Containment seal
AssigneeNuScale Power, LLC
InventorDerek NOEL
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A containment seal seals a cable or tube to an opening accessing a containment vessel. The containment seal includes a lower body that attaches over the opening into the containment vessel. The cable or tube is inserted through a hole that extends axially through an upper body of the containment seal. Compression fittings are attached to the top and bottom ends of the upper body sealing the cable inside of the upper body. The cable sealed inside of the upper body in inserted through the lower body and into the opening accessing the containment vessel and a lower portion of the upper body is seated into the opening formed in the lower body. A retaining device compresses the upper body down against the lower body forming a seal between the upper body and lower body.
Claims22
A nuclear reactor containment seal for sealing an opening into a containment vessel, comprising:
- a lower body including an opening attaching over the opening into the containment vessel;
- a nut attached to the lower body;
- and
- an upper body including a hole to receive a cable or tube, the upper body configured to insert at least partially down into the opening in the lower body, the cable or tube configured to extend through the upper body and the lower body into the containment vessel, and the nut configured to hold the upper body down against the upper body to form a sealed connection between the upper body and the lower body.
An apparatus for sealing an access device to an opening into a nuclear containment vessel, comprising:
- a lower assembly configured to attach over the opening into the nuclear containment vessel;
- an upper assembly configured to retain and seal to the access device, wherein the upper assembly is configured to insert down into the lower assembly and the access device is configured to insert through the upper assembly and the lower assembly down into the nuclear containment vessel;
- and
- a retaining device configured to compress the upper assembly down against the lower assembly and seal the access device inside of the opening into the nuclear containment vessel.
A method for sealing a cable to a containment vessel, comprising:
- attaching a lower body of a containment seal around a hole accessing the containment vessel,
- inserting the cable through a hole that extends axially through an upper body of the containment seal;
- attaching compression fittings to top and bottom ends of the upper body sealing the cable inside of the upper body;
- seating a portion of the upper body into an opening in the lower body so the cable sealed inside of the upper body extends into the hole accessing the containment vessel;
- and
- compressing the upper body down against the lower body forming a seal between the upper body and lower body.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.