SUPERHEATING WATER-BOILER. Reactor Design and Feasibility Study

A preliminary design is presented for a boilingwater reactor with integral nuclear superheater, which produces steam at 1200 psia, 950 deg F. The design uses stainless steel, UO/sub 2/, and water for materials and stays generally withln the limits of existing reactor technology. The design output is 129,445 lbs of steam per hour at the stated conditions, which corresponds to 17,500 shaft horsepower in a naval steam plant and to 47.25 Mw of heat. This is thought of as a ship propulsion reactor, and its capacity, arrangement, shielding, and control system are appropriate to that application. The feaslbility, size, and weight were studieds also the biologied shielding and mechanical design were studied in relation to plant size and weight. Water treatment, mechanical design of control rod drives, and the steam plant are not considered. The reactor core is cylindrical and divided radially into three regions: a central superheater, an annular boiler, and a surrounding reflector. Moderators are BeO in the superheater and water in the boiler and reflector. Superheater fuel elements consist of three concentric tubes of type 347 stainless steel containing UO/sub 2/ particles in a stainless steel matrix. The boiler elements are of convenional plate type. (M.H.R.