Control rod driveline and grapple

Patent · Thu Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1987

OSTI ID:866448

Germer, John H ^[1]

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1. San Jose, CA

A control rod driveline and grapple is disclosed for placement between a control rod drive and a nuclear reactor control rod containing poison for parasitic neutron absorption required for reactor shutdown. The control rod is provided with an enlarged cylindrical handle which terminates in an upwardly extending rod to provide a grapple point for the driveline. The grapple mechanism includes a tension rod which receives the upwardly extending handle and is provided with a lower annular flange. A plurality of preferably six grapple segments surround and grip the control rod handle. Each grapple rod segment grips the flange on the tension rod at an interior upper annular indentation, bears against the enlarged cylindrical handle at an intermediate annulus and captures the upwardly flaring frustum shaped handle at a lower and complementary female segment. The tension rods and grapple segments are surrounded by and encased within a cylinder. The cylinder terminates immediately and outward extending annulus at the lower portion of the grapple segments. Excursion of the tension rod relative to the encasing cylinder causes rod release at the handle by permitting the grapple segments to pivot outwardly and about the annulus on the tension rod so as to open the lower defined frustum shaped annulus and drop the rod. Relative movement between the tension rod and cylinder can occur either due to electromagnetic release of the tension rod within defined limits of travel or differential thermal expansion as between the tension rod and cylinder as where the reactor exceeds design thermal limits.

• Research Organization: GENERAL ELECTRIC CO
• DOE Contract Number: AT03-76SF70030
• Assignee: General Electric Company (San Jose, CA)
• Patent Number(s): US 4713210
• OSTI ID: 866448
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

/376/294/976/
absorption
annular
annulus
bears
captures
causes
complementary
containing
control
control rod
cylinder
cylindrical
defined
design
differential
differential thermal
disclosed
drive
driveline
drop
due
electromagnetic
encased
encasing
enlarged
exceeds
excursion
expansion
extending
extending annulus
female
flange
flaring
frustum
grapple
grip
grips
handle
immediately
indentation
interior
intermediate
limits
mechanism
movement
neutron
neutron absorption
nuclear
nuclear reactor
occur
outward
outwardly
parasitic
permitting
pivot
placement
plurality
poison
portion
preferably
provide
provided
reactor
reactor control
reactor shutdown
receives
relative
relative movement
release
required
rod
rod drive
rod driveline
rod release
rods
segment
segments
segments surround
shaped
shutdown
six
surround
surrounded
tension
terminates
thermal
thermal expansion
travel
upper
upwardly
upwardly extending