The Pressurized Water Micro-reactor

• There are new features, however, that further enhance its safety and ease of maintenance procedures.  The reactor is sealed within a double wall container.  Internal appurtenances requirements for signal and power and observation fiberoptics use industry standard feed-throughs.

• The high pressure enclosure consists of a vertical cylinder with a convenient installation adaptor at the low end, and a flat top cover that fills the purpose of a thermal shunt to the high temperature external heat sink.  

• The micro-reactor uses TRIGA uranium oxide bars enriched below 20% and once it becomes critical, the heat load output is controlled by precisely positioning a set of controlling bars.  If power is lost, the controlling bars fall by gravity thus stopping the reactor fission process.

• The customary heat exchanger has been eliminated.  The micro-reactor has become in this way a powerful heat source to power the nuclear fission batteries, as well as other multiple industrial applications.

• The elimination of the heat exchanger leads a cleaner internal hydrodynamic profile that fully enhances free convection for water circulation from the core up to the top heat shunt, thus eliminating the frequent corrosion occurrence of the penetrating water pipes through the reactor wall. 

• The pressurizer has been located inside the container, as well as the motor and mechanisms to operate the graphite bars.  Cartridges for water treatment are also within and their application is electrically controlled.