and GVT in Karlsruhe.
Modular by design
One general module, built around your process
Our boxes combine smart design with modularity. They are based on a flexible general module and carry interfaces compatible with other box types, which makes it easy to integrate custom requirements — inert gas cleaning systems, sensors, PLC automation, interlock programming, for example for shuttling liquids through the interlock.
- Stainless steel standard frame
- Windows in acrylic, tempered multi-layer glass
- Other materials on request
- Interlocks, gas cleaning and automation integrated
From the standard cube to your box
Modularity
One cube, adapted to your process
Our inert gas glove boxes are based on a standard cube and are then custom adapted and equipped with the machinery your process needs. The modularity goes far: corner boxes, multiple levels, and separate atmospheres in individual sections of the same chain.
- Dual seals throughout
- Purged and surveilled frame structure with leak detection
- Corner boxes and multi-level arrangements
- Individual atmospheres per section
The box can be equipped with high isostatic presses, cryo grinding machines, powder pellet presses, mills, welding equipment and any other machinery your process calls for. A custom HMI can bring radiation safety data, process data, glove box status and analytics data together on one screen.
Facilities
Custom tritium laboratories
A complete radio-isotope laboratory in a transportable shell: the RMC container lab. The unit itself creates the protected environment, so you do not have to rebuild your building.
Plug & Produce
A self-contained unit, not a building project
The lab container holds the critical process, the machinery and the measurement systems. Conditions inside are predictable and continuously monitored: tritium in air as T₂ and HTO, temperature, airflow, air quality, oxygen, humidity — every parameter a controlled and reliable process needs.
- Shortest time to production, fully transportable
- Fast setup as an additional safety zone
- Pre-established compliance with regulatory requirements
- Clearly defined interfaces to the surrounding environment
- Built-in safety: fire protection and 25-fold air exchange per hour
- Easy adaptation to changing needs, no retrofitting of existing facilities
Configuration
Three lengths, hull certified REI 90
The container hull is certified REI 90 minutes fire safe and built to DIN EN 1090. It comes in three lengths at the same width and height — 20 ft 5938 × 2878 × 3009 mm, 30 ft 8858 × 2878 × 3009 mm and 40 ft 12200 × 2878 × 3009 mm. Everything inside is configured for your process — from the ventilation concept and the sensor set to the glove boxes and safe storages.
Customize your lab
1Choose the installation
2Choose the length
3ATEX rating affects every component
4Fire rating affects the whole build
5Pick the modules drag the drawing to turn it
Tick the components you need, add quantities and your own notes under “Custom”. The whole configuration is written into the e-mail — add site, process and timeline and we come back with a price. “Copy configuration” puts the same text on your clipboard.
Engineering
Custom machine building
Where the catalogue ends, engineering begins. We design, build and program complete machines for processes that have no standard solution yet — from the requirement analysis to turnkey delivery.
Products
Gas transfer
Compression and transfer of hydrogen isotopes without a moving seal to the environment — from low mbar up to 100 bar, manually operated or fully automated.
Protium · Deuterium · Tritium
Isotope Ultra Syringe Pump
Steady and highly controlled gas compression and transfer, from low mbar up to 100 bar depending on the process. The plunger is magnetically driven — there are no rotary seals to the environment, so the system is hermetically sealed. The housing is vacuum-vented to a bypass or scrubber, which makes closed-loop gas handling possible.
- Accurate, process-controlled pressurisation
- Stable gas flow or pressure, from mbar to bar
- Slow-moving components and high temperature stability
- Several pumps combine into a continuous flow system
- Manually operated or fully automated versions
Engineering & building
Custom bellows pumps
Metal bellows pumps for a wide range of pressure applications — designed, engineered and built to the requirements of your process.
For more information
Let's talk about your application
Please don’t hesitate to contact us. We’re here to assist with any questions or provide additional details to help you make informed decisions. Reach out today, and let’s connect!
smolsys ltd.
Platz 46039 Root D4
Switzerland +41 41 510 87 50 info@smolsys.com LinkedIn