US 4,943,683 AGranted

Anomaly diagnosis system for a nuclear reactor core

AssigneePower Reactor and Nuclear Fuel Development Corporation

InventorsKazuhiro Utsunomiya, Nobumi Ooyama, Hideo Sakaba

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Abstract

An anomaly diagnosis system for a nuclear reactor core comprises an anomaly detecting unit incorporated into a fuel assembly of the nuclear reactor core, and a transmitter-receiver provided outside the reactor vessel, which transmits a signal by wireless to the anomaly detecting unit and receives an echo signal generated by the anomaly detecting unit by wireless. When the anomaly detecting unit detects an anomaly in the nuclear reactor core, such as an anomalous temperature rise in the fuel assembly, the mode of the echo signal deviates from a reference signal mode, and then the transmitter-receiver detects the deviation of the mode of the echo signal from the reference signal mode and gives an anomaly detection signal to a plant protection system, and thereby the nuclear reactor can be shut down without delay.

Claims6

Dependent claims

In combination, a nuclear reactor having a reactor core with at least one fuel assembly, and an anomaly diagnosis system, said system comprising:

at least one anomaly detecting means including an oscillating circuit and responsive to a radio wave for generating an echo signal which varies in response to an anomaly in the nuclear reactor core, said anomaly detecting means including sensors for sensing the condition of the nuclear reactor core, said anomaly detecting means being incorporated into said fuel assembly;
and
a transmitter-receiver means for transmitting said radio wave to the anomaly detecting means to make the anomaly detecting means generate the echo signal and for receiving the echo signal generated by the anomaly detecting means, said transmitter-receiver means including means for examining the echo signal, and means for determining that an anomaly has occurred in the nuclear reactor core and for giving an anomaly detection signal to a plant protection system upon the detection of a deviation of the echo signal from a reference signal mode.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.