CN115985537A - Modularized nuclear reactor power supply device - Google Patents

Abstract

A modular nuclear reactor power plant includes one or more electrical output subsystem bay sections; the electric power output subsystem cabin comprises a cabin shell, a final heat trap, an electric power adaptation device, a reactor, a helium-xenon thermoelectric conversion circuit and a shadow shielding structure, wherein the reactor, the helium-xenon thermoelectric conversion circuit and the shadow shielding structure are arranged in the cabin shell; a coolant channel is formed in the reactor, helium-xenon mixed gas is introduced into the coolant channel, and the helium-xenon mixed gas circulates in the helium-xenon thermoelectric conversion loop to lead out the heat of the reactor core and generate electric energy; the electric power adapter device converts the electric energy output by the helium xenon thermoelectric conversion circuit into an expected voltage value matched with the load end and then outputs the expected voltage value to the load end; the power adapter is connected with the cabin sections of the power output subsystems, and power output is achieved in a parallel mode. Compare current problem based on chemical energy, solar energy and decay energy are not enough, this application produces heat energy through continuous chain fission reaction and through realizing with thermoelectric conversion return circuit that the electric energy lasts to be supplied with, energy density is high.

Description

Modularized nuclear reactor power supply device

Technical Field

The application relates to the technical field of reactors, in particular to a small-sized fission reactor power supply device for space station power supply, deep space shuttle propulsion of a shuttle or other small planets and star-surface-based support.

Background

Until now, the energy sources for human beings to carry out space activities are mainly chemical energy (combustion of chemical fuel), solar energy and decay energy of radioactive isotopes (such as nuclear batteries). The chemical energy is the energy form that rocket engines mainly rely on, has the advantage of large thrust, and is the preferred energy form that spacecraft breaks through the earth's gravity and enters the space orbit. However, the disadvantage is that the specific impulse is small, a large amount of fuel is consumed to realize the unit propulsion effect, and the fuel utilization efficiency is low. Solar energy does not consume fuel, but is susceptible to shading resulting in discontinuous power supply. The decay energy nuclear battery can stably supply energy, but the power density is low, and the power requirements of large-scale spacecraft propulsion, star catalogue-based support and the like with high energy requirements cannot be met.

The space nuclear power technology based on the fission nuclear reactor is a realistic optional technology for breaking through the capability development limit of the traditional space power technology, and is one of subversive technologies for changing the future space power pattern.

Future exploration and development projects of moon, mars and small planets put higher demands on the propelling capability of a spacecraft and the self-sustaining capability of a task. Spatial tasks of different nature also have different levels of energy requirements. For example, a mars mission requires a 1MWe to 5MWe power rating for load transport between ground fires. If used as a rail space station power supply, a reactor nuclear power supply of 1MWth power class can substantially meet the requirements. If supported as a star-watch basis, a reactor power supply scheme above 1MWe power is required and expanded as mission requirements dictate. Therefore, in order to adapt to the requirement level of space tasks with different properties for energy, a new technical scheme needs to be proposed urgently.

Disclosure of Invention

The application provides a modularization nuclear reactor power supply unit for solve among the prior art based on the not enough problem of chemical energy, solar energy and decay energy space task energy.

In order to achieve the above purpose, the present application provides the following technical solutions:

a modular nuclear reactor power plant includes one or more power output subsystem bays; the electric power output subsystem cabin comprises a cabin shell, a final heat trap arranged outside the cabin shell, an electric power adaptation device arranged at one end of the cabin shell, a reactor arranged in the cabin shell, a helium-xenon thermoelectric conversion circuit and a shadow shielding structure; the shadow shielding structure is used for shielding the radiation of the reactor core of the reactor; a coolant channel is formed in the reactor, helium-xenon mixed gas is introduced into the coolant channel, and the helium-xenon mixed gas circulates in the helium-xenon thermoelectric conversion loop to lead out heat of the reactor core and generate electric energy; the electric power adaptation device is connected with the helium-xenon thermoelectric conversion circuit and used for converting the electric energy output by the helium-xenon thermoelectric conversion circuit into an expected voltage value adapted to a load end and then leading the electric energy out to the load end; the power adapter is connected with a plurality of power output subsystem cabins, and power output is achieved in a parallel mode.

According to the technical scheme, the cabin section shell is an aluminum alloy shell with graphite wrapped on the outer surface, or a titanium alloy shell with graphite wrapped on the outer surface.

Furthermore, two butt joint mechanisms are oppositely arranged on the cabin section shell, and two adjacent cabin sections of the power output subsystems are assembled through the butt joint mechanisms.

Further, the reactor is a fast neutron reactor; the reactor core comprises a central control rod, and an inner fuel assembly, an outer fuel assembly and a reflecting layer which are sequentially surrounded on the periphery of the central control rod; a plurality of control drums are annularly distributed in the reflecting layer; a plurality of coolant channels are formed between the outer fuel assembly and the reflective layer.

Further, the inner layer fuel assembly and the outer layer fuel assembly are respectively a columnar fuel assembly with a hexagonal cross section, and fuel in the columnar fuel assembly is UO ₂ The enrichment degree of U-235 is less than 20w%.

Further, the shadow shielding structure is arranged on the periphery of the reactor.

Furthermore, the shadow shielding structure is a truncated cone-shaped shell structural part; the lateral wall of casing structure includes three-layer radiation shielding layer, and three-layer radiation shielding layer is respectively: a light component shield layer, a heavy component shield layer and a thermal shield layer; the light component shielding layer is used for weakening neutron flux, the recombination component shielding layer is used for weakening gamma radiation, and the heat shielding layer is used for reducing radiant heat.

Furthermore, the light component shielding layer is made of lithium hydride; the heavy component shielding layer is made of tungsten; the heat shield layer is made of boron-containing stainless steel.

Further, the coolant channel is connected with the helium-xenon thermoelectric conversion loop; the helium xenon thermoelectric conversion loop comprises a plurality of gas transmission pipelines, and a compressor, a heat regenerator, a steam turbine and a cooler which are connected through the gas transmission pipelines; the gas output from the coolant channel is compressed and pressurized by the compressor, enters the heat regenerator to be preheated and then enters the reactor core to be heated, the heated gas enters the steam turbine to expand and do work, then enters the heat regenerator to release waste heat, then enters the cooler to be cooled, and finally flows to the compressor to form the circulation of the helium-xenon mixed gas; the waste heat of the cooler is discharged through a radiation radiator.

Further, the radiation radiator comprises a plurality of radiation radiator units, heat pipes and radiation fins are mounted on the radiation radiator units, and heat insulation layers are mounted at the bottoms of the radiation fins; when the flowing helium-xenon mixed gas is taken as a medium to absorb waste heat discharged through the helium-xenon thermoelectric conversion circuit from a heat source and flows through the radiation heat radiator, heat is transferred to the radiation heat radiator, the heat is transferred to the radiation fins through the heat pipe, the heat insulation layer shields the radiation of the heat to the spacecraft, and the heat is discharged to the space through radiation.

Further, the electric power adaptation device is a voltage conversion device, is connected with a plurality of electric power output subsystem cabins, is connected with the plurality of electric power output subsystem cabins in parallel, and outputs the power of the electric energy generated by the plurality of electric power output subsystem cabins in a parallel mode.

Further, the electric power output subsystem cabin segment outputs electric energy to a load end through the electric power adapting device; the load end is an electricity utilization unit which comprises a payload cabin section and an electric propulsion device.

Furthermore, a connecting mechanism is arranged on the power adapter and is in adaptive connection with the load end.

Further, the electric propulsion device comprises a number of electric propulsion subsystems, and a number of the electric power output subsystem compartments power the electric propulsion subsystems through electric adaptation devices thereon.

Further, when the modular nuclear reactor power supply apparatus supplies power to the deep space shuttle propulsion, both the payload bay section and the electric propulsion apparatus are disposed behind the shadow shielding structure of the electric power output subsystem bay section; the electric power output subsystem bay section and the electric propulsion device are oppositely disposed at opposite ends of the payload bay section.

Compared with the prior art, the method has the following beneficial effects:

1. the application provides a modularized nuclear reactor power supply device which is composed of a plurality of electric power output subsystem cabins, wherein each electric power output subsystem cabin comprises a cabin shell, a final heat trap arranged outside the cabin shell, an electric power adapting device arranged at one end of the cabin shell, a reactor arranged in the cabin shell, a helium-xenon thermoelectric conversion circuit and a shadow shielding structure; the helium xenon thermoelectric conversion loop can lead out the heat of the reactor core and convert the heat into electric energy to realize the physical conversion process from the nuclear fission reaction heat to the electric energy, the electric energy obtained after the conversion is converted into an expected voltage value adaptive to a load end through an electric power adaptation device, the expected voltage value is led out to the load end, and the electric power adaptation device is connected with a plurality of electric power output subsystem cabin sections to realize the output of power in a parallel connection mode. Therefore, the nuclear reactor power supply device provided by the application realizes the modular arrangement of the cabin sections of the multiple power output subsystems through the power adapter device, selects different power output grades through different tasks, and further selects one or more cabin sections of the power output subsystems to participate in the tasks, so that the overall reliability is higher, and the tolerance to module failure is higher; compared with the problem of insufficient space task energy based on chemical energy, solar energy and decay energy in the prior art, the electric energy supply scheme of the nuclear reactor adopted by the application can generate heat energy through continuous chain fission reaction and realize the supply of electric energy through the thermoelectric conversion circuit coupled with the heat energy generation scheme, so that the electric propulsion device is driven to generate thrust, and the nuclear reactor has the characteristics of high energy density, low fuel consumption, high output power, long service life, high autonomous regulation energy capacity and strong environmental adaptability.

2. The modular nuclear reactor power supply device provided by the application is a small-sized space nuclear power device, has the functions of supplying power for a space station, performing shuttle propulsion to and from deep space of mars or other small planets and supporting a satellite-watch base, is used as a device for converting heat energy generated by a nuclear reactor into electric energy in space tasks, and comprises a plurality of electric power output subsystem cabin sections, wherein each cabin section can be combined to provide different power outputs for different tasks.

3. The modular design of the cabin sections of the plurality of power output subsystems of the modular nuclear reactor power supply device enables the design margin in a power supply design scheme to be loose, and a large redundancy design can be adopted to ensure the safety of the system; moreover, the tolerance of the system on module failure is higher, and the system reliability is high; in addition, the research period is shortened through the modular design, the test cost is low, and the performance of the combined system can be ensured only by carrying out complete research and test on the modules.

4. The shadow shielding structure is arranged in the cabin section structure of the electric power output subsystem cabin section, and can be used for carrying out radiation shielding on all the electric power output subsystem cabin sections, so that the protection position

Each load cabin section at one end of the cabin section of the power output subsystem is not damaged by radiation of a nuclear reactor power supply device 5; the shadow shield structure is located between the reactor body and the power supply and other systems and spacecraft payload,

the radiation dose produced by the nuclear reactor may be attenuated to a level acceptable to the payload or astronaut.

5. Because the power supply device for the nuclear reactor adopts a modular design, each cabin section can be connected with other cabin sections of the power output subsystem in parallel to realize the integral power output of the device. Such an arrangement

The system complexity and the construction cost of the nuclear power conversion facility in a single cabin section can be effectively reduced, the system reliability of the nuclear reactor power supply device which is taken as a whole is improved, and the integral task reliability and the system economy of the deep space shuttle ship are improved. Due to the modular design, the cabin sections can be built and produced in batches, and space on-orbit customized assembly can be carried out according to different task requirements, so that the design cost and the preparation period of space tasks are greatly reduced, and the reliability of a power system is improved.

6. The modularized nuclear reactor power supply device provided by the application can form different power outputs through different numbers of 5 sub-system cabin sections, so that the nuclear reactor power supply device can be provided with different modules according to different task requirements of the spacecraft to provide different powers so as to push the deep space shuttle spacecraft to move forward.

Drawings

In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application, the drawings needed to be used in the embodiments will be briefly described below, and it is obvious that the drawings in the following description are only one embodiment 0 of the present application, and it is obvious for those skilled in the art to obtain other drawings based on these drawings without creative efforts. It should be understood that the specific shapes, configurations and illustrations in the drawings are not to be construed as limiting, in general, the practice of the present application; for example, it is within the ability of those skilled in the art to make routine adjustments or further 5-step optimization for the increase/decrease/attribute division, specific shapes, positional relationships, connection manners, size ratios, and the like of some units (components) based on the technical concepts disclosed in the present application and the exemplary drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a top view of a modular nuclear reactor power plant in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure, illustrating three power output subsystem bays, but may in fact include more;

FIG. 2 is a schematic front view of a modular nuclear reactor power plant in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure, illustrating three power output subsystem bays, but may actually include more power output subsystem bays;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating a top view of a power output subsystem bay of the modular nuclear reactor power plant of an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a top view of a modular nuclear reactor power plant in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure, as compared to FIG. 1, showing a schematic of the connection of the tube sections of a helium xenon thermoelectric conversion circuit to a radiant heat sink;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a spatial heat pipe radiant heat system of a modular nuclear reactor power plant in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating a system schematic of a HEXe thermoelectric conversion circuit of the modular nuclear reactor power plant provided herein in one embodiment;

fig. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating an application principle of the modular nuclear reactor power supply apparatus provided by the present application in a deep space shuttle ship according to an embodiment;

fig. 8 is a schematic diagram illustrating installation positions of a payload bay, an electric propulsion device, a shadow shielding structure, and an electric power output subsystem bay when the modular nuclear reactor power supply apparatus provided by the present application is applied to a deep space shuttle ship for deep space shuttle propulsion in an embodiment.

Description of reference numerals:

1. a power output subsystem bay; 2. a deck section housing; 3. a docking mechanism; 4. a power adaptation device; 5. a connecting mechanism; 6. a reactor; 7. a helium-xenon thermoelectric conversion circuit; 8. a shadow shielding structure; 9. a compressor; 10. a heat regenerator; 11. a steam turbine; 12. a cooler; 13. a generator; 14. a radiation heat sink; 15. a heat pipe; 16. a radiating fin; 17. a heat exchanger; 18. a circulating fluid pump; 19. a payload bay section; 20. an electric propulsion device.

Detailed Description

The present application will be described in further detail below with reference to specific embodiments thereof, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In the description of the present application: "plurality" means two or more unless otherwise specified. The terms "first", "second", "third", and the like in this application are intended to distinguish one referenced item from another without having a special meaning in technical connotation (e.g., should not be construed as emphasizing a degree or order of importance, etc.). The terms "comprising," "including," "having," and the like, are intended to be inclusive and mean "not limited to" (some elements, components, materials, steps, etc.).

In the present application, terms such as "upper", "lower", "left", "right", "middle", and the like are generally used for easy visual understanding with reference to the drawings, and are not intended to absolutely limit the positional relationship in an actual product. Changes in these relative positional relationships are also considered to be within the scope of the present disclosure without departing from the technical concepts disclosed in the present disclosure.

Examples

Aiming at the problem of insufficient space task energy based on chemical energy, solar energy and decay energy, the application provides a modularized nuclear reactor power supply device, namely a small-size space nuclear power device, which has the functions of supplying power for a space station, performing deep space shuttle propulsion for a shuttle or other small planets and supporting a satellite-watch base. The space modularized nuclear reactor power supply device provided by the application is a device for converting heat energy generated by a nuclear reactor into electric energy in space tasks, a single device comprises a plurality of electric power output subsystem cabin sections, and the cabin sections can be combined to provide different power outputs for different tasks.

The nuclear reactor power supply propulsion scheme can generate heat energy through continuous chain fission reaction and supply electric energy through a thermoelectric conversion system coupled with the heat energy, and then drives an electric propulsion device to generate thrust. The technical scheme has the characteristics of high energy density, low fuel consumption, large output power, long service life, high autonomous regulation capability and strong environmental adaptability. Based on the characteristics, the power supply of the space nuclear reactor is the most ideal energy source for deep space exploration, cargo ship propulsion and star-based support of long-period high-power space application.

The following is a detailed description of the structure of the modular nuclear reactor power supply apparatus provided by the present application:

the present application provides a modular nuclear reactor power plant implemented in a modular design, including one or more power output subsystem bay sections 1 (which may be referred to simply as "bay sections"). The inside of the electric power output subsystem cabin section 1 contains a complete physical process of generating electric energy through nuclear energy conversion (chain fission reaction generates heat energy and realizes the supply of the electric energy through a thermoelectric conversion system coupled with the chain fission reaction, namely a helium xenon thermoelectric conversion loop 7 or a nuclear power conversion device), and the electric power output subsystem cabin section can independently output 1MWth thermal power (about 400kWe electric power). The overall output of power is realized in a parallel connection mode in different cabin sections; the nacelle section is electrically connected with the electric propulsion subsystem. Each cabin section is launched and lifted off by a traditional energy (chemical fuel) rocket respectively, and the on-orbit assembly of a functional system is completed on an underground orbit. The megawatt nuclear energy unit cabin can execute deep space transportation tasks, and can also execute tasks such as space station energy supply, star table base support and the like.

Further, referring to fig. 1-3, the power output subsystem bay comprises a bay housing 2, a final heat sink disposed outside the bay housing 2, a power adapter 4 disposed at one end of the bay housing 2, and a reactor 6, a helium-xenon thermoelectric conversion circuit 7, and a shadow shield structure 8 disposed within the bay housing 2. The shadow shielding structure 8 shields the radiation of the core of the reactor 6. A coolant channel is formed in the reactor 6, helium-xenon mixed gas is introduced into the coolant channel, and the helium-xenon mixed gas circulates in the helium-xenon thermoelectric conversion circuit 7 to lead out the heat of the reactor core and generate electric energy. The power adaptation device 4 is connected with the he-xe thermoelectric conversion circuit 7, and is used for converting the electric energy output by the he-xe thermoelectric conversion circuit 7 into a desired voltage value adapted to the load end and then outputting the desired voltage value to the load end. The power adapter 4 is connected with a plurality of power output subsystem cabin sections 1, and power output is realized in a parallel mode. The power adapter 4 is a voltage converter that converts power to a desired value and can appropriately drive an electric load.

In one embodiment, the power adapter 4 may include various units such as a semiconductor unit, a capacitor unit, a thyristor device, and the like. The semiconductor unit and the thyristor include various switching elements, and are capable of converting electric power from, for example, a direct current to an alternating current by controlling the timing of current flow.

In one embodiment, the nuclear reactor power supply apparatus provided herein may be comprised of 1 to 5 power output subsystem bays 1. The nuclear reactor power supply device adopts a modular design, different power output grades are selected through different tasks, one or more cabin sections are selected to participate in the tasks, and each cabin section can realize power output through the nuclear power conversion module. The electrical output is transmitted to the electric propulsion subsystem or other electrical loads through the organic connection between the sections. The organic connection structure between the cabin sections is realized by the electric power adapter devices 4, the electric power adapter devices 4 are connected with the cabin sections 1 of the electric power output subsystems, and the electric power of the cabin sections 1 of the electric power output subsystems is output in parallel.

The nuclear reactor power supply device obtained by adopting the modular design has the following advantages:

1. the design margin is loose: because the radiation dose and the structural quality of the system are low, a large redundancy design can be adopted, and the safety of the system is ensured;

2. the system has high reliability: the high-power output structure realized by parallel combination of a plurality of small propulsion modules has higher tolerance on module failure;

3. the material has lower temperature resistance requirement: because the requirement of the thermal efficiency of a single reactor of the reactor is reduced, the outlet temperature is relatively low, the requirement on the structural material and the element material of the reactor is equivalent to that of the existing engineering system, and a better safety design basis is provided;

4. the research period is short, the test cost is low, and the performance of the combined system can be ensured only by carrying out complete research and test on the modules.

Since the electrical output provided by the present application is transmitted to the electrical propulsion subsystem through the organic connection between the sections, safety-related issues should be considered during the space docking process: firstly, a collision avoidance mode is adopted; the other is a mode of preventing reactor radiation and space particle radiation.

Based on the consideration of safety, the shadow shielding structure is arranged in the cabin section structure of the electric power output subsystem cabin section 1, and the shadow shielding structure can carry out radiation shielding on all the electric power output subsystem cabin sections 1, so that each load cabin section at one end of the electric power output subsystem cabin section 1 is protected from radiation damage of a power supply device of the nuclear reactor 6. The shadow shielding structure 8, which is located between the reactor body and other systems of electrical power and spacecraft payload, attenuates the radiation dose produced by the nuclear reactor to a level acceptable to the payload or astronaut.

In one embodiment, the shadow shielding structure is a truncated cone-shaped shell structural member, the range of the vertex angle of the truncated cone body can be 14-17 degrees, and the angle can be properly adjusted according to actual shielding requirements.

In one embodiment, the outer shell of the shadow shield is a radiation shield, i.e., a multi-layer structure composed of materials with various functions. Shielding materials can be divided into three types: the first is a light component shielding layer for weakening neutron flux; a heavy component shielding layer for weakening gamma radiation; and thirdly, a heat shielding layer for reducing the radiant heat release in the shielding layer. Such thermal shields are used in high radiation field radiation shields for reactors operating in high radiation fields and with high thermal loads.

In the shadow shielding structure provided by the application, the radiation shielding layer is composed of three shielding layers, and the three shielding layers are respectively: the shielding layer comprises a heat shielding layer, a light component shielding layer and a heavy component shielding layer. Wherein: the heat shielding layer is made of boron-containing stainless steel materials and plays a role in shielding heat and neutrons; the light component shielding layer is made of lithium hydride (LiH) for shielding neutrons, and in order to prevent deliquescence and hydrogen leakage of the lithium hydride, the lithium hydride is wrapped in a container made of stainless steel or titanium alloy; the recombination partial shielding layer is made of a tungsten material for shielding gamma rays.

In one embodiment, the three shielding layers that make up the radiation shielding layer may be arranged in the following order: the shielding layer sequentially comprises from near to far: the shielding layer comprises a heat shielding layer, a heavy component shielding layer and a light component shielding layer.

In one embodiment, the plurality of nuclear reactor power output subsystem bays 1 include a plurality of power conversion mechanisms, i.e., he-xe thermoelectric conversion circuits 7, which internally contain a complete physical process of "nuclear power conversion to electrical power". The nuclear reactor 6 as the power source is a fast neutron reactor, and the core of the reactor 6 is composed of a columnar fuel assembly having a hexagonal cross section. Using UO as fuel ₂ In the form, the U-235 enrichment degree is less than 20w%. The periphery of the reactor core is surrounded by a control drum, and the outermost periphery is a radiation shielding layer. The reactor core is cooled by the helium xenon gas, new heat is taken out by the coolant, and electricity is generated through a helium xenon thermoelectric conversion circuit 7 (a regenerative closed Brayton cycle system using a mixed gas of helium gas and xenon as a medium).

In one embodiment, referring to fig. 6, the principle of the regenerative closed brayton cycle system is as follows: after being pressurized in the compressor 9, a medium (working medium) enters the heat regenerator 10 for preheating and then enters the reactor core for heating, the heated working medium enters the gas turbine for expansion to do work, then enters the heat regenerator 10 for releasing waste heat, then enters the cooler 12 for cooling, and finally enters the compressor 9 to complete closed circulation, and the gas turbine 11 and the compressor 9 are respectively connected with the generator 13. The waste heat of the cooler 12 is discharged to the environment via the radiant radiator 14.

The power supply device of the nuclear reactor provided by the application selects the helium-xenon mixed gas as the cooling working medium and has the following two advantages: firstly, the helium-xenon circulating operation temperature can exceed 1300 ℃, so that the overall thermal efficiency of the system can be obviously improved; secondly, the operating pressure of the helium-xenon cycle is about 7 MPa, and belongs to a working medium with lower operating pressure in the existing gas coolant, and the high operating pressure causes thicker equipment wall thickness and heavier system weight on one hand and is easy to leak on the other hand.

Referring to fig. 5, the radiation radiator 14 adopts a heat pipe type space radiation radiator. The heat pipe type space radiation radiator comprises a plurality of heat pipe type radiation radiator units, and the work flow is as follows: the flowing coolant working medium absorbs waste heat after thermoelectric conversion from a heat source, when the coolant working medium flows through the radiation radiator 14, heat is transferred to the radiation radiator 14, the heat pipe 15 is installed on the radiation radiator 14, the heat is transferred to the radiation fin 16 through the heat pipe 15, the bottom of the radiation fin 16 is additionally provided with a heat insulation layer, the heat is shielded from radiating to the spacecraft, and finally the heat is discharged to the space through radiation.

In one embodiment, the top of the radiant heat sink 14 is connected to a heat exchanger 17, the heat exchanger 17 is connected to a circulating fluid pump 18 through a potassium coolant loop, and the other end of the circulating fluid pump 18 is connected to the bottom of the radiant heat sink 14 to form a spatial heat pipe type radiant heat dissipation system.

Further, the electrical output is transmitted to the electric propulsion subsystem or other electrical load through the organic connection between the sections. The electric propulsion (or called electric propulsion) is to heat, dissociate and accelerate a working medium by using electric energy to form high-speed jet flow so as to generate thrust. Electric propulsion has the characteristic of high specific impulse and light weight, and is a hot spot of current satellite application. To date, more than 160 satellites and interplanetary probes have used electric propulsion technology. The different electric propulsion mainly differs in the structure and working principle of the thruster, and can be divided into three types, namely an electric heating type, an electrostatic type and an electromagnetic type according to the mode of heating the working medium. Accordingly, electric rocket engines are classified into three types: electrothermal rocket engines, electrostatic rocket engines, and electromagnetic rocket engines. The electric heating thruster heats and gasifies the working medium by using electric energy, and the working medium is expanded and accelerated by the spray pipe to spray out to generate thrust. Generally, resistance heating, arc heating, and microwave heating can be used. The electrostatic thruster dissociates working medium in electrostatic field by electric energy to form electrons and ions, and accelerates the ions under the action of the electrostatic field to discharge. The electrostatic thruster is also called an ion thruster, and the Hall thruster is two electric propulsion systems of the current hot door. The ionization region and the acceleration region of the ion thruster are separated, and have high specific impulse but complex technology.

In one embodiment, the present application selects the use of an electromagnetic rocket motor. The electromagnetic thruster uses electric energy to make working media (hydrogen, helium, argon, lithium vapor and the like) form plasma, and accelerates the plasma to be sprayed out of the spray pipe under the action of an external electromagnetic field Lorentz force. The Hall propulsion system is one of electromagnetic propulsion systems and one of two types of electric propulsion of the current hot door. The principle of the hall thruster is to confine electrons in a magnetic field, and ionize a propellant by the electrons, accelerate ions to generate thrust, and neutralize the ions in a plume. The ionization region and the acceleration region of the Hall thruster are in the same position, and compared with the ion thruster, the technology is simple and the specific impulse is low.

Compared with a chemical energy propulsion scheme, the modularized nuclear reactor power supply device provided by the application can greatly reduce the self weight of fuel and reduce the consumption of propellant, thereby greatly improving the propulsion power of unit fuel and increasing the propulsion specific impulse by one order of magnitude. Compared with a solar power supply scheme, the nuclear power scheme can effectively avoid energy supply instability caused by shading or solar receiving efficiency change. Compared with a nuclear decay power supply scheme, the nuclear power scheme can obviously improve the output and support a large space task which cannot be performed by a nuclear decay power supply.

Because the power supply device for the nuclear reactor adopts a modular design, each cabin section can be connected with other power output subsystem cabin sections 1 in parallel to realize the power output of the whole device. The design can effectively reduce the system complexity and the construction cost of the nuclear power conversion facility in a single cabin section, improve the system reliability of the nuclear reactor power supply device as a whole, and improve the whole task reliability and the system economy of the deep space shuttle ship. Due to the modular design, the cabin sections can be built and produced in batches, and space on-orbit customized assembly can be carried out according to different task requirements, so that the design cost and the preparation period of space tasks are greatly reduced, and the reliability of a power system is improved.

In one embodiment, the cabin-section shell 2 of the modular nuclear reactor power supply device provided by the application is an aluminum alloy shell with graphite wrapped on the outer surface, or a titanium alloy shell with graphite wrapped on the outer surface; two butt joint mechanisms 3 are oppositely arranged on the cabin section shell 2, and the two adjacent electric power output subsystem cabin sections 1 are assembled through the butt joint mechanisms 3.

In one embodiment, the reactor 6 of the modular nuclear reactor power plant provided herein is a fast neutron reactor; the reactor core comprises a central control rod, and an inner fuel assembly, an outer fuel assembly and a reflecting layer which are sequentially surrounded on the periphery of the central control rod; a plurality of control drums are annularly distributed in the reflecting layer; a plurality of coolant channels are formed between the outer fuel assembly and the reflecting layer; the inner layer fuel assembly and the outer layer fuel assembly are respectively cylindrical fuel assemblies with hexagonal cross sections, and the periphery of the reactor 6 is provided with a shadow shielding structure 8.

In one embodiment, the power adapter 4 of the modular nuclear reactor power supply apparatus provided by the present application is connected to the plurality of power output subsystem bay sections 1, and forms a parallel connection with the plurality of power output subsystem bay sections 1, and outputs in parallel the power of the electrical energy generated by the plurality of power output subsystem bay sections 1. The electric power output subsystem cabin section 1 outputs electric energy to a load end through an electric power adapter 4; the load side is an electricity using unit comprising a payload bay 19 and an electric propulsion device. The power adapter 4 is provided with a connecting mechanism 5, and the connecting mechanism 5 is connected with the load end in an adapting way. The electric power adapter 4 is used as an electric power output system to lead the generated electric energy out of the cabin section, is connected with other power cabin sections in parallel, and finally transmits the electric energy to a power load end according to task requirements.

In the modular nuclear reactor power supply apparatus provided by the present application, the docking manner between two adjacent power output subsystem bay sections may adopt various manners, such as: (1) when the single cabin section is used for supplying power to the space station, the single cabin section is launched and is butted with the space station, so that the power requirement of most space stations can be met; (2) when the energy is supplied to the star table base, the multiple cabin sections are independently transmitted, and the cabin sections do not need to be assembled and are connected in parallel for supplying power; (3) when the energy is supplied for deep space shuttle propulsion, the multiple cabin sections are independently launched, and the two adjacent cabin sections are assembled side by side and are connected in parallel to supply power.

Referring to fig. 7 and 8, when the modular nuclear reactor power plant provided by the present application is applied to deep space shuttle propulsion, both the payload bay section 19 and the electric propulsion device 20 are placed behind the shadow shielding structure 8 of the electric power take-off subsystem bay section 1. The electric power output subsystem cabin section combination body and the electric propulsion device are respectively positioned at two ends of the effective load cabin section.

The main structure of the modularized nuclear reactor power supply device provided by the application is formed by connecting a plurality of modularized power output subsystem cabin sections 1, and the modularized nuclear reactor power supply device can be used for a nuclear reactor power supply device of a commercial space shuttle spacecraft.

In one embodiment, a core component of the modular nuclear reactor power supply device provided by the application is a small helium-xenon cooling fast neutron reactor with the thermal power of 1 megawatt, a single loop type layout is adopted, a reactor core, a coolant and nuclear thermoelectric conversion are arranged in a cabin section of an electric power output subsystem, and a final heat trap of the electric power output subsystem is arranged outside the cabin section. The reactor is cooled by a mixed gas of helium and xenon, and the gas for cooling the reactor core is introduced into a helium xenon turbine through forced circulation to lead out the heat of the reactor core and generate electricity at the turbine. The fuel element of the reactor core is low-enriched uranium fuel with U-235 enrichment degree not higher than 20w%, and the low-enriched uranium fuel can be made of UO ₂ Or U ₃ Si ₂ Or the uranium, wherein the fuel manufactured by the uranium dioxide has sufficient in-heap testing process and relatively mature process, and can further reduce the cost and period of system development.

The electric power output subsystem cabin sections can form different power outputs through different numbers of electric power output subsystem cabin sections, and therefore the nuclear reactor power supply device can be conveniently provided with different modules according to different space task requirements to provide different grades of power.

All the technical features of the above embodiments can be arbitrarily combined (as long as there is no contradiction between the combinations of the technical features), and for the sake of brevity, all the possible combinations of the technical features in the above embodiments are not described; these examples, which are not explicitly described, should be considered to be within the scope of the present description.

The present application has been described in considerable detail with reference to certain embodiments and examples thereof. It should be understood that several conventional adaptations or further innovations of these specific embodiments may also be made based on the technical idea of the present application; however, such conventional modifications and further innovations may also fall within the scope of the claims of the present application as long as they do not depart from the technical idea of the present application.

Claims (9)

1. A modular nuclear reactor power plant comprising one or more power output subsystem bays; the electric power output subsystem cabin comprises a cabin shell, a final heat trap arranged outside the cabin shell, an electric power adaptation device arranged at one end of the cabin shell, a reactor arranged in the cabin shell, a helium-xenon thermoelectric conversion circuit and a shadow shielding structure; the shadow shielding structure is used for shielding the radiation of the reactor core of the reactor; a coolant channel is formed in the reactor, helium-xenon mixed gas is introduced into the coolant channel, and the helium-xenon mixed gas circulates in the helium-xenon thermoelectric conversion loop to lead out the heat of the reactor core and generate electric energy; the electric power adaptation device is connected with the helium xenon thermoelectric conversion circuit and used for converting electric energy output by the helium xenon thermoelectric conversion circuit into an expected voltage value adapted to a load end and then leading the electric energy out to the load end; the power adapter is connected with a plurality of power output subsystem cabins, and power output is achieved in a parallel mode.

2. The modular nuclear reactor power plant of claim 1, wherein the bay shell is an aluminum alloy shell with graphite wrapped around its outer surface, or a titanium alloy shell with graphite wrapped around its outer surface;

two butt joint mechanisms are oppositely arranged on the cabin section shell, and two adjacent electric power output subsystem cabin sections are assembled through the butt joint mechanisms.

3. The modular nuclear reactor power plant of claim 1, wherein the reactor is a fast neutron reactor; the reactor core comprises a central control rod, and an inner fuel assembly, an outer fuel assembly and a reflecting layer which are sequentially surrounded on the periphery of the central control rod; a plurality of control drums are annularly distributed in the reflecting layer; a plurality of coolant channels are formed between the outer fuel assembly and the reflecting layer;

the inner layer fuel assembly and the outer layer fuel assembly are respectively cylindrical fuel assemblies with hexagonal cross sections, and fuel in the cylindrical fuel assemblies is UO ₂ The enrichment degree of U-235 is less than 20w%;

the shadow shielding structure is arranged at the periphery of the reactor.

4. The modular nuclear reactor power plant of claim 1, wherein the shadow shielding structure is a frustoconical shell structure; the lateral wall of casing structure spare includes three-layer radiation shielding layer, and three-layer radiation shielding layer is respectively: a light component shield layer, a heavy component shield layer and a thermal shield layer; the light component shielding layer is used for weakening neutron flux, the recombination component shielding layer is used for weakening gamma radiation, and the heat shielding layer is used for reducing radiant heat;

the light component shielding layer is made of lithium hydride;

the heavy component shielding layer is made of tungsten;

the heat shield layer is made of boron-containing stainless steel.

5. The modular nuclear reactor power plant of claim 1, wherein the coolant channel is connected to the helium xenon thermoelectric conversion circuit; the helium xenon thermoelectric conversion loop comprises a plurality of gas transmission pipelines, and a compressor, a heat regenerator, a steam turbine and a cooler which are connected through the gas transmission pipelines; the gas output from the coolant channel is compressed and pressurized by the compressor, enters the heat regenerator to be preheated and then enters the reactor core to be heated, the heated gas enters the steam turbine to expand and do work, then enters the heat regenerator to release waste heat, then enters the cooler to be cooled, and finally flows to the compressor to form the circulation of the helium-xenon mixed gas; the waste heat of the cooler is exhausted through a radiation radiator.

6. The modular nuclear reactor power plant of claim 5, wherein the radiant heat sink comprises a plurality of radiant heat sink units having heat pipes and radiant fins mounted thereon, the radiant fins having an insulation layer mounted on a bottom thereof; when the flowing helium-xenon mixed gas is taken as a medium to absorb waste heat discharged by the helium-xenon thermoelectric conversion circuit from a heat source and flows through the radiation heat radiator, heat is transferred to the radiation heat radiator, the heat is transferred to the radiation fins through the heat pipe, the heat insulation layer shields the radiation of the heat to the spacecraft, and the heat is discharged to the space through the radiation.

7. The modular nuclear reactor power plant as recited in claim 1, wherein the power adapter is a voltage conversion device connected to and forming a parallel connection with the plurality of power output subsystem bay sections and outputting power in parallel from electrical energy generated by the plurality of power output subsystem bay sections;

the electric power output subsystem cabin section outputs electric energy to a load end through the electric power adapting device; the load end is an electricity utilization unit which comprises a payload cabin section and an electric propulsion device;

the power adapter is provided with a connecting mechanism, and the connecting mechanism is connected with the load end in an adaptive mode.

8. The modular nuclear reactor power plant of claim 7, wherein the electric propulsion means includes a plurality of electric propulsion subsystems, the plurality of electric power output subsystem bays being adapted to power the electric propulsion subsystems via electric adaptation means thereon.

9. The modular nuclear reactor power plant of claim 7, wherein when the modular nuclear reactor power plant is powering deep space shuttle propulsion, both the payload bay section and the electric propulsion device are positioned behind the shadow shielding structure of the electric power output subsystem bay section; the electric power output subsystem bay section and the electric propulsion device are oppositely disposed at opposite ends of the payload bay section.

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