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AssigneeThe United States of America as represented by the United States Department of Energy
InventorNorman B. Heubeck
Estimating the term…
A nuclear reactor core fuel element is composed of nanophase high temperature materials. An array of the fuel elements in rod form are joined in an open geometry fuel cell that preferably also uses such nanophase materials for the cell structures. The particular high temperature nanophase fuel element material must have the appropriate mechanical characteristics to avoid strain related failure even at high temperatures, in the order of about 3000.degree. F. Preferably, the reactor type is a pressurized or boiling water reactor and the nanophase material is a high temperature ceramic or ceramic composite. Nanophase metals, or nanophase metals with nanophase ceramics in a composite mixture, also have desirable characteristics, although their temperature capability is not as great as with all-ceramic nanophase material. Combinations of conventional or nanophase metals and conventional or nanophase ceramics can be employed as long as there is at least one nanophase material in the composite. The nuclear reactor so constructed has a number of high strength fuel particles, a nanophase structural material for supporting a fuel rod at high temperature, a configuration to allow passive cooling in the event of a primary cooling system failure, an ability to retain a coolable geometry even at high temperatures, an ability to resist generation of hydrogen gas, and a configuration having good nuclear, corrosion, and mechanical characteristics.
In a nuclear reactor core, of the type for use in a nuclear reactor system having a plurality of reactor fuel cells in a reactor vessel containing a coolant fluid for flow therethrough, said reactor fuel cells each comprising a plurality of elongated fuel rods supported in said fuel cell in a mutually spaced apart array and oriented with the longitudinal axes of said fuel rods generally parallel to one another for circulation of said coolant fluid around and about said rods in said fuel cells, and nuclear fuel comprising nuclear fuel material, such as uranium, contained within each of said fuel rods;
A nuclear fuel cell for use in a nuclear reactor core in a nuclear reactor system of the type having an interior reactor chamber adapted to contain a coolant fluid for flow therethrough, said cell comprising cell walls made of nanophase material and a plurality of fuel rods within said cell walls in a mutually spaced apart array and oriented with the longitudinal axes of said fuel rods generally parallel to one another for circulation of the coolant fluid around and about said rods in said cell;
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.