Nuclear power source using heat pipe to dissipate heat

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention relates to the field of devices for obtaining electric energy from radioactive sources, in particular to a nuclear power source using a heat pipe for heat dissipation. The device comprises a reaction assembly, a power generation assembly and a heat dissipation assembly. The reaction assembly comprises a reactor core and a shielding piece located above the reactor core, the reactor core is used for providing heat, and the shielding piece is used for shielding radiation generated by the reactor core; the power generation assembly is arranged in the reactor core and is used for converting heat provided by the reactor core into electric energy; the heat dissipation assembly is arranged in the reactor core, extends out of the reactor core and is used for discharging waste heat from the reactor core to the outside of the reactor core; wherein the heat dissipation assembly comprises a plurality of heat pipes, and each heat pipe is arranged in the reactor core and extends to the outside of the reactor core; the heat pipe is in heat conduction connection with the reactor core, and waste heat can be absorbed by the heat pipe arranged in the reactor core and discharged to the outside of the reactor core through the heat pipe extending to the outside of the reactor core. The nuclear power supply provided by the embodiment of the invention is beneficial to reducing energy loss and improving the power generation efficiency of the nuclear power supply.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The embodiments of the present application relate to the field of devices for obtaining electrical energy from a radioactive source, and more particularly to a nuclear power source that utilizes a heat pipe for heat dissipation. Background Art

[0002] The statements herein merely provide background information related to the present application and do not necessarily constitute prior art.

[0003] Nuclear power can be used in the aerospace field. Nuclear power generates heat energy through the core of the nuclear reactor and converts the heat energy into electrical energy to provide power for spacecraft, freeing spacecraft from dependence on solar energy.

[0004] In nuclear power sources, thermal energy is converted into electrical energy through thermionic conversion modules, which can utilize the property of metals emitting electrons at high temperatures to directly convert thermal energy into electrical energy. During the operation of nuclear power sources, the waste heat of thermionic conversion modules needs to be discharged to the outside of the nuclear power source. Usually, a cooling circuit containing a cooling medium is used to discharge the waste heat of thermionic conversion modules, but this method of discharging waste heat will reduce the efficiency of converting thermal energy of nuclear power sources into electrical energy. Summary of the invention

[0005] A brief overview of the present application is provided below in order to provide a basic understanding of certain aspects of the present application. It should be understood that this overview is not an exhaustive overview of the present application. It is not intended to identify the key or important parts of the present application, nor is it intended to limit the scope of the present application. Its purpose is merely to present certain concepts in a simplified form as a prelude to a more detailed description discussed later.

[0006] In the related art, a driving component (such as an electromagnetic pump) is used to drive the cooling medium to flow in the cooling pipeline, so as to discharge the waste heat of the thermal ion conversion module to the outside of the nuclear power supply. Since the nuclear power supply needs to operate stably for a long time, high requirements are also placed on the reliability of the driving component. It is difficult to find a driving component that can meet the requirements. In addition, since the driving component consumes electrical power when driving the cooling medium to flow, the overall power generation efficiency of the nuclear power supply is reduced. At the same time, when a leak occurs at any point in the cooling circuit, the entire cooling circuit will fail, which will cause the nuclear power supply to fail.

[0007] In view of at least one aspect of the above technical problems, an embodiment of the present application provides a nuclear power source (hereinafter referred to as a nuclear power source) that uses heat pipes for heat dissipation, which includes a reaction assembly, a power generation assembly, and a heat dissipation assembly. The reaction assembly includes a core and a shielding member arranged above the core, the core is used to provide heat, and the shielding member is used to shield the radiation generated by the core; the power generation assembly is arranged in the core, and is used to convert the heat provided by the core into electrical energy; the heat dissipation assembly is arranged in the core and extends to the outside of the core, and is used to discharge waste heat from the core to the outside of the core; wherein the heat dissipation assembly includes a plurality of heat pipes, each of which is arranged in the core and extends to the outside of the core; the heat pipes are thermally connected to the core, and the waste heat of the core can be absorbed by the heat pipes arranged in the core, and discharged to the outside of the core through the heat pipes extending to the outside of the core.

[0008] The nuclear power supply provided by the embodiments of the present application can absorb the waste heat in the core and discharge it to the outside of the core through heat pipes, so that the waste heat in the core can be discharged without the aid of additional power, which is beneficial to reduce energy loss and improve the power generation efficiency of the nuclear power supply; at the same time, multiple heat pipes ensure that when a single or several heat pipes fail, the remaining heat pipes can continue to absorb the waste heat in the core and discharge it to the outside of the core. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] Other objects and advantages of the present application will become apparent from the following description of the embodiments of the present application with reference to the accompanying drawings, and will help to provide a comprehensive understanding of the present application.

[0010] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of a nuclear power supply using a heat pipe for heat dissipation provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0011] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 A cross-sectional view of a nuclear power source at the core is shown.

[0012] Figure 3 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the power generation component and heat pipe of the nuclear power source provided in the embodiment of the present application after assembly.

[0013] Figure 4 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the assembled heat pipe and fuel element of the nuclear power source provided in the embodiment of the present application.

[0014] Figure 5 yes Figure 4 A cross-sectional view of the structure is shown.

[0015] Figure 6 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the evaporation section of the heat pipe of the nuclear power source provided in the embodiment of the present application after being assembled with multiple power generation elements.

[0016] Description of reference numerals:

[0017] 100. Nuclear power source;

[0018] 10. Reaction assembly; 11. Core; 111. Fuel element; 1111. Fuel; 1112. Cladding; 112. Core container; 113. Reflector; 114. Control drum; 1141. Absorber; 1142. Main body; 115. Filling element; 116. Safety rod channel; 12. Shielding;

[0019] 20, power generation assembly; 21, power generation element; 210, power generation gap; 211, receiving pole; 212, emitter; 22, insulating member; 220, clearance hole;

[0020] 30. Heat dissipation component; 31. Heat pipe; 311. Evaporation section; 3111. Vertical extension section; 3112. Inclined extension section; 3113. First connection section; 3114. Second connection section; 312. Condensation section; 313. Reflux component; 314. Insulation layer; 32. Heat dissipation component.

[0021] It should be noted that the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, but are merely shown in a schematic manner that does not affect the reader's understanding. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0022] Exemplary embodiments of the present application will be described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. For the sake of clarity and conciseness, not all features of the actual implementation are described in the specification. However, it should be understood that many implementation-specific decisions must be made in the process of developing any such actual implementation in order to achieve the developer's specific goals, such as meeting those constraints related to the system and business, and these constraints may vary from implementation to implementation. In addition, it should be understood that although the development work may be very complex and time-consuming, it is only a routine task for those skilled in the art who benefit from the content of this application.

[0023] It is also necessary to explain here that, in order to avoid obscuring the present application due to unnecessary details, only the device structure and / or processing steps closely related to the scheme according to the present application are shown in the accompanying drawings, while other details that are not very relevant to the present application are omitted.

[0024] See also Figure 1 , Figure 2 and Figure 3 An embodiment of the present application provides a nuclear power source 100 that uses a heat pipe 31 for heat dissipation, which may include a reaction component 10, a power generation component 20 and a heat dissipation component 30.

[0025] The reaction assembly 10 includes a core 11 and a shielding member 12 arranged above the core 11, the core 11 is used to provide heat, and the shielding member 12 is used to shield the radiation generated by the core 11; the power generation assembly 20 is arranged in the core 11, and is used to convert the heat provided by the core 11 into electrical energy; the heat dissipation assembly 30 is arranged in the core 11 and extends to the outside of the core 11, and is used to discharge waste heat from the core 11 to the outside of the core 11; wherein the heat dissipation assembly 30 includes a plurality of heat pipes 31, each of which is arranged in the core 11 and extends to the outside of the core 11; the heat pipes 31 are thermally connected to the core 11, and the waste heat of the core 11 can be absorbed by the heat pipes 31 arranged in the core 11, and discharged to the outside of the core 11 through the heat pipes 31 extending to the outside of the core 11.

[0026] The nuclear power supply 100 provided in the embodiment of the present application can absorb the waste heat in the core 11 through the heat pipe 31 and discharge it to the outside of the core 11, so that the waste heat in the core 11 can be discharged without the help of additional power, which is beneficial to reduce energy loss and improve the power generation efficiency of the nuclear power supply 100; at the same time, multiple heat pipes 31 make it possible for the remaining heat pipes 31 to continue to absorb the waste heat in the core 11 and discharge it to the outside of the core 11 when a single or several heat pipes 31 fail.

[0027] See also Figure 4 In some embodiments, each heat pipe 31 may include an evaporation section 311 and a condensation section 312 connected to the evaporation section 311. The evaporation section 311 is inserted into the core 11 through the shielding member 12, and the condensation section 312 is extended to the outside of the core 11 through the shielding member 12. The cooling medium in the evaporation section 311 can absorb waste heat and evaporate in the evaporation section 311. The evaporated cooling medium can enter the condensation section 312. The cooling medium entering the condensation section 312 can exchange heat with the outside of the core 11 and condense to discharge the absorbed waste heat to the outside of the core 11. The condensed cooling medium can return to the evaporation section 311. In such an embodiment, the waste heat of the core 11 can be transmitted through the cooling medium. At the same time, the cooling medium can be recycled in the heat pipe 31 without the need for liquid replenishment, which is conducive to simplifying the operation.

[0028] In some embodiments, the cooling medium in the heat pipe 31 is metallic sodium. In some embodiments, the heat pipe 31 may be made of Mo-13%Re.

[0029] See also Figure 3 In some embodiments, the heat pipe 31 may further include a reflux member 313 disposed on the inner wall of the condensation section 312 of the heat pipe 31, for returning the condensed cooling medium to the evaporation section 311 of the heat pipe 31. In such an embodiment, the reflux member 313 is conducive to increasing the rate at which the condensed cooling medium returns to the evaporation section 311 of the heat pipe 31.

[0030] In some embodiments, the liquid return member can be made of nickel.

[0031] See also Figure 1 and Figure 4 In some embodiments, the heat dissipation assembly 30 may further include a plurality of heat dissipators 32 disposed outside the core 11, each heat dissipator 32 being thermally connected to a condensing section 312 of a heat pipe 31, for improving the heat exchange efficiency between the cooling medium entering the condensing section 312 and the outside of the core 11. In such an embodiment, the heat dissipator 32 can increase the rate at which waste heat of the core 11 is discharged to the outside of the core 11.

[0032] In some embodiments, the heat sink 32 may be a heat sink fin.

[0033] In some embodiments, the power generation assembly 20 may include a plurality of power generation elements 21 disposed in the core 11 for converting heat provided by the core 11 into electrical energy. Figure 5 , each power generation element 21 may include a receiving electrode 211 and an emitting electrode 212. The receiving electrode 211 is sleeved on the radially outer side of the evaporation section 311 of a heat pipe 31, and the emitting electrode 212 is located on the radially outer side of the receiving electrode 211; wherein the receiving electrode 211 and the emitting electrode 212 form a power generation gap 210 for separating the receiving electrode 211 and the emitting electrode 212 to avoid contact between the receiving electrode 211 and the emitting electrode 212; the power generation gap 210 is filled with alkali metal vapor. In such an embodiment, the heat in the core 11 can be used to directly heat the emitter 212, which is beneficial to increase the heating rate of the emitter 212, and further to increase the power generation rate; the receiving electrode 211 and the emitter 212 are separated by the power generation gap 210, which can avoid short circuit of the power generation element 21; at the same time, the alkali metal vapor in the power generation gap 210 is beneficial to improve the power generation efficiency.

[0034] In some embodiments, the alkali metal vapor may be cesium vapor.

[0035] In some embodiments, the temperature of the heated emitter 212 is 1600° C., and the temperature of the receiver 211 is 700° C. In some embodiments, the material of the receiver 211 may be Mo-13%Re, and the material of the emitter 212 may be W-25%Re.

[0036] See also Figure 6In some embodiments, the evaporation section 311 of each heat pipe 31 is provided with a plurality of power generation elements 21, and the receiving electrode 211 of one power generation element 21 is connected to the emitter 212 of the adjacent power generation element 21. In such an embodiment, the plurality of power generation elements 21 provided in the evaporation section 311 of each heat pipe 31 are connected in series, which can increase the output voltage, reduce the loss in the electrical transmission process, and improve the efficiency of converting thermal energy into electrical energy; at the same time, when a single or several power generation elements 21 are short-circuited (i.e., the receiving electrode 211 and the emitter 212 of the power generation element 21 are in contact), it is ensured that there is still electrical energy output, which is conducive to improving the reliability of the nuclear power supply 100.

[0037] See also Figure 3 and Figure 6 In some embodiments, the power generation assembly 20 may further include a plurality of insulating members 22, which are sleeved on the evaporation section 311 of each heat pipe 31, and are used to separate two adjacent power generation elements 21. The insulating member 22 is formed with a clearance hole 220 for allowing the alkali metal vapor to pass through. In such an embodiment, the two adjacent power generation elements 21 are separated by the insulating member 22 to avoid the formation of a connection between the receiving poles 211 of the two adjacent power generation elements 21 (that is, the two adjacent power generation elements 21 are connected in parallel), thereby ensuring that the multiple power generation elements 21 can be connected in series; at the same time, by forming the clearance hole 220 on the insulating member 22, it is ensured that the alkali metal vapor can enter the power generation gap 210.

[0038] In some embodiments, the material of the insulating member 22 may be Al 2 O 3 .

[0039] See also Figure 5 In some embodiments, each heat pipe 31 may further include an insulating layer 314, which is disposed on the outer wall of the evaporation section 311, and is used to separate the receiving electrode 211 from the evaporation section 311 to prevent the receiving electrode 211 from being electrically connected to the evaporation section 311. In such an embodiment, the receiving electrode 211 is separated from the evaporation section 311 by the insulating layer 314, so that the receiving electrodes 211 of multiple power generation elements 21 can be prevented from being electrically connected through the evaporation section 311, thereby ensuring that the multiple power generation elements 21 can be connected in series.

[0040] In some embodiments, the material of the insulating layer 314 may be Al 2 O 3 .

[0041] See also Figure 4In some embodiments, the evaporation section 311 of the heat pipe 31 may include a vertical extension section 3111, an inclined extension section 3112, a first connection section 3113 connecting the vertical extension section 3111 and the inclined extension section 3112, and a second connection section 3114 connecting the inclined extension section 3112 and the condensation section 312. The inclined extension section 3112 is inclined in a direction away from the core 11, the vertical extension section 3111 is inserted into the core 11, the inclined extension section 3112 and the first connection section 3113 are arranged in the shielding member 12, and the second connection section 3114 is arranged outside the shielding member 12. In such an embodiment, by arranging the vertical extension section 3111, the inclined extension section 3112, the first connection section 3113 and the second connection section 3114, the evaporation section 311 of the heat pipe 31 can be bent to pass through the shielding member 12, and the radiation in the core 11 can be prevented from directly passing through the axis of the heat pipe 31 and penetrating the shielding member 12.

[0042] See also Figure 2 In some embodiments, the core 11 may include a plurality of fuel elements 111, a core container 112, a reflective layer 113, and a plurality of control drums 114. The evaporation section 311 of each heat pipe 31 is inserted into the middle of a fuel element 111; the core container 112 is arranged radially outside the plurality of fuel elements 111 to accommodate the plurality of fuel elements 111; the reflective layer 113 is arranged radially outside the core container 112; and the plurality of control drums 114 are arranged in the reflective layer 113; wherein, a multi-layer foil heat insulation material is arranged between the core container 112 and the reflective layer 113.

[0043] The inventors of the present application discovered that a plurality of fuel elements 111 within a core 11 of a nuclear power source 100 in the related art share a set of cooling circuits, and the cooling flow channel within each fuel element 111 is relatively narrow, so that the amount of cooling medium flowing into each fuel element 111 is not uniform; some fuel elements 111 may have excessively high temperatures due to the insufficient amount of cooling medium, resulting in safety problems.

[0044] The nuclear power supply 100 provided in the embodiment of the present application inserts a heat pipe 31 into each fuel element 111, so that the waste heat of each fuel element 111 is absorbed by the corresponding heat pipe 31, which not only avoids the problem of excessive temperature of the fuel element 111, but also helps to ensure the safety of the nuclear power supply 100; it can also simplify the structure of the nuclear power supply 100, which helps to reduce the difficulty and cost of developing the nuclear power supply 100.

[0045] See also Figure 4 and Figure 5In some embodiments, the cross-section of the core container 112 and the fuel element 111 is a hexagonal prism. In some embodiments, 57 fuel elements 111 are arranged in the core container 112. In some embodiments, the fuel element 111 includes a fuel 1111 capable of generating heat and a cladding 1112 arranged radially outside the fuel 1111. The fuel 1111 can be U 0.8 Zr 0.2 C. The cladding 1112 material may be W-25%Re.

[0046] See also Figure 2 In some embodiments, a plurality of filling elements 115 are disposed between the fuel element 111 and the core container 112. In some embodiments, the material of the core container 112 and the filling elements 115 may also be W-25%Re. In some embodiments, the material of the reflective layer 113 may be BeO.

[0047] See also Figure 2 In some embodiments, the core container 112 is formed with a plurality of safety rod channels 116 for inserting a plurality of safety rods. The safety rods are used to ensure that the nuclear power source 100 is still in a subcritical safety state when encountering a launch drop accident. After the nuclear power source 100 is safely launched, the safety rods are taken out of the core container 112. In some embodiments, the number of the safety rod channels 116 may be four.

[0048] In some embodiments, a plurality of control drums 114 having two different outer diameters are disposed in the reflective layer 113. For example, 12 control drums 114 may be disposed in the reflective layer, including 6 control drums 114 having larger outer diameters and 6 control drums 114 having smaller outer diameters.

[0049] join Figure 2 In some embodiments, the control drum 114 includes an absorber 1141 for controlling the reactivity of the fuel element 111 in the core 11 and a main body 1142 for separating the absorber 1141 from the core 11. The start-up and operation of the nuclear power source 100 are controlled by adjusting the position of the absorber 1141 and the core 11. Specifically, when the absorbers 1141 of all the control drums 114 are located close to the core 11, the fuel elements 111 in the core 11 stop generating heat; when the absorbers 1141 of all the control drums 114 are located far from the core 11, the fuel elements 111 in the core 11 reach the maximum heat generation rate; the number of absorbers 1141 located far from the core 11 is different, and the heat generation rate of the fuel elements 111 in the core 11 is different.

[0050] In some embodiments, when the nuclear power source 100 is safely launched and the safety rod is removed, the position of the absorber 1141 of the control drum 114 can be changed under the action of the driving mechanism so that the fuel elements 111 in the core 11 can reach a stable operating state at rated power.

[0051] In some embodiments, the material of the main body 1142 of the control drum 114 may also be BeO, and the material of the absorber 1141 of the control drum 114 may be B4C.

[0052] In some embodiments, the nuclear power source 100 has a thermal power of 300 kWt and an electrical power of 18 kWe.

[0053] Regarding the embodiments of the present application, it should also be noted that, in the absence of conflict, the embodiments of the present application and the features therein can be combined with each other to obtain new embodiments.

[0054] The above are only specific implementation methods of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. The protection scope of the present application shall be based on the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A nuclear power source using a heat pipe for heat dissipation, characterized in that: include: A reaction assembly, the reaction assembly comprising a core and a shielding member disposed above the core, the core being used to provide heat, and the shielding member being used to shield radiation generated by the core; A power generation assembly, disposed in the core, for converting heat provided by the core into electrical energy; a heat dissipation assembly, disposed in the core and extending outside the core, for discharging waste heat from the core to the outside of the core; Wherein, the heat dissipation assembly includes a plurality of heat pipes, each of which is arranged in the core and extends to the outside of the core; The heat pipe is thermally connected to the core, and waste heat of the core can be absorbed by the heat pipe arranged in the core and discharged to the outside of the core through the heat pipe extending to the outside of the core.

2. The nuclear power source according to claim 1, characterized in that: Each of the heat pipes comprises an evaporation section and a condensation section connected to the evaporation section, the evaporation section passes through the shielding member and is inserted into the core, and the condensation section passes through the shielding member and extends to the outside of the core; The cooling medium in the evaporation section can absorb waste heat and evaporate in the evaporation section, and the evaporated cooling medium can enter the condensation section. The cooling medium entering the condensation section can exchange heat with the outside of the core and condense to discharge the absorbed waste heat to the outside of the core. The condensed cooling medium can be returned to the evaporation section.

3. The nuclear power source according to claim 2, characterized in that: The heat pipe also includes: The reflux component is arranged on the inner wall of the condensation section of the heat pipe and is used to make the condensed cooling medium return to the evaporation section of the heat pipe.

4. The nuclear power source according to claim 2, characterized in that: The heat dissipation component also includes: A plurality of heat sinks are arranged outside the core, and each of the heat sinks is thermally connected to the condensing section of a heat pipe to improve the heat exchange efficiency between the cooling medium entering the condensing section and the outside of the core.

5. The nuclear power source according to claim 2, characterized in that: The power generation assembly includes a plurality of power generation elements disposed in the core and used to convert heat provided by the core into electrical energy; Each of the power generating elements comprises: A receiving electrode, sleeved on the radial outer side of the evaporation section of one of the heat pipes; An emitting electrode, located radially outside the receiving electrode; Wherein, the receiving electrode and the emitting electrode form a power generation gap, which is used to separate the receiving electrode from the emitting electrode to avoid contact between the receiving electrode and the emitting electrode; The power generation gap is filled with alkali metal vapor.

6. The nuclear power source according to claim 5, characterized in that: The evaporation section of each heat pipe is sheathed with a plurality of the power generation elements, and the receiving electrode of one power generation element is connected to the emitting electrode of an adjacent power generation element.

7. The nuclear power source according to claim 6, characterized in that: The power generation assembly also includes: A plurality of insulating members are sleeved on the evaporation section of each heat pipe to separate two adjacent power generation elements. The insulating member is formed with a clearance hole for allowing the alkali metal vapor to pass through.

8. The nuclear power source according to claim 5, characterized in that: Each of the heat pipes further comprises: The insulating layer is arranged on the outer wall of the evaporation section, and is used to separate the receiving electrode from the evaporation section to prevent the receiving electrode from being electrically connected to the evaporation section.

9. The nuclear power source according to claim 8, characterized in that: The evaporation section of the heat pipe includes a vertical extension section, an inclined extension section, a first connection section connecting the vertical extension section and the inclined extension section, and a second connection section connecting the inclined extension section and the condensation section, wherein the inclined extension section is inclined in a direction away from the core. The vertical extension section is inserted into the core, the inclined extension section and the first connection section are arranged in the shielding member, and the second connection section is arranged outside the shielding member.

10. The nuclear power source according to claim 8, characterized in that: The core comprises: A plurality of fuel elements, wherein the evaporation section of each of the heat pipes is inserted into the middle of one of the fuel elements; A core container, arranged radially outside the plurality of fuel elements, for accommodating the plurality of fuel elements; A reflective layer, arranged radially outside the core container; A plurality of control drums, arranged in the reflective layer, for controlling the start-up and operation of the nuclear power source; Wherein, a multi-layer foil heat insulation material is arranged between the core container and the reflective layer.

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