Kepco Nuclear Fuel Co., Ltd.

Hung Soon Chang

Chang Hwan Hwang

Tae Hyung Na

Se Yong Shin

Young Seok Yoon

Ju Young Lee

Soon Ki Guk

Young Hoon Kim

Ui Jea Lee

Jae Soon Choi

Bong Sik Moon

Deuk Yeon Kim

Weon Chan Hwang

Jong Sung Hong

Sang Pil Kong

Young Choon Cho

Yeong Seon Oh

Yeon Doo Jung

Disclosed is an automatic welding apparatus for an end plug of a nuclear fuel rod, which is used to perform resistance welding on a cladding tube and the end plug in a welding chamber. The automatic welding apparatus includes a welding chamber configured to perform resistance welding on an end plug and a cladding tube, a cladding tube transfer unit that has a cladding tube clamp fixedly clamping the cladding tube and a first servo motor for driving the cladding tube clamp in a horizontal direction and that horizontally transfers the cladding tube to the welding chamber, end plug welding electrodes gripping the end plug fed from an end plug feeder, an end plug transfer driver for driving the end plug welding electrodes toward the welding chamber in a forward/backward direction, and a position control module for controlling driving of the first servo motor and the end plug transfer driver.

Automatic welding apparatus for end plug of nuclear fuel rod

A method for loading fuel pellets for manufacturing a nuclear fuel rod is provided. The method includes arranging fuel pellets in a row on a tray, aligning the fuel pellets in the row on the tray such that the fuel pellets are closely in contact with one another, obtaining a total length of the pellets in the row by measuring the fuel pellets in the row on the tray, and comparing the total length with a predetermined length. When the total length is smaller than the predetermined length by a difference greater than an average unit length of the pellet, one or more fuel pellets are added in the row until to increase the total length until the difference becomes smaller than the average unit length of the fuel pellet.

Apparatus and method for automatically loading a fuel pellet for manufacturing a nuclear fuel rod

Disclosed is a fuel rod auto-loading apparatus for a nuclear fuel assembly, which disposes fuel rods in a fuel rod case in a bundle to assemble the fuel rods into the nuclear fuel assembly. The fuel rod auto-loading apparatus includes a fuel rod storage unit having a plurality of stacked racks for fuel rods, a fuel rod loading unit raised/lowered to the racks and transferring the fuel rods, a feeding unit placing the fuel rods in rows and loading the fuel rods into the fuel rod case, a fuel rod unloading unit selectively unloading some of the fuel rods stored in the fuel rod storage unit and transferring the fuel rods to the feeding unit, a fuel rod assembly lifter which is disposed parallel to the feeding unit, and a controller controlling driving of the fuel rod loading unit, the feeding unit, and the fuel rod unloading unit.

Fuel rod auto-loading apparatus for nuclear fuel assembly

Disclosed is a plasma welding apparatus for a guide thimble and guide thimble end plug of a nuclear fuel assembly, which includes: a welding chamber () includes an end-plug inserting part () into which the end plug () is inserted, a guide-thimble inserting part () which is provided on the same axis as the end-plug inserting part () and into which the guide thimble () is inserted and fixed, a torch assembling part () to which a plasma welding torch () is assembled so as to make a right angle with the end-plug inserting part () and the guide-thimble inserting part (), and argon inflow and outflow ports () through which argon is supplied or discharged; an end-plug transfer unit () supplying the end plug () to the end-plug inserting part (); and an guide-thimble transfer unit () transferring the guide thimble () to the guide-thimble inserting part ().

Plasma welding apparatus for guide thimble and guide thimble end plug of nuclear fuel assembly

An apparatus for automatically loading a fuel pellet for manufacturing a nuclear fuel rod is provided. The apparatus includes a tray transfer unit that horizontally transfers the tray, a fuel pellet alignment unit that aligns fuel pellets arranged in the tray, a measurement unit that measures an entire length of the fuel pellets arranged in a row on the tray, a controller that compares an accumulated measured length with a set length, a waiting table located adjacent to the tray transfer unit to store a redundancy fuel pellet, and a fuel pellet movement unit that is driven by the controller and moves the fuel pellets between the tray and the waiting table.

Disclosed is a fuel rod testing apparatus for a nuclear fuel assembly. The fuel rod testing apparatus includes a helium leakage testing chamber having a gate so that a fuel rod is horizontally loaded/unloaded and testing whether or not helium leaks from the fuel rod, a fuel rod upward/downward transfer unit that has first and second transfer sections located in front of the gate and horizontally installed apart from each other in order to guide the fuel rod loaded into or unloaded from the helium leakage testing chamber, and that vertically drives the first and second transfer sections, and a main frame that has a upper transfer section disposed in parallel in a lengthwise direction of the fuel rod upward/downward transfer unit and having an inclined face and a lower transfer section installed at a lower portion of the upper transfer section and having an inclined face.

Apparatus for transferring a fuel rod for testing

A lid frame for a nuclear fuel assembly shipping container and a shipping container for nuclear fuel assemblies are provided. The shipping container can include a lower container in which a cradle is installed, an upper container detachably coupled to the lower container, and a base frame coupled to the cradle with at least one nuclear fuel assembly placed thereon. The lid frame can include a plurality of supports installed apart from each other so as to surround the nuclear fuel assembly placed on the base frame, and a plurality of clamps separated from each other, coupled to the plurality of supports perpendicular to the plurality of supports, rotatably hinged to the base frame, and configured to clamp the nuclear fuel assembly. The lid frame safely protects the nuclear fuel assembly that is being transported.

Lid frame for nuclear fuel assembly shipping container and shipping container for nuclear fuel assemblies

A lid frame for a nuclear fuel assembly shipping container and a shipping container for nuclear fuel assemblies are provided. The shipping container includes a lower container having a cradle, an upper container detachably coupled to the lower container, and a base frame coupled to the cradle with at least one nuclear fuel assembly placed thereon. The lid frame includes a plurality of supports installed apart from each other so as to surround the nuclear fuel assembly placed on the base frame, a plurality of clamps separated from each other, coupled to the supports so as to be perpendicular to the supports, rotatably hinged to the base frame, and clamping the nuclear fuel assembly, and a plurality of gap compensators coupled to inner surfaces of the supports in order to compensate for a gap between the inner surfaces of the supports and the nuclear fuel assembly.

Growing community of inventors

Daejeon, South Korea

Hung Soon Chang