Cold crucible induction melter having function to detect short circuits of metal sector

Abstract

Induction heating low-temperature melting furnace having a function to detect a short circuit in a metal sector is disclosed. An induction heating low-temperature melting furnace having the function of detecting a short circuit in such a metal sector, In an induction heating low-temperature melting furnace for glass solidification treatment of radioactive waste, It includes a melting furnace body having a lower chamber composed of a plurality of metal sectors and an upper chamber disposed above the lower chamber, a cooling piping section connected to enable the circulation supply of a cooling fluid to the metal sectors of the lower chamber of the melting furnace body, an induction coil section for forming an induction heating atmosphere by a high-frequency current on the lower chamber side of the melting furnace body, and a short-circuit detection section having a detector for detecting partial discharge caused by a short circuit between the metal sectors of the lower chamber of the melting furnace body.

Description

Technology Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an induction heating low-temperature melting furnace having a function of detecting a short circuit in a metal sector. Background Technology

[0002] Generally, low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste generated during the operation of nuclear power plants (e.g., work clothes, work shoes, etc.) is disposed of in a glass-solidified state using a vitrification furnace.

[0003] The glass solidification treatment method enables the reduction of disposal costs due to volume reduction by processing radioactive waste in a glass solidification form, and in particular, has the advantage of fundamentally preventing the leakage of radioactive materials.

[0004] For glass solidification treatment, a cold induction melting furnace (CCIM) is mainly used.

[0005] The induction heating low-temperature melting furnace has a chamber shape in which metal sectors form the inner wall of a cylinder, and an induction coil for generating high-frequency current is arranged on the outside of the chamber, so that glass solidification treatment is possible by induction heating by high-frequency current.

[0006] Since this type of induction heating low-temperature melting furnace melts glass inside the furnace using an induction heating method by high-frequency current, a structure capable of stably maintaining the insulation state between metal sectors is required due to the heating operation structure.

[0007] In particular, non-combustible metallic foreign substances contained in radioactive waste are known to be a major factor causing safety problems (e.g., localized heating) by inducing short circuits between metal sectors.

[0008] Therefore, when glass-solidifying radioactive waste using an induction-heated low-temperature melting furnace, a device structure and working environment capable of actively responding to short-circuit phenomena that may occur due to non-combustible waste, such as metal, are required to ensure operational safety.

[0009] [Prior Art Literature]

[0010] (Patent Document 0001) Registered Patent Publication No. 10-2482851. The problem to be solved

[0011] The present invention has been devised to solve the aforementioned problems, and

[0012] The objective of the present invention is to provide an induction heating low-temperature melting furnace having a function to detect short circuits in metal sectors, which can easily detect short circuits between metal sectors that may occur within the melting furnace when glass solidification treatment of radioactive waste using an induction heating method by high-frequency current. means of solving the problem

[0013] In order to achieve the above-mentioned purpose,

[0014] In an induction heating low-temperature melting furnace for glass solidification treatment of radioactive waste,

[0015] A melting furnace body having a lower chamber composed of a plurality of metal sectors and an upper chamber disposed above the lower chamber;

[0016] A cooling piping section formed to enable the circulation supply of a cooling fluid toward the metal sectors of the lower chamber of the melting furnace body;

[0017] An induction coil section for forming an induction heating atmosphere by high-frequency current on the lower chamber side of the above-mentioned melting furnace body; and

[0018] A short-circuit detection unit equipped with a detector for detecting partial discharge caused by a short circuit between metal sectors of the lower chamber of the melting furnace body;

[0019] An induction heating low-temperature melting furnace having the function of detecting a short circuit in a metal sector including Effects of the invention

[0020] The present invention, as described above, not only enables the glass solidification treatment of radioactive waste using an induction heating method utilizing high-frequency current, but also enables the detection of short-circuit phenomena that may occur between metal sectors on the side of the melting furnace body (lower chamber) during the treatment process, thereby enabling the realization of a working environment that further ensures work safety. Brief explanation of the drawing

[0021] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the overall structure of an induction heating type low-temperature melting furnace having a function to detect a short circuit in a metal sector according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 2 to 5 are drawings for explaining the detailed structure and operation of an induction heating type low-temperature melting furnace having a function of detecting a short circuit in a metal sector according to an embodiment of the present invention. Specific details for implementing the invention

[0022] Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the attached drawings.

[0023] Embodiments of the present invention are described within the scope in which those with average knowledge in the art can practice the present invention.

[0024] Therefore, since the embodiments of the present invention can be modified in various different forms, the claims of the present invention are not limited to the embodiments described below.

[0025] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the overall structure of an induction heating low-temperature melting furnace having a function of detecting a short circuit in a metal sector according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 2 to 5 are diagrams for explaining the detailed structure and operation,

[0026] Referring to FIGS. 1 to 5, an induction heating low-temperature melting furnace having a function to detect a short circuit in a metal sector according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a melting furnace body (10), a cooling pipe section (20), an induction coil section (30), and a short circuit detection section (40).

[0027] The melting furnace body (10) may be formed by having a lower chamber (C1) and an upper chamber (C2) as shown in FIG. 1.

[0028] The lower chamber (C1) can be formed to have a chamber structure in which a plurality of metal sectors (S) are spaced apart to form the periphery of the chamber and a melting space (A) is secured inside, and the lower side of the chamber can be set up so as to be placed on a floor slab (F).

[0029] The metal sectors (S) have a bar shape and a cooling channel (not shown) is formed on the inside, so that a cooling atmosphere can be secured by supplying a cooling fluid in circulation in conjunction with the cooling pipe section (20) described later.

[0030] Although not shown in the drawing, the metal sectors (S) can be formed in a state insulated by conventional methods (e.g., insulating layer, insulator).

[0031] These metal sectors (S) form the periphery of the lower chamber (C1) in a state that secures a melting space (A), and at the same time, can serve to limit the induced current and secure relative permeability of the electromagnetic field in a state that corresponds to the formation of an induction heating atmosphere by the operation of the induction coil section (30) described later.

[0032] The upper chamber (C2) can be positioned on the upper side of the lower chamber (C1) in a state that blocks the upper opening side of the melting space (A) of the lower chamber (C1).

[0033] As shown in FIG. 1, the upper chamber (C2) has an inlet (B) formed therein, and through this inlet (B), radioactive waste (W) for glass solidification treatment can be supplied.

[0034] Also, the upper chamber (C2), although not shown in the drawing, can be formed to allow the discharge of combustion gas generated during glass solidification treatment by an induction heating atmosphere.

[0035] The cooling piping section (20) is formed to have a piping structure capable of supplying a cooling fluid in a manner consistent with the cooling treatment on the lower chamber (C1) side of the melting furnace body (10).

[0036] The cooling piping section (20) may be composed of a main pipe (22) and a branch pipe (24) formed in a state corresponding to the lower chamber (C1) side as in FIG. 1.

[0037] The main pipe (22) can be formed to form a piping line extending along the perimeter of the chamber from the upper outer side of the lower chamber (C1) as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

[0038] Although the main pipe (22) is not shown in the drawing, it can be connected to a separate circulation pump and set up so that the circulation supply of cooling fluid is achieved by the pumping drive of this circulation pump.

[0039] The branch pipe (24) is formed such that it connects the main pipe (22) and the metal sector (S) side of the lower chamber (C2) to each other as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, and can be formed to form a branched piping line that enables the circulation supply of cooling fluid to the metal sector (S) side through the main pipe (22).

[0040] These cooling pipe sections (20) can form a cooling atmosphere on the metal sectors (S) of the lower chamber (C1) by circulating and supplying cooling fluid through the main pipe (22) and branch pipe (24).

[0041] The induction coil section (30) is structured to form a heating atmosphere for glass solidification treatment of radioactive waste (W) on the lower chamber (C1) side of the melting furnace body (10).

[0042] The induction coil section (30) is formed in a state corresponding to the lower chamber (C1) side, and is formed to have a structure for induction heating by high-frequency current.

[0043] The induction coil section (30) can be placed on the bottom slab (F) in a state where it is extended along the perimeter of the chamber to correspond to the melting space (A) side from the lower outer side of the lower chamber (C1) of the melting furnace body (10) as in FIG. 1.

[0044] Although not shown in the drawing, the induction coil section (30) may be structured such that an induction coil (not shown) arranged along the periphery of the lower chamber (C1) receives a high-frequency current from a power supply (not shown), such as a high-frequency generator, to form a melting heating atmosphere on the side of the melting space (A) of the lower chamber (C1) in an induction heating manner.

[0045] The induction coil section (30) can melt the glass supplied to the melting space (A) side of the lower chamber (C1) using an induction heating method to form a molten glass (G) state that corresponds to the glass solidification treatment as shown in Fig. 1.

[0046] Meanwhile, the short-circuit detection unit (40) is structured to detect a short-circuit phenomenon that may occur on the lower chamber (C1) side of the melting furnace body (10) during the operation of the induction coil unit (30).

[0047] This short-circuit phenomenon can mainly occur when some metallic foreign substances (W1) contained in the radioactive waste (W) introduced into the melting space (A) of the lower chamber (C1) during glass solidification treatment come into contact with the metal sectors (S).

[0048] In addition, it is known that short circuits between metal sectors (S) cause abnormal local heating within the molten space (A), leading to serious safety issues such as device failure or fire.

[0049] Accordingly, the short circuit detection unit (40) is formed to detect a short circuit on the lower chamber (C1) side, and to have a structure capable of detecting a short circuit between metal sectors (S) forming the periphery of the chamber.

[0050] In particular, the short circuit detection unit (40) can be formed to detect a short circuit by detecting a partial discharge phenomenon that occurs when there is a short circuit between metal sectors (S) on the lower chamber (C1) side.

[0051] That is, the short-circuit detection unit (40) is formed by having a detector (U) as shown in FIG. 1.

[0052] The detector (U) may be a partial discharge detector, and more preferably, may be selected from a type of detector that can easily detect a discharge (emission) signal (e.g., several Hz to several GHz) occurring when a short circuit occurs between metal sectors (S) of the lower chamber (C1), either wirelessly or wired.

[0053] The detector (U) can be installed in a position such that it is placed on the side of the cooling pipe section (20) formed on the upper side of the lower chamber (C1) of the melting furnace body (10), for example, as in FIG. 1.

[0054] The detector (U) can be installed in the piping line of the main pipe (22) that extends along the upper perimeter of the lower chamber (C1) in the cooling piping section (20).

[0055] The sensor (U) can be structured to be installed in a ring-type manner, wrapping around the circumference of the main pipe (22), and can be installed at one or more points within the piping line of the main pipe (22) as shown in FIG. 2, depending on the required conditions.

[0056] If the detector (U) is installed in this manner, but on the piping line side of the cooling piping section (20), the detector (U) can be protected from the high-temperature heating atmosphere generated on the side of the melting furnace body (10), thereby ensuring installation safety and operational stability.

[0057] The detector (U) is not limited to a structure installed on the cooling pipe section (20) side as described above.

[0058] The detector (U) can be installed on the upper chamber (C2) positioned above the lower chamber (C1) as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, and can be installed at one or more points depending on the required conditions.

[0059] The detector (U) can be structured to be installed as an attached fixed type on the upper surface of the upper chamber (C2), and it is preferable that it be installed in a state where it is shielded, insulated, and thermally insulated by conventional methods.

[0060] Such a short-circuit detection unit (40) can provide a structure that can easily detect short-circuit phenomena between metal sectors (S) that may occur on the lower chamber (C1) side in conjunction with the glass solidification process.

[0061] For example, during glass solidification treatment, as shown in Fig. 5, after radioactive waste (W) is introduced into the molten glass (G) side within the melting space (A) of the lower chamber (C1), a short circuit may occur due to the phenomenon where a metal foreign substance (W1) contained in the waste comes into contact with the metal sector (S) side.

[0062] Then, the short-circuit detection unit (40) can detect a partial discharge (emission) signal caused by a short-circuit phenomenon using a detector (U), and can quickly check whether there is a short circuit between metal sectors (S) through the detection signal from the detector (U).

[0063] In addition, the short-circuit detection unit (40) can be configured to be connected so that a detection signal is transmitted to, for example, a separate control room, and so that when a detection signal is generated, the operation of the related equipment can be controlled through additional monitoring, etc., from the control room.

[0064] Accordingly, the present invention can provide a structure that allows low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste (W) generated during the operation of nuclear power generation to be easily solidified into glass on the side of the melting furnace body (10) by an induction heating method using high-frequency current.

[0065] In particular, the present invention is equipped with a short-circuit detection unit (40) so that a short-circuit phenomenon between metal sectors (S) on the lower chamber (C1) side that may occur due to metal foreign matter (W1) contained in radioactive waste (W) during glass solidification treatment can be easily detected.

[0066] Therefore, the present invention can suppress and prevent safety issues (e.g., localized heating, fire) that may occur due to short circuits between metal sectors (S) on the lower chamber (C1) side during glass solidification processing, thereby enabling the realization of a work environment that is consistent with improved work safety and work efficiency. Explanation of the symbols

[0067] 10: Melting furnace body 20: Cooling piping section 30: Induction coil section 40: Short circuit detection section C1: Lower chamber C2: Upper chamber W: Radioactive waste W1: Metal foreign matter

Claims

Claim 1 An induction heating low-temperature melting furnace for glass solidification treatment of radioactive waste, comprising: a melting furnace body having a lower chamber composed of a plurality of metal sectors and an upper chamber disposed above the lower chamber; a cooling piping section connected to enable the circulation supply of a cooling fluid toward the metal sectors of the lower chamber of the melting furnace body; an induction coil section for forming an induction heating atmosphere by a high-frequency current toward the lower chamber of the melting furnace body; and a short-circuit detection section having a detector for detecting partial discharge caused by a short circuit between the metal sectors of the lower chamber of the melting furnace body; an induction heating low-temperature melting furnace having a function of detecting a short circuit of a metal sector. Claim 2 In claim 1, the induction coil portion has the function of detecting a short circuit in a metal sector formed on the outer side of the periphery of the lower chamber of the melting furnace body, induction heating type low-temperature melting furnace. Claim 3 In claim 1, the detector of the short-circuit detection unit has the function of detecting a short circuit of a metal sector installed at one or more points on the cooling piping side in a state corresponding to the lower chamber side of the melting furnace body. Claim 4 In claim 1, the detector of the short-circuit detection unit has the function of detecting a short circuit of a metal sector installed at one or more points on the upper chamber side in a state corresponding to the lower chamber side of the melting furnace body. Claim 5 In claim 1, the detector of the short-circuit detection unit is an induction heating low-temperature melting furnace having the function of detecting a short circuit in a metal sector using a partial discharge detector capable of detecting partial discharge that may occur during induction heating by high-frequency current.

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