China3D printingNet December 11th, studying3D printingThe most exciting aspect of technology, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (Oak Ridge National Laboratory) also provides some very interesting3D printingComponents. The most recent are the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) of the United States and Framatome of France, who commissioned the Department of Energy’s laboratory to develop a set of four brackets for the Browns Ferry nuclear power plant.Metal3D printingThe bracket will be installed on site in the spring of 2021, and this will be the first bracket for commercial reactors.
The Browns Ferry Plant is located on the Tennessee River near Athens, Alabama. When it began operations in 1974, it was the largest ferry plant in the world.It is also the first electricity generating capacity to exceed 1 GWfactory. Nearby Wheeler Lake (Wheeler Lake) and seven wind turbine towers cool the site’s three GE boiling water reactors, which can generate nearly 3.8 gigawatts of energy. This makes it the second most powerful nuclear power plant in the United States and the most powerful nuclear power plant operated by TVA.
As of 2019, Browns Ferry has undergone a series of new upgrades, increasing the plant’s output by 14.3%. Although the scale is relatively small, by 2021, it will see another type of additive upgrade.As part of ORNL’s Transformation Challenge Reactor (TCR) program, the laboratory is equipped with3D printingChannel fasteners used in boiling water reactor fuel assemblies manufactured by TVA fuel supplier Framatome. These components fix the fuel channel to the boiling water reactor fuel assembly, the fuel channel surrounds the assembly and guides the coolant through the fuel rods.
3D printing
Fasteners” alt=”ORNL produced by Browns Ferry factory
3D printing
Fasteners” width=”620″ height=”349″ />
ORNL produced for the Browns Ferry factory3D printingfastener. Image courtesy of Fred List/ORNL, U.S. Department of Energy.
Using the micro welding process, the parts3D printingTo comply with reactor safety regulations. It also provides 3D data captured during the printing process, which details each layer printed so that the quality of the part can be verified. In the past, traditionally manufactured fasteners were made of expensive castings and therefore had to be precision machined. In this case, additive manufacturing (AM) is a more effective method of creating parts.
The TCR program aims to introduce new manufacturing methods to industry partners to accelerate the development of nuclear systems.Because the brackets are the key to the fuel assembly, they can be used as3D printingIt can bring useful proof of the functions of the nuclear power sector. In turn, additive manufacturing may be used in the future to manufacture more complex parts for nuclear power applications.TCR Director Kurt Terrani said: “This is the first step in a coordinated effort between ORNL and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Regulatory Research Office and nuclear suppliers to demonstrate that it is possible to adopt a new, greatly accelerated Method to manufacture qualified parts.”Framatome began researching the application of AM for nuclear fuels in 2015, focusing on stainless steel and nickel-based alloys used in fuel assemblies. Then, its experts work closely with customers and rely on funding from the European Union and the U.S. Department of Energy to further promote the development of the technology.
3D printingSafety-related components” alt=”These fuel assembly brackets manufactured by ORNL in cooperation with Framatome and the Tennessee Valley Authority are the first batches to be inserted into nuclear power plants3D printingSecurity related components” width=”620″ height=”620″ />
These fuel assembly brackets, manufactured by ORNL in cooperation with Framatome and the Tennessee Valley Authority, are the first batches to be inserted into nuclear power plants.3D printingSecurity related components.Image courtesy of Fred List/ORNL, U.S. Department of Energy
considering3D printingFor the strong value proposition of high-cost, low-quantity parts, using AM for this application is an obvious choice. As a technology that can easily produce a small number of complex geometric shapes at a price that can compete with traditional manufacturing technologies, additive manufacturing is an ideal choice for industries such as the nuclear industry, aerospace, and motorsports. It can not only be used to manufacture parts with better performance, but also cheaper, and it can also shorten the turnaround time.
Therefore, we have seen that many projects will3D printingUsed in the production of nuclear reactor parts.When the Idaho National Laboratory used the technology to manufacture parts for research, the University of Pittsburgh received $1 million in funding for research on nuclear reactor components3D printing. In 2017, Siemens has installed in nuclear reactors3D printingComponents, which prompted Westinghouse Electric to take a similar move.Even some projects are using3D printingTo recover nuclear fuel, and even nuclear fusion (a highly sought-after energy technology, as opposed to fission that powers existing nuclear power plants).
The fasteners have been installed on the ATRIUM 10XM fuel assembly at the Framatome Nuclear Fuel Manufacturing Plant in Richland, Washington. In March 2021, the new bracket will be installed on Browns Ferry 2 during the planned refueling interruption, and will be used there for 6 years if the parts are inspected during use.
China3D printingNet original article!
(Editor in charge: admin)
0 Comments for “ORNL’s 3D printed parts will be installed on the TVA nuclear reactor”