Heat exchangers
US5101893A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | May 16, 1990 |
| Grant date | Apr 7, 1992 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | May 16, 2010 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10S165/432
- WIPO fieldThermal processes and apparatus
- WIPO sectorMechanical engineering
Abstract
In a shell and tube boiler for use, in particular, in a liquid-metal-cooled fast-breeder nuclear reactor, the shell is formed as two vertical side-by-side units joined at their upper ends by a chamber. This "folding" of the unit considerably shortens the overall height of the boiler. Each tube is formed in two sections, each comprising a vertical limb with a curved portion at its upper end. The sections are joined by welding together the ends of the curved portions. This reduces the tube lengths which must be manufactured and transported to the site. In use of the boiler, the liquid sodium level in the chamber is maintained below the level of the tube welds. The chamber region above the sodium level may be filled with a blanket gas, such as argon.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.