Pre Quarterly Progress Report: July-September 1956
- North American Aviation, Inc., Canoga Park, CA (United States). Atomics International Div.
A "Pyroprocessing Refabrication Experiment," to be located in close proximity to the Sodium Reactor Experiment Facility, will be utilized to determine the technical feasibility of remotely pyroprocessing and refabricating metallic uranium fuel materials. Irradiated SRE fuel will be processed to remove fission products, re-enriched, cast into slugs and remotely refabricated for further irradiation in SRE. The PRE Program will consist of: a "cold" mockup phase of operations, in which equipment items will be designed and developed for remote operation and maintenance; a second phase of PRE Facility construction; an in-cell phase of "cold" operations in which the performance of all process, operating and maintenance equipment will be demonstrated in the PRE facility; and a final phase of "hot" in-cell operations, in which the complete process is applied to irradiated SRE fuel and the product returned to SRE for further irradiation. The initial phase of "cold" mockup operations, a three-year period of design procurement, and development efforts, is under way. Major equipment items are being developed and either purchased or fabricated. When operated, modified, and tested, these equipment units will either serve as prototypes of actual process units, or will have been modified to such an extent as to be satisfactory for use in "hot" processing operations. Space for the cold mockup facility has been allocated and plans have been drawn up for modifying the building enclosure to meet the requirements of the mockup unit. Performance and design specifications for various items of operating, maintenance, and processing equipment are being evaluated and several operating equipment units have been ordered. Engineering studies involving inert gas purification, radiation damage, equipment components, and remote operating and maintenance techniques are in progress.
- Research Organization:
- North American Aviation, Inc., Canoga Park, CA (United States). Atomics International Div.
- Sponsoring Organization:
- US Atomic Energy Commission (AEC)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AT(11-1)-GEN-8
- NSA Number:
- NSA-11-003757
- OSTI ID:
- 4334967
- Report Number(s):
- NAA-SR--1796
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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