Patent Number: 044951400
Section: description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION The plant 10 shown in FIG. 1 includes a nuclear reactor 11 which serves as a prime energy source to drive the propulsors 13 from power-conversion system 15. This plant 10 may be used to drive the propeller 16 of a ship 18. The nuclear reactor 11 may also be cooled by an emergency cooling system 17 in the event of an emergency. The reactor 11 has a fissile core 19. Typically the reactor 11 may be a 300 megawatt reactor that transfers energy to a working fluid coupled directly to a regenerative Brayton cycle. The coupling is shown in FIG. 1 as an energy conversion loop with the conduits through which the coolant flows in heavy lines. Typically the coolant is helium. It may also be another gas such as argon or hydrogen. In the main power conversion loop 15 the working fluid flows from the hot leg 29 of the reactor through a shutdown valve 31, a gas-generator turbine 33, the power turbine 35 which drives the propulsors 13, a recuperator 37, the primary 38 of a precooler 39, a low-pressure compressor 41, the primary 42 of intercooler 44, a high-pressure compressor 43, the primary 45 of the recuperator 37, a check valve 47, to the cold leg 49 to the reactor 11. The working fluid can also flow in a like parallel power-conversion loop 50 (not shown completely) through shutdown valve 51 and back through check valve 53. The turbine 33 drives the compressors 41 and 43. The heat rejected in the recuperator 37 preheats the compressed working fluid returning to the reactor 11. The precooler 39 is connected to a heat absorber (not shown) through valve 56. The intercooler 44 is connected to a heat absorber (not shown) through valve 48. The power-conversion loop 15 includes a working fluid cleanup system 55. This system 55 includes a molecular sieve 57 and charcoal bed 59 for purifying the coolant. A small portion, typically 3% of the working fluid, is continuously tapped from the conduit section 61 and passed through a heat economizer or heat absorber 63 and through the seive 57 and charcoal bed 59. the power-conversion loop 15 includes a system 65 for varying the power delivered by the plant. This system includes storage containers or bottles 67 and 69 of the working fluid and valves 71, 73, 75, 77, 79. The purified working fluid flows from charcoal bed 59 through the primary 81 of heat absorber 63 to the valves 71, 73, 75. Valve 71 is connected directly to conduit section 83 of the main loop 15. Valves 73 and 75 are connected to the containers 67 and 69. The containers 67 and 69 are connected to conduit section 85 through valves 77 and 79. During steady-state operation valve 71 is open and valves 73, 75, 77 and 79 are closed. The purified gas (working fluid) is fed into the reactor 11 through the main conduit. To reduce power, valve 71 is closed, valves 77 and 79 remain closed, and either valves 73 or 75 are opened. The working fluid, typically at the rate of 3% per second, is fed into either containers 67 or 69. The working fluid in the main loop 15 and the power are reduced. Valve 71 remains closed and valves 73 or 75 remain open until the power is reduced to the desired magnitude. To increase power, valve 71 remains open, valves 73 and 75 are closed and valves 77 or 79 are opened. Additional working fluid, typically at the rate of 3% per second, is then supplied through conduit section 85. Valves 77 or 79 are closed when the power reaches the desired magnitude. The emergency cooling system 17 is connected in the upstream side of valve 31. It includes a turbine 91, a compressor 93 and a cooling heat exchanger 95. A pump 97 driven by the turbine 91 drives a cooling fluid, typically water, through the heat exchanger. The turbine 91 also drives the compressor 93. The emergency cooling system is automatically set into operation responsive to the needs of the nuclear reactor 11 and continues to circulate working fluid through the reactor. If a break occurs in the main conduit loop, the emergency cooling system is enabled. Under these conditions working fluid will only flow out of the power conversion system until the containment pressure equals the pressure in the power conversion system where the break exists. Working fluid now flows through turbine 91, the primary 105 of heat exchanger 95, compressor 93, check valve 107, conduit 133, reactor core 19, cold leg 29 to turbine 91. Turbine 91 drives compressor 93 and provides a flow of working fluid through reactor 11. The core 19 (FIG. 2) is typically formed of hexagonal graphite fuel elements 111 with corresponding sides abutting to form a generally cylindrical structure. The fuel is in the form of beads as shown in FIG. 4 of Jones U.S. Pat. No. 4,021,298. The beads have a kernel of highly enriched uranium 235 or in any other fissile isotopes. Typically, the enrichment is up to 93%. The beads are embedded in the elements 111. Usually the elements are extruded from a mass containing the beads. Typically the distance between opposite flat surfaces 113 and 115 of an element is 3/4 inch and the length of an element is 45 inches. The elements 111 have perforations 117 through which the coolant flows. For permanently deactivating the reactor 11, the apparatus includes a container 121 (FIG. 1) containing a boron compound under pressure. Alternatively there may also be a container 123 containing a reacting agent under pressure in addition to container 121. Each container 121 and 123 is connected through valves 125 and 127 respectively and through the cold leg 49 directly to the reactor 11 through its pressure vessel 129. The containers 121 and 123 may also be connected through valves 125 and 127 to the conduit 133 downstream from check valve 107 as shown in broken lines. The valves 125 and 127 are normally closed. On the occurrence of an emergency they are opened by a control 131. The boron container 121 contains a boron compound such as triethylboron or an aminoborane, and these compounds may be directly injected into the reactor. Alternatively, container 121 may contain diborane. In this case container 123 includes a reacting agent such as acetylene, an alkyl hydrocarbon or ammonia. When the substances from containers 121 and 123 are injected into the working fluid, they react in the heat of the fluid producing the alkyboranes, alkydiboranes, carboranes, or boron nitrogen oligomers. These resulting compounds are carried through the perforations 117 in the fuel elements 111. They dissociate on the heat of the core producing predominantly boron, boron carbide or a boron-carbon polymer and, in the case of the boron nitrogen oligomers boron nitride or a boron-nitrogen polymer which adhere to the walls of the perforations. The boron is usually enriched in boron 10 so that the reactor 11 is deactivated. If a boron-carbon or boron-nitrogen compound or a metal borohydride serve as deactivating compounds, no reacting agent is necessary. For example, triethyl boron, aminodiborane or a metal borohydride are held under high pressure in container 121 and injected into the coolant on the occurrence of an emergency. If the compounds are liquids they may be sprayed into the coolant stream from the pressurized container 121. If the compounds are solids, they may be contained in the container 121 as a powder, and blown into the coolant when valve 125 is opened. The compounds, be they solid, liquid or gas, dissociate as they pass through the coolant channels in the structure 111. The resulting metal boride and/or other boron compounds deposit on the walls of the coolant channels. The typical above mentioned 300 MW.sub.t plant consists of the reactor 11 with an open volume of 53 cubic feet, the plug shield and plenum (not shown) with a volume of 99 cubic feet, and the emergency cooling system circulator and heat exchanger with a volume of 20 cubic feet. Helium circulation through the system is at a rate of 11 lb/sec and a single-pass flow-through time, of about 2.5 seconds. A reactive compound introduced into the emergency cooling system 17 makes at least about 8 passes through the core 19 before the influx of water begins. Maximum deposition is required to occur to effectively terminate the nuclear reactions before water influx begins. Calculations based on neutronic considerations indicate that a conservative estimate of 10 Kg of B-10 as boron or as a refractory compound uniformly distributed on the core channel surface area of about 2,625,000 cm.sup.2, in the case of the typical 300 MW.sub.t plant, will poison a water-flooded reactor. This requires the deposition of approximately 0.004 gm B-10/cm.sup.2 or an approximate thickness of 0.6 mil (3.8 mils natural boron carbide). For maximum effectiveness, as much of the B-10 containing compound as possible should be deposited in a single pass through the core. The deposit should be in a form of a film so that it does not block a flow passage. Candidate compounds must be capable of being stored in a container subject to ambient conditions of atmospheric pressures to 300 psi and 140.degree. to 200.degree. F. for long periods of time. Although storage is assumed to be inside the containment vessel, storage outside the containment, may be necessary if long term stability cannot be guaranteed and periodic replacement with fresh compound is required. However, it is desired to keep penetrations of the containment vessel to a minimum and compounds with long-term stability should be chosen. The compound will be injected into the working fluid, under high pressure, in the event of a sinking accident. The most desirable point of injection is directly above the reactor core. The goal is for the compound to dissociate and/or react to give a high yield of a distributed boron-containing deposit in each pass over a surface having both radial and axial temperature gradients. As mentioned, there are at least eight passes before water is introduced into the reactor containment. Flooding of the core must not adversely affect the deposit, and the deposit may be able to remain indefinitely adherent to the substrate and not be adversely affected by the corrosive aqueous environment. The boron, boron carbide, boron nitride and the metal borides meet these conditions. While preferred practices and embodiments of this invention have been disclosed herein, many modifications thereof are feasible. This invention is not to be restricted except insofar as is necessitated by the spirit of the prior art.