Ceramic heat exchanger

Patent · Wed Dec 31 23:00:00 EST 1997

OSTI ID:871617

LaHaye, Paul G ^[1]; Rahman, Faress H ^[2]; Lebeau, Thomas P. E. ^[2]; Severin, Barbara K ^[3]

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1. Kennebunk, ME
2. Portland, ME
3. Biddeford, ME

A tube containment system. The tube containment system does not significantly reduce heat transfer through the tube wall. The contained tube is internally pressurized, and is formed from a ceramic material having high strength, high thermal conductivity, and good thermal shock resistance. The tube containment system includes at least one ceramic fiber braid material disposed about the internally pressurized tube. The material is disposed about the tube in a predetermined axial spacing arrangement. The ceramic fiber braid is present in an amount sufficient to contain the tube if the tube becomes fractured. The tube containment system can also include a plurality of ceramic ring-shaped structures, in contact with the outer surface of the tube, and positioned between the tube and the ceramic fiber braid material, and/or at least one transducer positioned within tube for reducing the internal volume and, therefore, the energy of any shrapnel resulting from a tube fracture.

• Research Organization: Hague International
• Sponsoring Organization: United States Department of Energy
• DOE Contract Number: FC21-90MC26008; AC21-94MC31327
• Assignee: HPS Merrimac (Portland, ME)
• Patent Number(s): US 5765596
• Application Number: 08/491,038
• OSTI ID: 871617
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

/138/
amount
amount sufficient
arrangement
axial
braid
ceramic
ceramic fiber
ceramic heat
ceramic mater
ceramic material
conductivity
contact
contain
contained
containment
disposed
energy
exchanger
fiber
formed
fracture
fractured
heat
heat exchange
heat exchanger
heat transfer
internal
internal volume
internally
material
material disposed
outer
outer surface
plurality
positioned
predetermined
pressurized
reduce
reduce heat
reducing
resistance
resulting
ring-shaped
shock
shock resistance
shrapnel
significantly
significantly reduce
spacing
strength
structures
sufficient
surface
thermal
thermal conductivity
thermal shock
transducer
transducer positioned
transfer
tube
tube containment
tube wall
volume
wall