HOMOGENEOUS REACTOR PROJECT QUARTERLY PROGRESS REPORT FOR PERIOD ENDING JULY 31, 1953

Technical Report · Tue Oct 20 00:00:00 EST 1953

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/4355109· OSTI ID:4355109

Thompson, W.E. comp.

Progress on the Homogeneous Reactor Project is reported as follows: Part 1. Homogeneous Reactor Experiment. Details of experimental operation of the HRE at high power levels; concentration effect in the core due to gas removal; corrosion estimates from studies of stainless steel test specimens; fuel recovery by flushing piping and storage system with 0.1M H/sub 2/SO/sub 4/ and 5% HNO/sub 3/; pump failure and replacement; estimated effect of stopping the fuelcirculating pump during operation; estimated response of the HRE to reactivity increases at low inltial power; and calculated core pressures for power excursions. Part II. Boiling Reactor Research. Details of experiments to be performed on the Supo Reactor at Los Alamos to investigate kinetic behavior; further studies of nucleating characteristics of fission fragments in superheated and Hsupersaturated solutions of UO/sub 2/SO/sub 4/; power-removal studies in 3- atm. pressure; effect of insertion of a large draft tube in a 6-ft-diam. H/sub 2/ O system through which air was bubbled; and possible core arrangements for boiling homogeneous reactors. Part III. General Homogeneous Reactor Studies. Studies on the flowsheet, equipment, layouts, reactor vessel, heat exchanger, gas separator, catalytic recombiner, and condenser for the Intermediate Scale Homogeneous Reactor; nuclear calculations for oneand two-region U/sup 233/ breeder reactors; summary of pump development and testing; control and instrumentation summary; summary of corrosion of various stainless steels, Ti, Co, Zr, and Ni alloys by oxygenated UO/sub 2/SO/sub 4/ and H/sub 2/O; results of two UO/sub 2/F/sub 2/-stainless steel loop runs; descaling of a stainless steel loop in which UO/sub 2/SO/sub 4/ and UO/sub 2/F/sub 2/ had been circulated; summary of program, methods, and equipment for future in-pile-loop corrosion tests; corrosion behavior of Malcomized and Stellite 21 coatings on stainless steel in oxygenated UO/sub 2/SO/sub 4/ solutions; corrosion behavior of ceramic materials in air-aerated UO/sub 2/SO/sub 4/ solutions; welding of austenitic stainless steels and corrosion of welds by UO/sub 2/SO/sub 4/; corrosion prevention by selective oxidation of stainless steel; impact and fatigue tests on commercial and annealed Ti specimens; phase studies on a Zr-In alloy; Al-Zr alloy phase studies; results of impact tests on irradiated Fe, carbon steel, stainless steel, and Ti; thermal oxidation of SO/sub 2/ by UO/sub 2/SO/sub 4/; exploratory studies on various Th blankets in aqueous solution; stability of and corrosion by irradiated UO/sub 2/SO/sub 4/ and UO/sub 2/F/sub 2/; neutron captur e cross section of Pa/sup 233/ effects of U/sup 234/ U/sup 235/ and U/sup 236/ bui ldup in core of U/sup 233/ breeder reactors; preparation, thermal conductivity, and abrasive properties of Th oxide slurries; preparation of other Th slurry systems; properties of Th-U slurry systems; irradiation effects on Th oxide pellets; preparation and thermal conductivity of Th oxide; stability of Th hydroxide peptized with either Th nitrate or uranyl nitrate; preparation of homogeneous Th- U compounds; circulating loop for Th oxide slurries; circulating loop for UO/sub 3/ slurries; effect of Fe/sup +3/ and Ni/sup ++/ additives on UO/sub 3/ slurries; circulation of other U slurry systems; solubility of CO/sub 2/ in H/sub 2/O as function of temperature and pressure; solubility of CaSO/sub 4/ in UO/sub 2/SO/ sub 4/; results of batchadsorption tests with CaF/sub 2/; and cost estimates for chemical processing of U/sup 233/ breeder reactor blankets and cores. (L.M.T.)

• Research Organization: Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-26
• NSA Number: NSA-12-001097
• OSTI ID: 4355109
• Report Number(s): ORNL-1605
• Resource Relation: Other Information: Decl. Mar. 2, 1957. Orig. Receipt Date: 31-DEC-58
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

PHYSICS
COOLANT LOOPS
CORROSION
EQUATIONS
EXCURSIONS
FAILURES
FLUID FLOW
GASES
HEAT EXCHANGERS
HOMOGENEOUS REACTORS
HRE-1
MAINTENANCE
NEUTRON FLUX
NITRIC ACID
OPERATION
PIPES
POWER PLANTS
PRESSURE
PRESSURE VESSELS
PUMPS
REACTIVITY
REACTOR CORE
REACTORS
REPROCESSING
STAINLESS STEELS
STORAGE
SULFURIC ACID
TRANSIENTS
VARIATIONS