Light-weight radioisotope heater impact tests
- and others
The light-weight radioisotope heater unit (LWRHU) is a {sup 238}PuO{sub 2}-fueled heat source designed to provide one thermal watt in each of various locations on a spacecraft. Los Alamos National Laboratory designed, fabricated, and safety tested the LWRHU. The heat source consists of a hot-pressed {sup 238}PuO{sub 2} fuel pellet, a Pt-30Rh vented capsule, a pyrolytic graphite insulator, and a fineweave-pierced fabric graphite aeroshell assembly. To compare the performance of the LWRHUs fabricated for the Cassini mission with the performance of those fabricated for the Galileo mission, and to determine a failure threshold, two types of impact tests were conducted. A post-reentry impact test was performed on one of 180 flight-quality units produced for the Cassini mission and a series of sequential impact tests using simulant-fueled LWRHU capsules were conducted respectively. The results showed that deformation and fuel containment of the impacted Cassini LWRHU was similar to that of a previously tested Galileo LWRHU. Both units sustained minimal deformation of the aeroshell and fueled capsule; the fuel was entirely contained by the platinum capsule. Sequential impacting, in both end-on and side-on orientations, resulted in increased damage with each subsequent impact. Sequential impacting of the LWRHU appears to result in slightly greater damage than a single impact at the final impact velocity of 50 m/s.
- Research Organization:
- Los Alamos National Lab., NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-36
- OSTI ID:
- 563820
- Report Number(s):
- LA-UR--97-3390; CONF-980103--; ON: DE98001474
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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