DynMo-TE: Dynamic simulation model of space reactor power system with thermoelectric converters

A space reactor power system (SRPS) has been developed for avoidance of single point failures in reactor cooling and energy conversion. The sectored compact reactor (SCoRe) in this system is lithium-cooled and the reactor core is divided into six equal sectors with liquid metal heat pipes dividers. These reactor sectors are neutronically, but not thermal-hydraulically, coupled. Each sector has its own primary and secondary circulating lithium loops, which are thermally coupled both in a SiGe thermoelectric (TE) power conversion assembly (PCA) and a thermoelectric conversion assembly (TAC) that powers the electromagnetic pumps in the primary and secondary loops. Each secondary loop also has a separate, segmented radiator panel that is optimized for low specific mass and low liquid lithium inventory. The primary loops transport the thermal power generated in the reactor to six PCAs that nominally supply a total of 111.5 kW_e to the load at 450 V DC. Each of the 12 primary and secondary loops has its own bellows-type accumulator that is designed to regulate the lithium pressures in the loops. A dynamic simulation model of this thermoelectric SRPS (DynMo-TE) has been developed and used to investigate the transient operation of the system during a startup from a fully-thawed condition at 600 K, to nominal steady-state operation at which the lithium coolant exits the reactor at only 1179 K. Also investigated is the load-following characteristic of the SCoRe-TE SRPS, following a change in the electrical load demand.     

Sectored Compact Space Reactor (SCoRe) concepts with a supplementary lunar regolith reflector

Design concepts of the Sectored Compact Space Reactor for Small power (SCoRe-S) have been developed for the avoidance of single-point failures in reactor cooling and energy conversion and a wide range of thermal powers. These modular, fast neutron spectrum, lithium cooled reactors with 16.0 cm thick BeO radial reflector are designed for at least +$2.00 hot-clean excess reactivity, and with a sufficient reactivity shutdown margin. They employ ¹⁵⁷GdN additives in the UN fuel and a 0.10 mm thick coating of ¹⁵⁷Gd₂O₃ on the outer surface of the reactor vessel to ensure that the bare reactors, when submerged in wet sand and flooded with seawater following a launch abort accident, remain at least ?$1.00 subcritical. In addition to identifying the smallest SCoRe-S concept that satisfies the design reactivity requirements, the benefit of using a lunar regolith as a supplementary reflector to decrease the thickness of the BeO radial reflector and hence, the launch mass of the SCoRe-S concepts for a lunar outpost is investigated. Calculations performed using MCNP5 confirmed that SCoRe-S₇ with a 16 cm thick BeO reflector is the smallest to satisfy the stated reactivity requirements. Results also show that a lunar regolith reflector alone is inadequate for this reactor to achieve a critical state at the beginning of life. However, when the regolith is used in conjunction with a BeO reflector of a reduced thickness, this reactor not only becomes critical, but also satisfies the reactivity design requirements at a significantly reduced launch mass. Using a supplementary reflector of regolith decreases the thickness of the BeO reflector for the SCoRe-S₇ from 16 cm to 8.0 cm, and to 5.7 cm for the SCoRe-S₁₁ of the largest core. The resulting decreases in the launch mass of the SCoRe-S concepts are ～34% or 150–200 kg.     

Performance analyses of VHTR plants with direct and indirect closed Brayton cycles and different working fluids

This paper investigated the performance of Very High Temperature Reactor (VHTR) power plants with helium working fluid and direct and indirect Closed Brayton Cycles (CBCs), and with binary mixture working fluids of He–Xe and He–N₂ (molecular weight of 15 g/mole) and indirect CBCs. Also investigated are the effects of using low- and high-pressure compressors with intercooling, versus a single compressor, using bleed cooling the reactor pressure vessel in direct CBC helium plants, and varying the reactor exit temperature from 700 °C to 950 °C on the plant thermal efficiency, cycle pressure ratio and the size of and number of stages in the turbine and compressor. Analyses are performed for a shaft rotation speed of 3000 rpm, reactor thermal power of 600 MW and a temperature pinch of 50 °C in the intermediate heat exchanger (IHX) for the indirect CBCs.     

Reactivity control options of space nuclear reactors

This paper compares two ex-core control options of the gas-cooled Submersion Subcritical Safe Space (S^4) reactor with a fast neutrons energy spectrum: (a) rotating BeO drums with 120° thin segments of enriched B₄C in the BeO radial reflector; and (b) sliding segments in the BeO radial reflector. Investigated are the effects on the beginning-of-life (BOL) excess reactivity, reactivity depletion rate and operation life, and the spatial neutron flux distributions and fission power profiles in the core. Also investigated is the effect of reducing the thickness of the enriched B₄C segments in the control drums on the BOL excess reactivity, when one or two of the 6 drums are stuck in the shutdown position. Reducing the thickness of the B₄C segments from 0.5 mm to 0.238 mm, with one drums stuck in the shutdown position, increases BOL cold and hot-clean excess reactivity from +$1.71 and +$0.47 to +$2.38 and +$0.89, respectively. These reactivity values are almost identical to those of the reactor with one of the six reflector segments stuck open in the shutdown position. Results also showed that the control options made little difference in the reactor performance. The power peaking in the reactor core with sliding reflector segments is slightly lower and the spatial power profiles are relatively flatter. The operation life of the reactor with a sliding reflector segments control, when operating at a nominal thermal power of 471 kW, is only 22 full power days longer than with rotating drums control.     

Methods for determining operation life and reactivity depletion for space reactors with fast energy spectra

Space reactors with fast neutron energy spectrums are preferred for their compactness and high fission power density, but require a high fissile inventory. The operation life estimates of these reactors are important to mission planning. This paper examines a number of fuel depletion and neutronics code packages for determining the operation lives of two space reactors with hard fast neutron energy spectra. These are: the lithium-cooled, Sectored, Compact Reactor (SCoRe-S₁₁), and the submersion subcritical safe space (S^4) reactor, cooled with a He–Xe binary gas mixture (40 g/mol). This work investigated the code packages of Monteburns 2.0, MCNPX 2.6C and TRITON and validated their prediction with fuel depletion data for a PWR fuel bundle, with satisfactory results. The operation life predictions of the two space reactors using these code packages are compared with those calculated using a simplified method that couples MCNP5 to a burnup analysis model using the Simulink^® platform. This method considers only the 10 most probable low-Z and high-Z elements of the fission yield peaks plus ¹⁴⁹Sm, and neglects the depletion of fission products due to capture and radioactive decay. The simplified method requires significantly shorter running time and its predictions of the operation lives for the two space reactors are within 0.29–12.5% of those obtained using Monteburns 2.0 and MCNPX 2.6C code packages. This method, however, is not recommended for operation life predictions for space or commercial reactors with thermal neutron spectrums.     

A neutronics analysis of long-life, sectored compact reactor concepts for lunar surface power

Neutronics analysis is performed of low temperature (≤900 K) Sectored Compact Reactor (SCoRe-N_x) concepts for operational lives >20 years. They are cooled with circulating liquid Nak-78. The reactor vessel and the UN fuel pins cladding are made of stainless steel. The power systems with the SCoRe-N_x concepts have no moving parts and employ SiGe thermoelectric elements for converting the reactor’s thermal power to electricity at a load voltage >300 VDC. Separate SiGe elements power the electromagnetic pumps that circulate the liquid NaK-78 in the reactor and 6 pairs of primary and secondary loops. Analysis confirmed that the submerged bare reactors in wet sand and flooded with seawater, in the unlikely event of a postulated launch abort accident, are sufficiently subcritical. Results show that the SCoRe-N₅-S concept is capable of operating for 62 full power years at 200 kW_th, while requiring 75% of the control drums to shutdown the reactor at BOL. With only 50% of the control drums required at BOL to shutdown the reactor, its operational life decreases to 39 full power years.     

Molten fuel-coolant interaction during a reactivity initiated accident experiment

The results of a reactivity-initiated accident experiment, designated RIA-ST-4, are discussed and analyzed with regard to molten fuel-coolant interaction (MFCI). In this experiment, extensive amounts of molten UO₂ fuel and zircaloy cladding were produced and fragmented upon mixing with the coolant. Coolant pressurization up to 35 MPa and coolant overheating in excess of 940 K occurred after fuel rod failure. The initial coolant conditions were similar to those in boiling water reactors during a hot startup (that is, coolant pressure of 6.45 MPa, coolant temperature of 538 K, and coolant flow rate of 85 cm³/s). It is concluded that the high coolant pressure recorded in the RIA-ST-4 experiment was caused by an MFCI and was not due to gas release from the test rod at failure, Zr/water reaction, of UO₂ fuel vapor pressure. The high coolant temperature indicated the presence of superheated steam, which may have formed during the expansion of the working fluid back to the initial coolant pressure; yet, the thermal-to-mechanical energy conversion ratio is estimated to be only about 0.3%.     

Performance analysis of coated plutonia particle fuel compact for radioisotope heater units

Coated plutonia particle fuel has been proposed recently for use in radioisotope power systems and radioisotope heater units for a variety of space missions requiring power levels from milliwatts to tens or even hundreds of watts. The ²³⁸PuO₂ fuel kernels are coated with a strong layer of ZrC designed to fully retain the helium gas generated by the radioactive decay of ²³⁸Pu. A recent investigation has concluded that helium retention in large-grain (200 μm) granular and polycrystalline fuel kernels is possible even at high-temperatures (>1700 K). Results of performance analysis showed that this fuel form could increase by 2.3–2.4 times the thermal power output of a light weight radioisotope heater unit. These figures are for a single-size (500 μm) particles compact, assuming 10% and 5% helium gas release respectively, and a fuel temperature of 1723 K, following 10 years of storage. A binary-size (300 and 1200 μm) particles compact increases the thermal power output of the RHU by an additional 15%.     

Numerical investigation of potential elimination of ‘hot streaking’ and stratification in the VHTR lower plenum using helicoid inserts

The helium-cooled, high temperature Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP) and Very High Temperature Reactor (VHTR) with prismatic type cores are being designed to operate at reactor exit temperatures ranging from 873 to 923 K and 1123 to 1223 K, respectively. The helium flow velocity in the coolant channels of the core is ∼70 m/s. The high-temperature helium jets exiting the coolant channels impinge onto the bottom plate in the lower plenum (LP), causing “hot spots” (“hot streaking”) and stratification due to the absence of proper mixing and the obstruction caused by the graphite support columns. In order to minimize or eliminate hot streaking and enhance helium mixing in the LP, this work investigates using static, quadruple helicoid inserts at the exit of the coolant channels. These inserts introduce radial and azimuthal momentum flow components, which result in extensive entrainment and mixing of the surrounding gas in the LP, significantly reducing the impingement onto the bottom plate, thereby minimizing hot streaking and stratification. Results of parametric analyses and a comparison of the flow fields of helium free conventional and swirling jets, and of a convectional jet in cross flow are presented and discussed. The analyses with helium at 1273 K and the dynamic Smagorinsky turbulence model are conducted using Fuego, a 3D, finite element, incompressible, reactive flow, massively parallel code with state-of-the-art turbulence models developed at Sandia National Laboratories. The calculations are benchmarked successfully by comparing the numerical results with experimental data and semi-empirical analytical expressions.     

Preliminary performance results of the Cs-Ba tacitron invertor

Experiments were conducted which demonstrated that an inverter could be configured by connecting two Cs-Ba tacitrons in a push-pull mode with alternating voltage grid control. The inverter characteristics demonstrated in the thyratron mode include discharge current up to 20 A, collector voltage of 30 V, conduction voltage drop less than 2.5 V, and modulation frequencies up to 10 kHz. In the tacitron model, the invertor operated at a discharge current of up to 3.5 A, collector voltage of 25 V, conduction voltage drop of 3-3.5 V, and modulation frequencies up to 20 kHz