Digital control and data acquisition for high-value GTA welding
- Los Alamos National Lab., NM (United States)
- Westinghouse Savannah River Co., Aiken, SC (United States)
Electric power for the Cassini space probe wig be provided by radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs) thermally driven by General-Purpose Heat Source (GPHS) modules. Each GPHS module contains four, 150-g, pellets of {sup 238}PuO{sub 2}, and each of the four pellets is encapsulated within a thin-wall iridium-alloy shell. GTA girth welding of these capsules is performed at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) on an automated, digitally-controlled welding system. This paper discusses baseline design considerations for system automation and strategies employed to maximize process yield, improve process consistency, and generate required quality assurance information. Design of the automated girth welding system was driven by a number of factors which militated for precise parametric control and data acquisition. Foremost among these factors was the extraordinary value of the capsule components. In addition, DOE order 5700.6B, which took effect on 23 September 1986, required that all operations adhere to strict levels of process quality assurance. A detailed technical specification for the GPHS welding system was developed on the basis of a joint Lanl/Westinghouse Savannah River Company (WSRC) design effort. After a competitive bidding process, Jetline Engineering, Inc., of Irvine, California, was selected as the system manufacturer. During the period over which four identical welding systems were fabricated, very close liason was maintained between the LANL/WSRC technical representatives and the vendor. The level of rapport was outstanding, and the end result was the 1990 delivery of four systems that met or exceeded all specification requirements.
- Research Organization:
- Los Alamos National Lab., NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-36
- OSTI ID:
- 10102547
- Report Number(s):
- LA-UR-93-3425; CONF-931234-1; ON: DE94000885
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: American Welding Society international conference on modeling and control of joining processes,Orlando, FL (United States),8-10 Dec 1993; Other Information: PBD: [1993]
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
THERMOELECTRIC GENERATORS
WELDING
DATA ACQUISITION
CONTROL SYSTEMS
SPACECRAFT POWER SUPPLIES
IRIDIUM ALLOYS
NESDPS Office of Nuclear Energy Space and Defense Power Systems
300303
360101
MATERIALS, COMPONENTS, AND AUXILIARIES
PREPARATION AND FABRICATION