This Final Technical Report summarizes the studies performed by Air Products and Chanicals, Inc. from March 15, 1963, to May 15, 1964, the duration of USAEC Contract No. AT(30-1)-3129, Energy Depot Cryogenic Fuel Storage and Distribution System: Phase I-Conceptual Design Study. The conceptual design of the syston for distributing liquid hydrogen produced by the Nuclear Powered Energy Depot to fuel users (e.g. vehicles) is presented. Also reported are studies for feasibility danonstratlon of an advanced design concept for lightweight, compact, low heat leak, and rugged 50-gallon liquid hydrogen vessels for the Energy Depot System. 11 # % INC.

For 60 years of its existence, nuclear energy has passed the first stage of its development and has proven that it can become a powerful industry, going beyond the 10% level in the global balance of energy production. Despite this, modern nuclear industry is capable of producing economically acceptable energy only from uranium-235 or plutonium, obtained as a by-product of the use of low enriched uranium for energy production or surplus weapons-grade plutonium. In this case, nuclear energy cannot claim to be a technology that can solve the problems of energy security and sustainable development, since it meets the same economic and ‘geological’ problems as other technologies do, based on the use of exhaustible organic resources. The solution to this problem will require a new generation of reactors to drastically improve fuel-use characteristics. In particular, reactors based on the use of water cooling technology should significantly increase the efficiency of using U-238 in order to reduce the need for natural uranium in a nuclear energy system. To achieve this goal, it will be necessary to transit to a closed nuclear fuel cycle and, therefore, to improve the performance of a light-water reactor system. The paper considers the possibility of using a reactor with a fast-resonance neutron spectrum cooled by supercritical water (SCWR). The SCWR can be effectively used in a closed nuclear fuel cycle, since it makes it possible to use spent fuel and discharge uranium with a small amount of plutonium added. The authors discuss the selected layout of the core with a change in its size as well as the size of the breeding regions (blankets). MOX fuel with an isotopic plutonium content corresponding to that discharged from the VVER-1000 reactor is considered as fuel. For the selected layout, a study was made of the reactor system features. Compared with existing light-water reactors, this reactor type has increased fuel consumption due to its improved efficiency and nuclear fuel breeding rate up to 1 and above.

The work is related to the search for the possibilities of using internal energy resources in transport and technological systems by the example of food packaging lines packed in glass containers. Trends in switching to high-performance lines have led to the need for their equipment with dual-purpose transport systems. Obviously, the first task is to ensure the movement of artificial products in the respective sections between units of technological machines, and the second component of their task - to fulfill the role of storage devices in combination with the need for restructuring mass flows. This combination of tasks has led to the exclusive use of closed circuit circuits with two friction planes in transport systems. Meanwhile, it is known that energy costs in mechanical systems are associated with the need to achieve the specified levels of kinetic energy of the moving masses in order to overcome the forces of harmful and useful resistance. The peculiarity of such transport systems is the constant presence of transients and dynamic components of loads. The study complements the known dynamic manifestations with new ratios of indicators for the possibility of energy recovery. In the transportation systems for glass production of foodstuffs, the driving factors in most cases are represented by friction forces. Simultaneously, the closure of kinematic pairs between the products and the supporting moving planes is due to gravity forces, which, in cases where their velocities do not coincide, leads to the formation of an additional friction plane with a corresponding increase in energy costs and dynamic components of the loads. The uneven velocity of the closed circuit circuits is accompanied by additional relative displacements at certain ratios of kinematic and geometric parameters. An appropriate set of parameters is achievable by eliminating these additional displacements of the product arrays relative to the reference planes and limiting energy costs. The use of rigid kinematic bonds in parallel systems allows for changes in velocities in counter-phases and provides energy recovery. With stabilized kinematic parameters, compared to single-stream systems, higher loads of drive motors with improved performance are achieved.

No abstract

Nowadays nuclear energy operates in an open fuel cycle. One of the most important directions in the development of nuclear energy is the closure of the nuclear fuel cycle. The solution to this problem is possible with the use of fast neutron reactors. To achieve this goal, the possibility of using a reactor with a fast-resonance neutron spectrum cooled by supercritical water (SCWR) was considered. The SCWR reactor can be effectively used in a closed nuclear fuel cycle, since it makes it possible to use spent fuel and dump uranium with a small amount of plutonium added. The layout options of the core with a change in the size of the core and reproduction zones are considered. The possibility of placing reproduction zones from various materials inside the active zone was evaluated. Based on the studies, an acceptable version of the core is selected in terms of system characteristics. For the considered arrangement of the reactor core, the possibility of shorting the uranium-plutonium and uranium-thorium fuel cycles has been investigated. The system characteristics of the reactor installation were studied for the following fuel load options: 1. Loading MOX fuel into the core, depleted uranium in the lateral zone of reproduction. 2. Loading of uranium-thorium fuel into the core and side screens. The results of the assessments of the system characteristics of the reactor are considered in the article.