Device for supporting and protecting nuclear boilers
AssigneeAteliers et Chantiers de Bretagne, A C B
InventorRobert Pierart
Life of this patent
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Abstract
This invention relates to a rigid device for supporting a reactor vessel and steam generators associated therewith. The device consists of a metallic structure comprising, on the one hand, a lower portion serving as a support for the vessel and its associated generators through the medium of square journals fitted in fixed ball-joint bearings with a corresponding square bore and on the other hand, an upper portion 6 which comprises on either side two lateral portions surrounding and holding the generators.
Claims14
Apparatus for supporting and protecting a compact nuclear boiler assembly having a vertical axis and constituted by a nuclear reactor vessel having the same vertical axis as that of said assembly and at least two steam generators symmetrically located around said reactor vessel, each steam generator being connected to the reactor vessel by a short pipe connection which attaches said steam generator to the reactor vessel and permits the interchange of primary coolant between the steam generator and the reactor vessel, said supporting apparatus including a metallic structure at least partially surrounding the nuclear boiler assembly and supporting the same through the medium of bearing members and comprising:
- first and second sets of protruding elements cooperating with ball-joint bearings provided in said structure, at least some of said protruding elements of said first set being fixed to said reactor vessel and the other of said protruding elements of said first set being fixed to respective ones of said steam generators, said protruding elements of said first set being substantially located in a common horizontal plane and having axes which substantially intersect said axis of said reactor vessel and wherein each of the protruding elements of said second set is fixed to a respective steam generator at a distance from said horizontal plane to extend along a substantially vertical direction;
- and
- wherein said metallic structure comprises,
- a rigid lower structure in which ball-joint bearings are provided, said protruding elements of said first set being mounted with a sliding fit in said ball-joint bearings so that the lower structure supports and maintains the boiler assembly through the medium of said protruding elements, said protruding elements being polygonal in cross-section and said ball-joint bearings having a corresponding polygonal bore, each bore comprising two plane bearing surfaces symmetrical in relation to a vertical plane, and
- an upper structure forming a cover, rigidly fastened to the lower structure, said upper structure having an outer portion forming walls which enclose the steam generators to ensure mechanical and radiological shielding of said steam generators, said upper structure holding each steam generator at its upper end by a protruding element of the second set.
Apparatus for supporting and protecting a compact nuclear boiler assembly having a vertical axis and constituted by a nuclear reactor vessel having the same vertical axis as that of said assembly and at least two steam generators symmetrically located around said reactor vessel, each steam generator being connected to the reactor vessel by at least one short pipe connection which attaches said steam generator to the reactor vessel and permits the interchange of primary coolant between the steam generator and the reactor vessel, said supporting structure comprising:
- a rigid metallic structure at least partially surrounding the nuclear boiler assembly to ensure its protection;
- and
- supporting devices, each of which comprises,
- a support bearing mounted in the metallic structure and a protruding support element attached to the nuclear boiler assembly and mounted with a sliding fit in said bearing in a manner such that the metallic structure supports the nuclear boiler assembly through the medium of said bearings and protruding support elements;
- said supporting device being characterized in that said support bearings and said protruding support elements each comprise two plane bearing surfaces symmetrical in relation to a vertical plane and diverging upwardly, said bearing surfaces being the upper surfaces of the bearings and the lower surfaces of the protruding support elements, the vertical planes of symmetry of said support elements containing the axis of said assembly;
- the support bearings being ball-joint bearings,
- one of said protruding support elements being attached to each of said steam generators on a side thereof remote from the reactor vessel,
- at least two of the said protruding support elements being attached to the reactor vessel symmetrically with respect to said vertical axis, and
- said protruding support elements attached to the steam generators and reactor vessel being located in substantially the same horizontal plane.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.