219results about "Fuel element assemblies" patented technology

The invention provides a nuclear fuel grillwork clamping device and a vibration acceleration control method, and relates to the technical field of nuclear fuel grillwork clamping devices.The nuclear fuel grillwork clamping device comprises the steps that a plurality of clamping pieces are slidably installed in a nuclear reaction box body in the first direction and connected with the multiple clamping pieces at the same time through a transmission mechanism, and the clamping pieces are connected with the nuclear reaction box body through the structural characteristics of the transmission mechanism; and the plurality of clamping pieces are enabled to vibrate in two opposite directions of the first direction. Based on the structural design, the mode that the clamping pieces are installed in the nuclear reaction box body is changed into sliding connection from fixed connection, and the multiple clamping pieces are connected at the same time through the transmission mechanism. In the nuclear reaction process, the transmission effect of the transmission mechanism can be utilized to enable the plurality of nuclear fuel grillages to vibrate along opposite directions; therefore, the vibration amplitude of the nuclear fuel grillwork is reduced, and finally the purpose of reducing the failure rate of the nuclear fuel grillwork is achieved.

The present invention relates to a nuclear fuel assembly suitable for a small modular reactor (SMR), the nuclear fuel assembly comprising: a spacer grid (110) having 17x17 grid cells; a plurality of fuel rods (120) arranged in the grid cells of the spacer grid (110); guide tubes (130) arranged and fixed in the grid cells of the spacer grid (110); and an upper end fitting (140) and a lower end fitting (150) fixed to the upper end and the lower end of the guide tubes (130), respectively, wherein the guide tubes (130) are characterized in that eight guide tubes are arranged in the main axis directions (Ixx)(Iyy) with respect to the central cell of the spacer grid (110), four guide tubes are arranged in the diagonal direction (Ixy), and sixteen guide tubes are arranged in the non-diagonal directions (Ixxy)(Ixyy).

Systems, structures, devices, and fabrication processes for ceramic matrix composites suitable for use in a nuclear reactor environment and other applications requiring materials that can withstand high temperatures and / or highly corrosive environments are disclosed. In one aspect, a ceramic composite structure is provided. The structure comprises a chamber including an external shell and a hollow space inside the external shell. The external shell includes an inner composite layer including a first composite structure, a middle composite layer placed outside of the inner composite layer, the middle composite layer including a second composite structure that is different from the first composite structure, and an outer monolithic layer that has a spatially uniform material property and placed outside of the middle composite layer.

Insulated fuel assembly core with plurality of fuel monoliths, exhaust support plate, exhaust shield assembly, and insulation layer in which the plurality of fuel monoliths are located axially along a longitudinal axis and each of the plurality of fuel monoliths has a shape of an eccentric cylinder and a composition including a fissionable fuel component. Channels in the exhaust support plate are oriented so that propellant gas flow through the exhaust support plate does not impinge the exhaust shield assembly. The insulated fuel assembly core is manufactured by forming a tensioned fuel monolith stack mandrel assembly using mandrels spacers and internal tensioning components and forming an insulation layer on an outer surface of the tensioned fuel monolith stack mandrel assembly by mandrel winding. The insulated fuel assembly core can be incorporated into a fuel assembly of nuclear propulsion fission reactor structure of, for example, a nuclear thermal propulsion engine.

The invention discloses an assembly method of a heat pipe type reactor and the heat pipe type reactor, and belongs to the field of nuclear power. The assembly method of the heat pipe type reactor comprises the following steps: closing one end of each mounting hole of the grid base body, vertically arranging the grid base body to enable the closed end to be located at the bottom, injecting filling slurry containing heat-conducting powder and a dispersing agent into the mounting holes, then inserting pipe fittings into the mounting holes until the filling slurry overflows, and finally assembling the grid base body into the mounting holes. The gap between the pipe fitting and the mounting hole is uniformly filled with the filling slurry in a forced flowing mode; and heating to cure and shape the filling slurry. The method can effectively eliminate the assembly gap between the grid substrate and the pipe fitting of the heat pipe type reactor, and improves the heat transfer efficiency and the safety margin of the reactor.

Carbide-based fuel assembly includes outer structural member of ceramic matrix composite material, the interior surface of which is lined in higher temperature regions with an insulation layer of porous refractory ceramic material. A continuous insulation layer extends the length of the fuel assembly or separate insulation layer sections have a thickness increasing step-wise along the length of the fuel assembly from upper (inlet) section towards bottom (outlet) section. Fuel element positioned inward of the insulation layer and between support meshes has a fuel composition including HALEU and the form of a plurality of individual elongated fuel bodies or one or more fuel monolith bodies containing coolant flow channels. Fuel assemblies are distributively arranged in a moderator block, with upper end of the outer structural member attached to an inlet for propellant and lower end of the outer structural member operatively interfaced with a nozzle forming a nuclear thermal propulsion reactor.

The invention provides a reactor internal capable of realizing integral movement of a reactor core, and relates to the technical field of research, development and design of reactor body structures, the reactor internal comprises a hanging basket barrel, a reactor core shroud and a reactor core; the reactor core is arranged in the reactor core shroud; the reactor core shroud is arranged in the hanging basket barrel body, the reactor core shroud is movably connected with the hanging basket barrel body, the reactor core shroud slides up and down in the hanging basket barrel body, and the bottom of the hanging basket barrel body supports the reactor core shroud. According to the invention, the material changing and maintenance efficiency can be effectively improved, the downtime is shortened, the safety is enhanced, the personnel radiation exposure risk is reduced, the inspection and maintenance are convenient, and the service life of equipment is prolonged. The system adapts to advanced reactor design and conforms to the development trend of modularization and high efficiency, and the performance, safety and economical efficiency of the nuclear reactor are remarkably improved through the design of the system.

The nuclear fuel assembly comprises grids distributed along the length of nuclear fuel rods (4), the grids including spacer grids (14), at least one reinforcing grid (16), a lower end grid (18) and an upper end grid (20). The spacer grids (14) define, between them and together with the lower end grid (18) and the upper end grid (20), a plurality of intervals (15). The grids further include one or more intermediate mixing grids (22) and, optionally, an anti-debris grid (24) in which the lower ends of the nuclear fuel rods (24) engage.

The utility model belongs to the technical field of fuel elements for nuclear reactors, and discloses a guide pipe, a guide pipe assembly and a pressurized water reactor fuel assembly. The guide pipe comprises a pipe body and two water hole assemblies, the pipe body is oppositely provided with a first end and a second end in the axial direction of the pipe body, the two water hole assemblies are arranged at the position, close to the first end, of the pipe body and the position, close to the second end, of the pipe body respectively, and the two water hole assemblies are symmetrically arranged in the radial direction of the center of the pipe body; the water hole assemblies are arranged at the two ends of the pipe body in the axial direction of the pipe body and used for discharging water flow during rod falling, that is, the pipe body has a mistake-proof function, so that when the guide pipe is installed, whether the guide pipe and the end plug are installed reversely or not does not need to be considered, the problems that the guide pipe assembly, a framework and a pressurized water reactor fuel assembly are scrapped and the like are avoided, and the production efficiency is improved. The installation reliability of the guide pipe is improved, and the safety of the pressurized water reactor fuel assembly loaded with the guide pipe is further improved.

A nuclear reactor is designed to couple the load path of the control elements with the reactor core, thus reducing the opportunity for differential movement between the control elements and the reactor core. A cartridge core barrel can be fabricated in a manufacturing facility to include the reactor core, control element supports, and control element drive system. The cartridge core barrel can be mounted to a reactor vessel head. Thus, any movement, such as through seismic forces, transmits an equal direction and magnitude to the control elements and the reactor core. This arrangement reduces the opportunity for differential movement between the control elements and the reactor core.

A fuel assembly comprises a fuel assembly intermediate structure 250 circumferentially enclosing an interior volume, a fuel element bundle 190 located within the interior volume with the fuel assembly intermediate structure radially outward of the fuel element bundle, an insulation layer 160 radially outward of the fuel assembly intermediate structure 250, a void space 255 between an inner surface of the insulation layer 160 and an outer surface of the fuel assembly intermediate structure 250, a fuel assembly outer structure 110 radially outward of the insulation layer 160, and a second void space 265 between an outer surface of the insulation layer 160 and an inner surface of the fuel assembly outer structure 110. The fuel element bundle includes a plurality of fuel elements 105 and a coolant flow volume 115, through which a coolant in a form of a propellant gas flows during operation of a reactor containing the fuel assembly, so that the coolant contacts exterior surfaces of the fuel elements 105.

The embodiment of the invention relates to assembling equipment of a reactor fuel element, in particular to sodium bonding equipment of a metal fuel rod. The sodium binding equipment comprises a fuel rod supporting frame, a heating device and an impact device. A plurality of containing grooves are formed in the fuel rod supporting frame, and each containing groove is used for containing a metal fuel rod. A heating cavity is formed in the heating device, the fuel rod supporting frame is partially contained in the heating cavity, and the heating device is used for heating the metal fuel rod, so that solid sodium in the metal fuel rod is melted into liquid sodium. The impact device is arranged to impact the fuel rod supporting frame upwards, and when the impact device impacts the fuel rod supporting frame, an axial impact load and a tangential impact load are generated, so that the metal fuel rod freely falls after rising, and meanwhile, the metal fuel rod rotates and deviates in the tangential direction to eliminate the defects in the liquid sodium.

The application discloses a fuel assembly upper tube support, which comprises an upper seat body and a plurality of adjusting assemblies. The upper seat body is provided with a sliding rail part and a guide sliding groove, and the sliding rail part is arranged obliquely relative to a horizontal plane. Each adjusting assembly comprises a fixing block, an adjusting piece, a sliding block and an elastic structure. The fixing block is fixedly installed on the upper seat body, the sliding block is movably connected with the sliding rail part and is correspondingly arranged with the fixing block, the adjusting piece is in transmission connection with the fixing block and is used for pushing the sliding block to move along the sliding rail part, and the first end of the elastic structure is fixedly connected with the sliding block, and the second end of the elastic structure is movably connected in the guide sliding groove. The fuel assembly upper tube support can compensate for the shortage of the pressing force by installing the adjusting assembly on the upper seat body, simultaneously reduce the initial compression amount of the fuel assembly pressing spring of the whole core, and effectively reduce the bending risk of the fuel assembly caused by the excessive fuel assembly pressing force. Meanwhile, the adjusting assembly can also make the elastic structure be at different heights to meet different functional requirements.

Anti-debris filter for lower nozzle of nuclear fuel assembly with variable thickness The anti-debris filter is formed of a grid (32) having a first face (32A) and a second face (32B) opposite each other, the grid (36) having passages (36) extending between an inlet (36A) located on the first face (32A) and an outlet (36B) located on the second face (32B) for the flow of a coolant through the grid (32), the grid (32) having a first zone (Z1) and at least one second zone (Z2) in which the grid (32) has a thickness greater than that of the grid (32) in the first zone (Z1), passages (36) being present in the first zone (Z1) and in each second zone (Z2). Figure for abstract: Figure 7

A curvilinear electromagnetic pump is configured to follow a curve, such as by joining together multiple linear pump segments offset at an angle relative to one another. A curvilinear electromagnetic pump can be curved in two dimensions or in three dimensions. A curvilinear electromagnetic pump allows for more efficient placement of components and systems within a reactor vessel, significantly reducing the height of the reactor vessel compared to vertically positioned linear pumps. A curvilinear electromagnetic pump can follow the curvature of the reactor vessel wall and can be positioned generally near the bottom of the reactor vessel.

Fuel bundle has plurality of twisted ribbon fuel rodlets in hexagonal packing or circle packing arrangement in a core region encased in a multilayer casing. Arrangement of twisted ribbon fuel rodlets is facilitated by rodlet seating fixture with seating surface having a plurality of protrusions that form a receiving space for ends of the twisted ribbon fuel rodlets. Manufacture of the fuel bundle incorporates fiber manufacturing technologies and, optionally, infiltration of void spaces in core region by infiltrant. Twisted ribbon fuel rodlet manufacturing system has sub-systems that impart twist periodicity to extruded ribbons, inspect twisted extruded ribbons, and cut twisted extruded ribbons to length. Inspection sorts twisted ribbon fuel rodlets as well as provides feedback to adjust operation of sub-systems. The fuel bundle (and optional fuel bundle support) can be incorporated into a fuel assembly of a nuclear propulsion fission reactor structure of, for example, a nuclear thermal propulsion engine.

The invention discloses a fuel element, and relates to the technical field of nuclear fuel. The element comprises a rod body, wherein fuel is packaged in the rod body; the number of the rib bodies is multiple, the rib bodies are arranged on the bar body at intervals of a preset angle, and the rib bodies are arranged in the circumferential direction of the bar body. The rib bodies are distributed at intervals in the circumferential direction to replace a grillage spring which needs to be made of a high neutron absorption material in a traditional fuel assembly, a neutron absorption source is fundamentally eliminated, and the neutron utilization efficiency of a reactor is improved; meanwhile, a self-supporting modular structure is formed through concave-convex matched connection of the first end and the second end and insertion locking of the first rib body groove and the second rib body boss, the non-through design of the ribs avoids closing the channels, the coolant can transversely flow between the channels, and the overall heat exchange uniformity is enhanced; the window opening size of the transverse flow channel can be controlled by adjusting the lengths of the ribs at different heights, and flow adjustment is achieved.

The invention relates to a device for trapping debris in a fuel assembly of a nuclear reactor, which is mounted in the bottom nozzle of the fuel assembly. The device consists of two interconnected plate-type filter elements arranged one above the other and having channels for the passage of a coolant. In the lower filter element, the channels are inclined toward the axis of the fuel assembly, and in the upper filter element, the channels are parallel to the axis of the fuel assembly. The channels can be produced, in particular, by waterjet cutting to form slots in the field of a filter element plate, the slots being separated lengthwise by vertical ribs and widthwise by crosspieces. The vertical ribs and the crosspieces between the channels of each of the filter elements have roundings formed thereon, and a gap is provided between the vertical ribs and crosspieces formed in the plates of different filter elements. The technical result is the possibility of intercepting and trapping debris of any size contained in a coolant loop, without reducing the flow cross section for the coolant.

The invention belongs to the technical field of nuclear reactor cores, and particularly relates to a fast thermal coupling metal hydride reactor core controlled by a rotating drum and a rotating drum control method, and the reactor core comprises the rotating drum, a reactor core active area, a coolant flow channel, a beryllium oxide reflecting layer and a thermal insulation shielding layer; the coolant flow channel is composed of a coolant flow channel inner barrel and a coolant flow channel outer barrel; the reactor core active area is wrapped by the coolant flow channel inner barrel, and oxide fuel rods and metal hydride fuel rods are arranged in the reactor core active area; the beryllium oxide reflecting layer is arranged on the coolant flow channel outer barrel in a sleeving manner, and the heat preservation shielding layer is arranged on the beryllium oxide reflecting layer in a sleeving manner; a plurality of rotating drums are arranged between the beryllium oxide reflecting layer and the heat preservation shielding layer in the circumferential direction. The oxide fuel rods and the metal hydride fuel rods are arranged in the reactor core active area at the same time, so that the fast thermal coupling design of a reactor core neutron energy spectrum is realized, and the reactivity control value of the rotating drum is improved.

We provide a mandrel-wound, splined, monolithic fuel assembly core. [Solution] The fuel assembly core comprises a channel, a fuel monolith containing fissile fuel components and axially arranged, an exhaust support plate, an exhaust shield assembly, and an insulating layer. The fuel monolith has an eccentric cylindrical or straight cylindrical shape with a side surface keyway. The channel in the exhaust support plate is oriented so that the propellant gas does not collide with the exhaust shield assembly. The fuel assembly core is manufactured by forming a fuel monolith stack mandrel assembly and mandrel winding an insulating layer onto the outer surface of the tensioned fuel monolith stack mandrel assembly. The fuel assembly core is incorporated into the fuel assembly of a nuclear propulsion fission reactor structure (e.g., a nuclear thermal propulsion engine).

To rationally evaluate subcriticality of a fuel assembly stored in a fuel storage rack.SOLUTION: A subcriticality evaluation method includes the steps of: reading a maximum infinite multiplication factor, the maximum value of infinite multiplication factors throughout an entire combustion period in each of a plurality of sections consisting of an uppermost section, a lowermost section, and at least one section therebetween divided in a longitudinal direction in a basic fuel assembly; setting a reference infinite multiplication factor enveloping the maximum infinite multiplication factor in each section; deriving a model infinite multiplication factor for a model bundle having the plurality of sections by adjusting a nuclear fuel material concentration of the model bundle so that the model infinite multiplication factor in each section is larger than the reference infinite multiplication factor; and deriving an effective multiplication factor, with the model bundle stored in a fuel storage rack.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

A segmented fuel assembly (100) for use in a nuclear reactor is disclosed. The segmented fuel assembly comprises a lower nozzle (110), an upper nozzle (120), a plurality of guide tubes (130) positioned intermediate the lower nozzle and the upper nozzle, and a plurality of fuel segments (150) positioned intermediate the upper nozzle and the lower nozzle. The plurality of guide tubes are arranged in a first array. Each guide tube defines a longitudinal axis. Each fuel segment comprises a body (152) defining a plurality of coolant flow channels (156) and a plurality of guide tube openings (154). The guide tube openings are arranged in a second array corresponding to the first array. The guide tubes are positioned in the guide tube openings.

The reactor core comprises a plurality of core assemblies. The plurality of core assemblies have a cooperative structure formed on one or more load pads that mechanically connects the plurality of core assemblies to each other and restricts the relative motion between the core assemblies in a kinematically determined manner. A shear key on one core assembly is configured to fit into a tab slot on an adjacent core assembly. The motion of one core assembly is transmitted to a second core assembly, and these core assemblies move together.

Optimized Nuclear Fuel Assembly The nuclear fuel assembly comprises grids distributed along nuclear fuel rods (4), the grids including spacer grids (14), at least one reinforcement grid (16), a lower end grid (18) and an upper end grid (20). The spacer grids (14) define, between themselves and with the lower end grid (18) and the upper end grid (20), a plurality of gaps (15). The grids further include one or more intermediate mixing grids (22) and / or a debris grid (24) in which the lower ends of the nuclear fuel rods (24) are engaged. Figure for the abstract: Figure 1

Systems and methods use inserted controllers in assembly openings of nuclear fuel castings. The controllers can be secured entirely within the opening and condition coolant flow to a desired level for the associated assembly. The controllers can be installed or removed at any time through clamps or other securing structures accessible through the top of the opening. This may include during fuel removal or shuffling during a maintenance outage, or at casting construction and installation, or at decommissioning. Side orifices do not have to be accessed from below the core nor do the castings otherwise require movement or alteration. Any desired flow characteristics may be selected and achieved through use of the configured controllers at specific core locations. Size, shape, and flow surfaces can all be configured to achieve these characteristics where they permit the controller to fit in the casting.

A core component assembly for insertion into a fuel assembly of a nuclear reactor is disclosed. The core component assembly includes a baseplate, a connector, and a crimp nut. The baseplate includes a first side and a second side. An aperture is defined through the baseplate between the first side and the second side. The connector includes a bayonet, a threaded portion disposed beneath the bayonet, an annular shoulder disposed beneath the threaded portion, a gripping area disposed beneath the annular shoulder, and a hole disposed beneath the gripping area. The crimp nut includes a crimp sleeve and a threaded opening and is aligned with the aperture of the baseplate and welded to the first side of the baseplate. The threaded portion of the connector is threaded into the threaded opening of the crimp nut to attach the connector to the baseplate and position the bayonet within the crimp sleeve.

A nuclear fuel assembly and a method of manufacture thereof are provided. The method comprises depositing a thermally conductive layer onto at least a portion of at least two nuclear fuel layers to create at least two at least partially coated layers. The method comprises stacking the at least two coated layers and bonding the at least two coated layers to form a nuclear fuel assembly.

The invention provides a nuclear fuel grillwork splicing automatic alignment device and a control method, and the method comprises the steps: installing a plurality of first grillwork strips on an adjusting assembly, and enabling the plurality of first grillwork strips to be perpendicular to a first direction; detecting relative positions of the first grillwork strip and the second grillwork strip through a binocular camera and a processor; and then the adjusting assembly is used for driving the multiple first grillwork strips to move in the second direction perpendicular to the first direction, so that the multiple first opening gaps in the multiple first grillwork strips are aligned in the first direction. And finally, the splicing assembly is used for clamping the second grillwork strip to complete splicing. Based on the nuclear fuel grillwork splicing automatic alignment device, whether the first grillwork strips are aligned or not can be automatically detected before splicing; and when alignment is not carried out, automatic adjustment and alignment can be carried out, and finally the splicing process is completed. Therefore, the problem that the grillage strips are difficult to align in the splicing process is solved, the splicing efficiency is improved, and it is guaranteed that damage cannot be caused in the splicing process.

The application provides a fuel rod bundle automatic assembling device, which comprises a truss, a feeding mechanism, a pre-positioning mechanism, an assembling mechanism and a workbench, the pre-positioning mechanism is arranged on the workbench, and a vertical grid plate and a rod box for containing fuel rods are further fixed on the workbench, the rod box, the pre-positioning mechanism and the grid plate are arranged side by side, the feeding mechanism is movably connected to the truss and is used for moving the fuel rods in the rod box to the pre-positioning mechanism, the pre-positioning mechanism is arranged on the workbench and is used for axially and circumferentially positioning the fuel rods, so that the through slot on the end plug of the fuel rod is vertically arranged and corresponds to the insertion part of the grid plate on the workbench, and the assembling mechanism is movably connected to the truss and is used for moving the fuel rods positioned on the pre-positioning mechanism to the grid plate, so that the fuel rods and the grid plate are inserted through the through slot and the insertion part. The application can realize the automation and intelligentization of the rod bundle assembling process, so as to improve the automatic assembling efficiency of the rod bundle.

A filter for separating debris from a cooling liquid in a nuclear plant includes a passage with an inner surface, an inlet end and an outlet end. The passage is configured to permit through-flow of the cooling liquid in a main flow direction from the inlet end to the outlet end for a cooling purpose. The inner surface of the passage includes at least one surface portion facing a sub flow direction of the cooling liquid and includes a surface irregularity configured to catch the debris flowing in the cooling liquid in the sub flow direction during lifting or transportation of the filter after the filter has been used for separating debris from the cooling liquid in the nuclear plant wherein the sub flow direction is the opposite direction to the main flow direction. A fuel assembly for a nuclear plant, comprising a filter is also described.