SUMMARY REPORT OF THERMIONIC CONVERTER IN-PILE EXPERIMENTS

Abstract : As part of the program for the development of a reliable vaporfilled thermionic converter for use with a nuclear heat source, a series of inpile experiments was conducted. The inpile experimental program consisted of two phases. The first phase was a series of inpile heat transfer experiments in which a nuclear-fueled emitter was operated at the temperatures and heat flux required by the thermionic converter. Emitter temperature distribution data with electrical and nuclear heat sources were similar. No adverse temperature perturbations were introduced by the nuclear fuel. The second phase was the successful inpile operation of the RCA Converter, Type A-1197A, for 300 hours in the Lynchburg Pool Reactor. A maximum electrical power output of 155 watts (2.58 watts/sq. cm) was produced at a computed efficiency of 10.3%. (Author)