Prometheus Hot Leg Piping Concept

Journal Article · Tue Jan 30 00:00:00 EST 2007 · AIP Conference Proceedings

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.2437489· OSTI ID:21054553

Gribik, Anastasia M ^[1]; DiLorenzo, Peter A ^[2]

---

1. Bechtel Bettis, Inc., Bettis Atomic Power Laboratory, West Mifflin, PA 15122 (United States)
2. KAPL, Inc., Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory, Schenectady, NY 12301 (United States)

The Naval Reactors Prime Contractor Team (NRPCT) recommended the development of a gas cooled reactor directly coupled to a Brayton energy conversion system as the Space Nuclear Power Plant (SNPP) for NASA's Project Prometheus. The section of piping between the reactor outlet and turbine inlet, designated as the hot leg piping, required unique design features to allow the use of a nickel superalloy rather than a refractory metal as the pressure boundary. The NRPCT evaluated a variety of hot leg piping concepts for performance relative to SNPP system parameters, manufacturability, material considerations, and comparison to past high temperature gas reactor (HTGR) practice. Manufacturability challenges and the impact of pressure drop and turbine entrance temperature reduction on cycle efficiency were discriminators between the piping concepts. This paper summarizes the NRPCT hot leg piping evaluation, presents the concept recommended, and summarizes developmental issues for the recommended concept.

• OSTI ID: 21054553
• Journal Information: AIP Conference Proceedings, Vol. 880, Issue 1; Conference: International forum-STAIF 2007: 11. conference on thermophysics applications in microgravity; 24. symposium on space nuclear power and propulsion; 5. conference on human/robotic technology and the vision for space exploration; 5. symposium on space colonization; 4. symposium on new frontiers and future concepts, Albuquerque, NM (United States), 11-15 Feb 2007; Other Information: DOI: 10.1063/1.2437489; (c) 2007 American Institute of Physics; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0094-243X
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
DESIGN
EFFICIENCY
ENERGY CONVERSION
HEAT ENGINES
HEAT RESISTING ALLOYS
HTGR TYPE REACTORS
NICKEL
NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS
PERFORMANCE
PRESSURE DROP
REACTOR MATERIALS
REFRACTORY METALS
SPACE PROPULSION REACTORS
TURBINES
NESDPS Office of Nuclear Energy Space and Defense Power Systems