Westinghouse Electric Corporation

Other

The United States of America As Represented by the United States

Electric Power Research Institute Incorporated

Frank G Arcella

James C Fletcher

Maurice G Fey

Gerald G Lessmann

Charles B Wolf

Fred H Bednar

John S Billings, Jr

James M Forker

Richard P Sprecace

Jan J Schreurs

Russell A Lindberg

Albert F Berringer

Ernest C Phillips, Jr

An online valve monitoring system senses operational characteristics of a valve and provides a diagnosis of aberrations in the characteristics. Sensors, coupled to a valve, supply sensor signals as output to a data acquisition system to be transmitted to a remote location. An I/O processor at the remote location receives the sensor signals and a diagnostic processor extracts characteristic features from the sensor signals as deviations from baseline data for the valve. An expert system applies a rule base to the characteristic features individually or in combination to diagnose the causes of the deviations. Use of multiple sensors increases the confidence of the diagnosis which can be immediately communicated to an operator and used for scheduling maintenance of the valve. Use of this diagnosis and the trend line of historical data permits scheduling of preventive maintenance.

Online valve diagnostic monitoring system

Disclosed is a method of casting a shape. A laser or electron gun is directed at a fusible powder in a fluidized bed. The beam melts the powder and the melted powder fuses and solidifies on a surface to form the shape. Also disclosed is apparatus for casting a shape. The apparatus includes a fluidized bed containing a fluidized powder, a surface within the bed on which the shape is cast, an electron beam or laser directed at the surface, which has an energy sufficient to fuse the powder, means for controlling the level of the powder in the fluidized bed relative to the surface, and means for controlling the horizontal position of the surface relative to the beam.

Casting shapes

A liquid silicon casting control mechanism characterized by means for producing liquid elemental silicon and comprising a collecting vessel having a tap hole therein for periodically removing liquid silicon in a controlled manner, and comprising a tubular constricted opening.

Liquid silicon casting control mechanism

An arc heater system for producing high purity silicon characterized by the use of an arc heater into which a silicon halide is injected together with a liquid metal reductant, such as an alkali metal, which are reacted together by projecting them into a reaction chamber to cause the formation of liquid silicon, and the walls containing the system being provided with cooling jacket means for preliminarily heating the reactants.

Arc heater with silicon lined reactor

In making a quick connection and hermetic seal for coupling low pressure systems of a type such as heat pipes and the like, a pre-installed fitting forming the sealing portion of a quick connection assembly is disposed in a depression formed in the sidewall of the low pressure chamber so that the chamber and the sealing portion of the connecting assembly can be fully processed together. The open end of a second system is coupled into the inserted sealing fitting by means of threads formed about a pipe plug device and carried by the tubular end portion of the second system. Sealant applied between the threads of the plug and fitting so that as the plug advances along the fitting a gas-tight seal will be obtained. The fitting includes a sealing membrane disposed across the inserted end thereof to be upset by advancing movement of the tubular end portion carried by the plug.

Hermetic quick connection and seal for coupling low pressure systems

In a heat pipe combination consisting of a common condenser section with evaporator sections at either end, two working fluids of different vapor pressures are employed to effectively form two heat pipe sections within the same cavity to support an amplifier mode of operation.

Heat pipe heat amplifier

The basic heat pipe principle is employed in a heat pipe combination wherein two heat pipes are combined in opposing relationship to form an integral unit; such that the temperature, heat flow, thermal characteristics, and temperature-related parameters of a monitored environment or object exposed to one end of the heat pipe combination can be measured and controlled by controlling the heat flow of the opposite end of the heat pipe combination.

Novel heat pipe combination

The formation of voids through interdiffusion in bimetallic welded structures exposed to high operating temperatures is inhibited by utilizing an alloy of the parent materials in the junction of the parent materials or by preannealing the junction at an ultrahigh temperature. These methods are also used to reduce the concentration gradient of a hardening agent.

Bimetallic junctions

A method of forming a tubular wick for a heat pipe. The method is characterized by the steps of forming a wick blank of a predetermined thickness comprising a plurality of superimposed layers of stainless steel mesh screen, wet rolling the blank for reducing the thickness thereof, wrapping the blank about an inner mandrel, compressing the blank into a rigid tubular structure, removing the tubular structure from the mandrel and sintering the tubular structure.

Growing community of inventors

Bethel Park, PA, United States of America

Frank G Arcella