Technical issues surrounding continued supply of the radiosotope thermoelectric generators for NASA programs

Conference · Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 1993 · Transactions of the American Nuclear Society; (United States)

OSTI ID:5744526

Cook, B A ^[1]; Hales, J W ^[2]

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1. Department of Energy, Germantown, MD (United States)
2. Westinghouse Hanford Co., Richland, WA (United States)

The world's first [open quotes]atomic battery[close quotes] was developed in the 1950s under the Atomic Energy Commission's Space Nuclear Auxiliary Power program. A radioisotope thermoelectric generator (RTG) was unveiled for the first time in President Eisenhower's office on January 16, 1959. The new device utilized the natural decay heat of a radioactive isotope, converting the heat directly into electricity via thermoelectrics. The RTGs are compact, long-lived power sources. They have been designed to produce electricity in the 1- to 300-W range and have reliably operated for up to 27 yr, making them ideal for powering satellite electronics, especially for unmanned, deep-space exploration. Proposed generators of greater efficiency that could provide power in the 1- to 10-kW(electric) range would couple a dynamic converter to the isotopic heat source. Both are fueled with [sup 238]Pu, a transuranic isotope with a relatively short half-life of 87.7 yr. Plutonium-238 also has a very high decay heat (0.567 W/g), which enhances thermoelectric conversion. Historically, the US Department of Energy (DOE) has produced the [sup 238]Pu fuel in conjunction with defense materials production programs, minimizing unit costs. However, current changes in US defense requirements will phase out or eliminate the operation of facilities that have traditionally produced the [sup 238]Pu fuel for RTGS. The DOE is evaluating several options for future [sup 238]Pu supply, including continued domestic production, as well as the purchase of foreign fuel to meet the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) mission requirements at the most economical cost.

• OSTI ID: 5744526
• Report Number(s): CONF-930601-; CODEN: TANSAO
• Journal Information: Transactions of the American Nuclear Society; (United States), Vol. 68; Conference: American Nuclear Society (ANS) annual meeting, San Diego, CA (United States), 20-24 Jun 1993; ISSN 0003-018X
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

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TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT
THERMOELECTRIC GENERATORS
FUEL PELLETS
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RADIOISOTOPE BATTERIES
SATELLITES
SPACE PROPULSION REACTORS
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US DOE
ACTINIDE ISOTOPES
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DIRECT ENERGY CONVERTERS
ELECTRON CAPTURE RADIOISOTOPES
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INTERNAL CONVERSION RADIOISOTOPES
ISOTOPES
MINUTES LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
MOBILE REACTORS
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NUCLEI
PELLETS
PLUTONIUM ISOTOPES
POWER REACTORS
PROPULSION REACTORS
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NESDPS Office of Nuclear Energy Space and Defense Power Systems
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