Patent Number: 043326390
Section: abstract

A failed element detection and location system for use in a nuclear reactor, for example, a liquid metal fast breeder reactor (LMFBR), which utilizes a large number of fuel pins in an active core and which circulates a continuous stream of liquid metal heat exchanging fluid such as liquid sodium past the pins is disclosed herein. This system first collects a combined sample of the fluid just as the latter passes through at least a selected group of containers, each housing a plurality of the fuel pins. This combined sample is detected for the presence or absence of a predetermined contaminant, specifically neutrons, resulting from the failure (break) in one or more of the fuel pins. In the event that the contaminant is detected in the combined sample, individual samples of fluid are collected, one at a time, as the fluid just passes through the selected group of containers. These individual samples are also detected for the presence or absence of the contaminant, thereby indicating the fuel pin container or containers responsible for the presence of the contaminant.