Patent Number: 043084605
Section: description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring now to the drawings, there is shown a fuel storage system 50 which includes a circular base plate 55 having opposed upper surface 56 and lower surface 57. A circular groove 58 is in the upper surface 56 spaced inwardly from the edge of the circular plate 55. An O-ring gasket 59 is positioned in the groove 58 and may be made of any suitable material, such as neoprene. Depending from the lower surface 57 of the circular base plate 55 is a pedestal 60 which is cylindrical and has a beveled end 61 and a central aperture 62 extending the length thereof, the pedestal extending perpendicularly from the circular base plate 55. A cotter pin hole 64 extends transversely of the pedestal 60 near the beveled end 61 thereof and is provided with a cotter pin 65. A cover 70 has a cylindrical body portion 71 closed by a flat top portion 72 having a circular aperture 73 therein. The aperture 73 is closed by a filter 75 which may be porous stainless steel having openings about 5 microns in diameter. The cover 70 and more particularly the cylindrical body portion 71 terminates in an annular flange 77 having the same radial dimension as the circular plate 55, the annular flange being dimensioned to overlie the circular plate 55 and more particularly to be in registry with the circular groove 58 and the O-ring gasket 59 positioned therein. The cover 70 further includes a handle 80 pivotally mounted as at 81 to the cover. The cover 70 and the circular plate 55 are maintained in sealed relation by means of a V-clamp 85 which provides quick disconnecting of the cover 70 and the base plate 55 when access to the radioactive material stored in a nuclear material fuel box 115 positioned in the storage area 110 defined by the circular base plate 55 and the cover 70. The beveled end 61 of the pedestal 60 prevents balancing of the storage system 50 on the pedestal 60 which would result in an unstable condition. The beveled end 61 also facilitates introduction of the pedestal onto a stand 90 which includes a flat base plate 91 and perpendicularly upstanding rod 92, the rod being dimensioned to receive the pedestal 60 thereover. The stand 90 is used in the laboratory when the nuclear material present in the fuel box 115 is to be removed for experimental purposes or for inventory. When the system 50 is used for out of the way storage purposes, a wall mount 100 is provided. The wall mount 100 includes two vertically spaced apart collars 101 each attached to an arm 102 connected to a wall 105. Each of the collars 101 has a vertically extending aperture 103 therein aligned and dimensioned to receive the pedestal 60 of the storage system 50 therethrough. In this manner, individual ones of the storage systems 50 may be stored at preselected positions along the wall 105 thereby to prevent accidental assembly of a critical mass. In a constructional example of the present invention, the nuclear fuel box 115 is dimensioned to carry plutonium plates varying in sizes from 2".times.2".times.2" to 2".times.2".times.8" or enriched uranium 235 plates varying in size from 2".times.2".times.2" to 2".times.3". The nuclear fuel box 115 may be made of any suitable shielding material such as lead. The object is to make the fuel storage system 50 as small as possiible for weight purposes to facilitate easy transport by operating personnel. The preferred construction material is, although not necessarily, cast aluminum with the base plate 55 being 3/4 inch thick and 4 15/16 inches in diameter. Similarly, the cover 70 is cast aluminum of about 1/8 inch thickness with the flange 77 being thicker. The cover 70 is about 63/4 inches high and has a diameter of 4 15/16 inch to match that of the base plate 55. The pedestal 60 is about 11/2 inches in diameter and approximately 21/2 inches long. The stand 90 as well as the wall mount 100 must be dimensioned to accommodate the specific fuel storage system 50, and the sizes may vary from the specific example given. Another advantage of the present invention is that when nuclear material is stored in the storage system 50 and mounted on a wall mount 100 it is substantially tornado or earthquake proof, the cotter pin 65 serving to lock the system 50 in place on the wall mount 100. The filter 75 is preferably made of a porous stainless steel metal with the pores being about 5 microns in diameter, thereby allowing gases to escape but preventing radioactive particles from contaminating the atmosphere. In general, only one V-clamp 85 is necessary to maintain the cover 70 in sealed relation with the base plate 55, but more may be used if deemed necessary. The V-clamp 85 is of the type that is maintained in the clamped position by a threaded member (not shown) but various alternatives well known to those skilled in the art may be used. It will be seen that there has been provided a fuel storage system which is light weight and easily accessible. The system is not designed nor is it capable of functioning as a transport container but is specifically designed for use in a laboratory where containment is necessary yet relatively quick and easy access to the nuclear material is required. When mounted on a wall 100, the fuel storage system 50 of the present invention is substantially earthquake and tornado proof and ensures against inadvertent assembly of any critical masses. While there has been illustrated what at present is considered to be the preferred embodiment of the present invention, it will be understood that various modifications and alterations may be made therein without departing from the scope of the present invention, which is intended to be covered in the claims appended thereto.