Passive cooling to cold shutdown
US10354762B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Oct 26, 2015 |
| Grant date | Jul 16, 2019 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Dec 31, 2037 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY02E30/30
- WIPO fieldEngines, pumps, turbines
- WIPO sectorMechanical engineering
Abstract
A cooling system for a reactor module includes a reactor pressure vessel that houses primary coolant and a steam generator that lowers a temperature of the reactor pressure vessel by transferring heat from the primary coolant to a secondary coolant. The steam generator releases at least a portion of the secondary coolant as steam. Additionally, the cooling system includes a containment vessel that at least partially surrounds the reactor vessel in a containment region. The containment region is dry during normal operation of the reactor module. A controller introduces a source of water into the containment region in response to a non-emergency shut down of the reactor module. The source of water is located external to the containment vessel, and the water is introduced into the containment region after the steam generator has initially lowered the temperature of the reactor pressure vessel in response to releasing the steam.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.