Design and characteristic analysis of a novel quasi-zero-stiffness isolator using magnets as negative stiffness

Considering that the static load of marine equipment and the packing space of vibration isolation is limited, a novel quasi-zero-stiffness-isolator (QZSI) using magnets as negative stiffness is designed. The conditions that the QZSI realizes quasi-zero-stiffness at the equilibrium position is obtained by analyzing the static characteristics. The dynamical model of system under a vertical harmonic force is established. The harmonic balance method is used to analyze the dynamic characteristics of QZSI, and the amplitude- frequency relationship expression and force transmissibility are deduced. The influence of different parameters on the performances is analyzed by means of controlling variables. It is shown that the novel QZSI can reduce the response peaks and extend the frequency band of isolator, and that the QZSI provided suitable system parameters can outperform the linear system

Thermal Hydraulic Analysis of a Passive Residual Heat Removal System for an Integral Pressurized Water Reactor

A theoretical investigation on the thermal hydraulic characteristics of a new type of passive residual heat removal system (PRHRS), which is connected to the reactor coolant system via the secondary side of the steam generator, for an integral pressurized water reactor is presented in this paper. Three-interknited natural circulation loops are adopted by this PRHRS to remove the residual heat of the reactor core after a reactor trip. Based on the one-dimensional model and a simulation code (SCPRHRS), the transient behaviors of the PRHRS as well as the effects of the height difference between the steam generator and the heat exchanger and the heat transfer area of the heat exchanger are studied in detail. Through the calculation analysis, it is found that the calculated parameter variation trends are reasonable. The higher height difference between the steam generator and the residual heat exchanger and the larger heat transfer area of the residual heat exchanger are favorable to the passive residual heat removal system

STEADY-STATE THERMAL-HYDRAULIC ANALYSIS OF A PLATE TYPE REACTOR

ABSTRACT In the plate type fuel reactor, all the fuel elements are arranged in parallel in the subassembly and set in the core, which create many isolated parallel rectangular channels. The arrangements of the fuel elements may have significant impact on the thermal-hydraulics of the core. In order to fully understand the geometry impact on the steady-state thermalhydraulic characteristics, based on the mass, momentum and energy conservation equations, a multi-channel code was developed to estimate the steady-state thermal-hydraulic characteristics. Two different types of fuel elements arrangements in the subassembly were proposed and studied, one was uniform distribution with the same gap sizes between each fuel elements, and the other was nonuniform distribution with different clearances among boundary fuel elements. The mass flux distribution, the temperature field and the DNBR were obtained by the developed code. It showed that the mass flux distribution was affected by the flow area of the channel and the given power distribution. The flow area of the channel has bigger influence than the second. In addition, the results of the two different types of fuel elements arrangements were compared, and it could be found that the asymmetrical cooling of the fuel elements occurred when fuel elements were nonuniformly arranged, which leaded to the decrease of the maximum temperature in the asymmetrically cooled fuel elements and the increase of the maximum temperature in the core. Furthermore, the DNBR calculated by the Sudo model indicated that the safety margin of the reactor under the present conditions is sufficient. All the obtained results served some valuable information for the design of the new type research reactor

ICONE18-29172 INVESTIGATION OF PRESSURE DROP FOR FLUID FLOW THROUGH POROUS MEDIA: APPLICATION TO A PEBBLE-BED REACTOR

ABSTRACT The present studied Pebble-Bed Reactor is a light-water cooled reactor that consists of millions of Micro-Fuel Elements, and the TRISO-coated fuel particles(MFE) fill the fuel assembly disorderly and form a porous media with internal heat source. Papers on porous media continue to be published at the rate of about 150 per year and the domain of application is wide spread, ranging from chemical particle beds, mass separator units, debris beds, soil investigations, heat pipes and fluidized beds etc. In this paper, investigation is performed on the press drop under conditions of both single-phase and two-phase flow through porous media. Large number of relations are studied and the relational expressions, which generalize the available data of experiments, are suggested for pressure drop calculation in a pebble bed of spheres at random distribution. Finally, the relational expressions are applied to analyze the flow characteristics of the Pebble-Bed Reactor, such as the influence of pressure on two phase friction factor in the core etc

Identification of <em>CHIP</em> as a novel causative gene for autosomal recessive cerebellar ataxia

Autosomal recessive cerebellar ataxias are a group of neurodegenerative disorders that are characterized by complex clinical and genetic heterogeneity. Although more than 20 disease-causing genes have been identified, many patients are still currently without a molecular diagnosis. In a two-generation autosomal recessive cerebellar ataxia family, we mapped a linkage to a minimal candidate region on chromosome 16p13.3 flanked by single-nucleotide polymorphism markers rs11248850 and rs1218762. By combining the defined linkage region with the whole-exome sequencing results, we identified a homozygous mutation (c.493CT) in CHIP (NM_005861) in this family. Using Sanger sequencing, we also identified two compound heterozygous mutations (c.389AT/c.441GT; c.621C>G/c.707GC) in CHIP gene in two additional kindreds. These mutations co-segregated exactly with the disease in these families and were not observed in 500 control subjects with matched ancestry. CHIP colocalized with NR2A, a subunit of the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor, in the cerebellum, pons, medulla oblongata, hippocampus and cerebral cortex. Wild-type, but not disease-associated mutant CHIPs promoted the degradation of NR2A, which may underlie the pathogenesis of ataxia. In conclusion, using a combination of whole-exome sequencing and linkage analysis, we identified CHIP, encoding a U-box containing ubiquitin E3 ligase, as a novel causative gene for autosomal recessive cerebellar ataxia