# US 2017/0287576 A2 · Compressed air, utility-scale, non-polluting energy storage and nuclear reactor emergency cooling system using thermal power plant waste heat > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2017/0287576 A2 - Document ID: US20170287576A2 - Status: Published application - Kind: A2 - Application number: 15/242,350 - Filed: 2016-08-19 - Published: 2017-10-05 - Earliest claimed: 2014-01-22 - Inventors: Willard Harvey Wattenburg - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20170287576A2 ## CPC - G21C 15/182: {comprising powered means, e.g. pumps} - F01D 15/10: Adaptations for driving, or combinations with, electric generators - F01D 25/08: Cooling (of machines or engines in general F01P); Heating; Heat-insulation (of blade-carrying members, of blades F01D5/00) - G21C 15/18: Emergency cooling arrangements; Removing shut-down heat - G21C 15/253: for gases, e.g. blowers - G21D 1/02: Arrangements of auxiliary equipment - G21D 3/04: Safety arrangements (emergency protection of reactor G21C9/00) - F05D 2220/70: in combination with - F05D 2260/213: by the provision of a heat exchanger within the cooling circuit - G21C 15/185: {using energy stored in reactor system} - Y02E 30/00: Energy generation of nuclear origin - Y02E 30/30: Nuclear fission reactors - G21C: NUCLEAR REACTORS (fusion reactors, hybrid fission-fusion reactors G21B; nuclear explosives G21J) - F01D: NON-POSITIVE DISPLACEMENT MACHINES OR ENGINES, e.g. STEAM TURBINES (machines or engines for liquids F03; non-positive displacement pumps F04D) - G21D: NUCLEAR POWER PLANT - F05D: INDEXING SCHEME FOR ASPECTS RELATING TO NON-POSITIVE-DISPLACEMENT MACHINES OR ENGINES, GAS-TURBINES OR JET-PROPULSION PLANTS - Y02E: REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION ## Abstract Modifications to power plants for moderating climate warming and increasing safety combine a large compressed air energy storage (CAES) system with a thermal power plant such that free power plant waste heat replaces natural gas used at existing and planned CAES facilities. The system allows higher percentages of wind and solar energy on existing grids. The compressed air in a companion CAES can cool a nuclear reactor during an emergency. Also an inexpensive, add-on, external, Emergency Core Cooling System (ECCS) can cool a nuclear reactor after shutdown, even when all internal cooling water circulation has been disabled. All embodiments are installed outside the plant where they will not be damaged in the event of a plant accident. Both systems use environmentally friendly compressed air energy storage in new ways, and can be built and installed quickly around the world at existing plants using only proven infrastructure. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A thermal power plant, comprising: a source of a high-pressure heated fluid arranged to drive a primary turbine, a primary turbine for receiving said high-pressure heated fluid for driving a primary electrical generator, a primary electrical generator driven by said high-pressure heated fluid from said primary turbine for producing primary electrical power, said primary turbine having an outlet for conveying exhaust fluid from said primary turbine, a compressed-air tank arranged to hold a quantity of compressed air, a heat exchanger arranged to receive compressed air from said tank and at least some of said exhaust fluid from said turbine for supplying heat from said exhaust fluid to heat said compressed air, a secondary turbine arranged to receive said heated compressed air from said heat exchanger and produce mechanical power from said heated compressed air as it expands in said secondary turbine, and a secondary electrical generator arranged to receive said mechanical power from said secondary turbine and generate secondary electrical power, whereby some of the heat energy in said exhaust fluid is converted into additional mechanical power by said secondary turbine and the amount of cooling water required to cool said exhaust fluid from said primary turbine is reduced. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The thermal power plant of claim 1 wherein said source of said high-pressure heated fluid is a nuclear reactor containing fuel rods arranged to heat a fluid to provide said high-pressure heated fluid and means for selectively conveying said compressed air from said tank to said fuel rods in case said rods become overheated. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The thermal power plant of claim 1 wherein said source of said high-pressure heated fluid is selected from the group consisting of a fossil fuel or nuclear-powered boiler, a geothermal source, a gas turbine, and a container of molten salt or metal heated by solar power. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The thermal power plant of claim 1, further including an air compressor capable of charging said compressed air tank. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The thermal power plant of claim 4 wherein at least one of said compressed air tank and said compressor is located at a facility that is remote from said primary turbine, said primary generator, said secondary turbine, and said secondary generator. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The thermal power plant of claim 1 wherein said heat exchanger has a plurality of sealed enclosures or stages and further including an exhaust fluid conduit for conveying said exhaust fluid through each enclosure or stage and a compressed air conduit for conveying said compressed air through each enclosure or stage such that exhaust fluid fills said enclosures or stages and surrounds said compressed air conduit so that heat from said exhaust fluid is transferred to said compressed air. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The thermal power plant of claim 6 wherein said heat exchanger has an exhaust fluid input for receiving said exhaust fluid from said turbine and an exhaust fluid output for exhausting said exhaust fluid from said heat exchanger, and a compressed air input for receiving said compressed air a compressed air output for allowing said compressed air to exit said heat exchanger. ### Claim 8 A method of increasing the efficiency of a thermal power plant and reducing the amount of water required to cool the exhaust fluid from a turbine in said thermal power plant, comprising: providing a power plant having a source of a high-pressure heated fluid, a primary turbine, and a primary electrical generator, where said high-pressure heated fluid drives said primary turbine to produce primary mechanical power, and said primary turbine drives said primary electrical generator for producing primary electrical power, and where said primary turbine has an outlet for conveying exhaust fluid from said primary turbine, providing a compressed-air tank arranged to hold a quantity of compressed air, providing a heat exchanger arranged to receive compressed air from said tank and at least some of said exhaust fluid from said turbine for supplying heat from said exhaust fluid to said compressed air to provide heated compressed air, providing a secondary turbine arranged to receive said heated compressed air from said heat exchanger and produce secondary mechanical power from said heated compressed air as it expands in said secondary turbine, and providing a secondary electrical generator arranged to receive said mechanical power from said secondary turbine and generate secondary electrical power, whereby some of the heat energy in said exhaust fluid is converted into additional mechanical power by said secondary turbine and the amount of cooling water required to cool said exhaust fluid from said primary turbine is reduced. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, further including providing an air compressor capable of charging said compressed air tank. ### Claim 10 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8 wherein said source of said high-pressure heated fluid is a nuclear reactor containing fuel rods arranged to heat a fluid to provide said high-pressure heated fluid and further including providing means for selectively conveying said compressed air from said tank to said fuel rods in case said rods become overheated. ### Claim 11 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8 wherein said source of said high-pressure heated fluid is selected from the group consisting of a fossil fuel or nuclear-powered boiler, a geothermal source, a gas turbine, and a container of molten salt or metal heated by solar power. ### Claim 12 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8 wherein at least one of said compressed air tank and said compressor is located at a facility that is remote from said primary turbine and said primary generator and said secondary turbine and said secondary generator. ### Claim 13 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8 wherein said heat exchanger has a plurality of sealed enclosures or stages and further including providing an exhaust fluid conduit for conveying said exhaust fluid through each enclosure or stage and a compressed air conduit for conveying said compressed air through each enclosure or stage such that exhaust fluid fills said enclosures or stages and surrounds said compressed air conduit so that heat from said exhaust fluid is transferred to said compressed air. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, further including providing said heat exchanger with (a) an exhaust fluid input for receiving said exhaust fluid from said turbine, (b) an exhaust fluid output for exhausting said exhaust fluid from said heat exchanger, (c) a compressed air input for receiving said compressed air, and (d) a compressed air output for allowing said compressed air to exit said heat exchanger. ### Claim 15 A nuclear thermal power plant, comprising: a nuclear reactor containing fuel rods arranged to heat a fluid to provide a source of a high-pressure heated fluid arranged to drive a primary turbine, a primary turbine for receiving said high-pressure heated fluid for driving a primary electrical generator, a primary electrical generator driven by high-pressure heated fluid from said primary turbine for producing primary electrical power, said primary turbine having an outlet for conveying exhaust fluid from said primary turbine, a compressed-air tank arranged to hold a quantity of compressed air, a heat exchanger arranged to receive compressed air from said tank and at least some of said exhaust fluid from said primary turbine for supplying heat from said exhaust fluid to heat said compressed air, a secondary turbine arranged to receive said heated compressed air from said heat exchanger and produce mechanical power from said heated compressed air as it expands in said secondary turbine, a secondary electrical generator arranged to receive said mechanical power from said secondary turbine and generate secondary electrical power, and means for selectively conveying said compressed air from said compressed-air tank to said fuel rods in case said rods become overheated, whereby additional power is supplied by said secondary generator, the amount of cooling water required to cool said exhaust fluid from said primary turbine is reduced, and said fuel rods can be cooled by a local source if they become overheated. ### Claim 17 (depends on 15) The nuclear thermal power plant of claim 15, further including an air compressor capable of charging said compressed air tank. ### Claim 18 (depends on 15) The nuclear thermal power plant of claim 15 wherein at least one of said compressed air tank and said compressor is located at a facility that is remote from said primary turbine, said primary generator, said secondary turbine, and said secondary generator. ### Claim 19 (depends on 15) The nuclear thermal power plant of claim 15 wherein said heat exchanger has a plurality of sealed enclosures or stages, and further including an exhaust fluid conduit for conveying said exhaust fluid through each enclosure or stage, a compressed air conduit for conveying said compressed air through each enclosure or stage such that exhaust fluid fills said enclosures or stages and surrounds said compressed air conduit so that heat from said exhaust fluid is transferred to said compressed air. ### Claim 20 (depends on 19) The thermal power plant of claim 19 wherein said heat exchanger has an exhaust fluid input for receiving said exhaust fluid from said turbine and an exhaust fluid output for exhausting said exhaust fluid from said heat exchanger, and a compressed air input for receiving said compressed air and a compressed air output for allowing said compressed air to exit said heat exchanger.