- Email: [email protected]
Compact nuclear core
Nov., i90o. ]
CURRENT TOPICS
Despite the lapping effects of the galvanized sheets and the additional pressence of the angle iron, the joints leaked. The contractor tried making the joints tighter, but they still leaked. It was found that tiny cracks radiating from rivet holes caused the leaks. Reconstruction of the ducts using a heavier gauge metal would have eliminated possibility of the tiny cracks adjoining the rivet holes, but such an operation would have been costly and time consuming. The idea was to fill the leaks--and at the same time prevent possibility of further leaks. After investigating a number of possible solutions, the answer was found in the Sun product, called Hornflex. A tough but flexible sealing compound which must be mixed with a hardener iI1 the manner of epoxy, the Hornflex was applied to both inner and outer sides of the duct along the joints, The compound is described as effecting an almost molecular bond with any material it contacts. Insides of the joints were covered by having a man crawl through the ducts and apply the sealing compound with a spatula. Outsides of the joints were covered last. Corners were sealed with a caulking gun. The same product was used recently - - a f t e r other products had failed--to seal 5-in. expansion joints in the Algiers Lock at the Mississippi ship canal near New Orleans.
Compact Nuclear Core.--An experimental nuclear core designed for use in a compact reactor which woukt generate electricity directly without moving parts has been tested successfully, according to the Atomic Energy Commission. The core is only 7 in. high, 7 in. in diameter, one-fifth of a cubic foot in volume and weighs less than 200 lb.
425
The experimental core was designed and constructed for the Commission's Office for Aircraft Reactors by Atomics International, a division of North American Aviation, Inc., Canoga Park, Calif., as part of a Commission program to develop Systems for Nuclear Auxiliary Power (SNAP) for space vehicles. The experiment is located at a commission facility operated by the company in the Santa Susana Mountains 25 miles north of Los Angeles. Initial nuclear operation (criticality) was achieved on August 2. The purpose of the experiment, which will be continued until November, is to obtain physics data for the development of a complete reactor system. No electricity is being generated. The complete system, including a thermo-electric conversion device, is scheduled to be tested early next year. It has been designated SNAP 10. The fuel and moderator in the experimental device are a homogeneous mixture of uranium 235 and zirconium hydride. The heat conduction and reflector units are made of beryllium. The device is divided into two identical units which were brought together by remote control to achieve a sustained chain reaction. Each half was built up with alternate layers of fuelmoderator disks and circular conduction plates within a reflector. In the complete SNAP 10 system, thermocouples will surround the reactor core. Electricity will be generated by the flow of heat from the actor through the thermocouples. Excess heat, not used in the generation of the electricity, will flow through the thermocouples and then to radiator fins. The fins will radiate the heat to the atmosphere. The system, for which the core is designed, is expected to generate 300 watts of electricity.
CURRENT TOPICS
Despite the lapping effects of the galvanized sheets and the additional pressence of the angle iron, the joints leaked. The contractor tried making the joints tighter, but they still leaked. It was found that tiny cracks radiating from rivet holes caused the leaks. Reconstruction of the ducts using a heavier gauge metal would have eliminated possibility of the tiny cracks adjoining the rivet holes, but such an operation would have been costly and time consuming. The idea was to fill the leaks--and at the same time prevent possibility of further leaks. After investigating a number of possible solutions, the answer was found in the Sun product, called Hornflex. A tough but flexible sealing compound which must be mixed with a hardener iI1 the manner of epoxy, the Hornflex was applied to both inner and outer sides of the duct along the joints, The compound is described as effecting an almost molecular bond with any material it contacts. Insides of the joints were covered by having a man crawl through the ducts and apply the sealing compound with a spatula. Outsides of the joints were covered last. Corners were sealed with a caulking gun. The same product was used recently - - a f t e r other products had failed--to seal 5-in. expansion joints in the Algiers Lock at the Mississippi ship canal near New Orleans.
Compact Nuclear Core.--An experimental nuclear core designed for use in a compact reactor which woukt generate electricity directly without moving parts has been tested successfully, according to the Atomic Energy Commission. The core is only 7 in. high, 7 in. in diameter, one-fifth of a cubic foot in volume and weighs less than 200 lb.
425
The experimental core was designed and constructed for the Commission's Office for Aircraft Reactors by Atomics International, a division of North American Aviation, Inc., Canoga Park, Calif., as part of a Commission program to develop Systems for Nuclear Auxiliary Power (SNAP) for space vehicles. The experiment is located at a commission facility operated by the company in the Santa Susana Mountains 25 miles north of Los Angeles. Initial nuclear operation (criticality) was achieved on August 2. The purpose of the experiment, which will be continued until November, is to obtain physics data for the development of a complete reactor system. No electricity is being generated. The complete system, including a thermo-electric conversion device, is scheduled to be tested early next year. It has been designated SNAP 10. The fuel and moderator in the experimental device are a homogeneous mixture of uranium 235 and zirconium hydride. The heat conduction and reflector units are made of beryllium. The device is divided into two identical units which were brought together by remote control to achieve a sustained chain reaction. Each half was built up with alternate layers of fuelmoderator disks and circular conduction plates within a reflector. In the complete SNAP 10 system, thermocouples will surround the reactor core. Electricity will be generated by the flow of heat from the actor through the thermocouples. Excess heat, not used in the generation of the electricity, will flow through the thermocouples and then to radiator fins. The fins will radiate the heat to the atmosphere. The system, for which the core is designed, is expected to generate 300 watts of electricity.