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Alkali Metal Thermoelectric Converter operation in a recirculating test cell (RTC) requires a small electromagnetic pump (EM) and a high temperature 13" alumina solid electrolyte (BASE) to metal seal. This paper describes the design of an EM pump and an active metal braze seal as well as initial operation of a cell using these components. The EM pump delivered 0.25 cm3/min against a 28 psia head. A braze seal system was selected after shear strength tests of Ta or Nb brazed to BASE by a variety of fillers including TiCuNi, TiNi, and TiNiCr. The TiCuNi filler was chosen for environment cell testing and showed no failure or observed degradation after short term tests up to 1055K. The EM pump and the Nb/TiCuNi/BASE seal were used in a test that demonstrated all the operational functions of the RTC for the first time a t JPL. An increase in the radiation reduction factor (Z) a t constant input power was observed indicating that the condenser was being wet by sodium resulting in an increased reflectivity.

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