Ngk Insulators, Inc.

Doryokuro Kakunenryo Kaihatsu Jigyodan

Yoshihiko Kurashima

Tomonori Tsuchimoto

Katsuichi Iwata

Shigeru Hanzawa

Toshihiko Honda

Shunji Inoue

Michitaka Hidaka

Akimitsu Hiraki

Yoichi Karita

Takao Akiyama

Yoichi Miyamoto

The present invention provides a firing furnace () comprising a combusting means () for combusting a fuel (), a firing furnace main body () for firing a member to be fired and exhausting a combustion gas, and a methane reforming device () for reacting a reforming material () composed of a methane sub fuel for reformation () and steam () with a methane reforming catalyst () filled therein while heating the same by the combustion gas for producing a reformed gas () containing hydrogen and carbon dioxide, capable of cutting back the fuel cost.

Firing furnace and firing method

A drilling jig has a pyramidal tip, a cylindrical portion, and a proximal end. The pyramidal tip is formed like a polygonal pyramid and each pyramidal face is provided with a concave. The cylindrical portion connecting with the pyramidal tip is formed like a prism and the proximal end is made of a flat plate functioning as a stopper. The drilling jig makes it possible to efficiently recover sodium from a spent NaS cell without greatly damaging the structure of the cell.

Punching apparatus and punch

After opening spent NaS cells, one or more NaS cells are loaded to and maintained in separator plates within a heating tank in such a way that the opening or openings thereof are oriented downwards. After no less than the time required to melt the Na and after Na has drained from the opening, the NaS cells from which Na has drained are removed from the separator plates within the heating tank and, in addition to this, a number of other opened NaS cells equal in number to those removed are loaded into and maintained in the empty spaces within the separator plates from which these NaS cells have been removed. In the recovery of Na, this method is efficient and time reducing and, furthermore, according to this method it is possible to make recovery facilities simpler and smaller.

Method of recovering Na from sodium-sulfur cells

A process for recovering Na from a spent NaS cell, includes the steps of forming an opening in a spent NaS cell, flowing down molten Na from an interior of the NaS cell through the opening in a heating oil vessel, passing the molten Na through a filter placed in the heating oil vessel to remove metallic powder, collecting the molten Na in a bottom portion of the heating oil vessel by utilizing a difference in specific gravity between the molten Na and an oil, and taking out the Na from an outer side of the filter.

process and apparatus for recovering Na from spent NaS cells

process is disclosed for disposing of a spent NaS cell, which process comprises the steps of: cutting an opening in the NaS cell for flowing out sodium from the cell and allowing an inner tube to be pulled out from the NaS cell; placing oil on sodium inside the inner tube of the spent NaS cell in a given thickness, while the cut opening is directed upwardly; setting the spent NaS cell in a workpiece-setting vessel outside a heating oil vessel, while the cut opening is directed downwardly, thereby flowing out the oil on the sodium inside the inner tube, said workpiece-setting vessel being provided at a bottom with a hole for allowing an inner tube to be pulled out from the the spent NaS cell, immersing the spent NaS cell set in the workpiece-setting vessel into oil in the heating oil vessel in the state that the cut opening is directed downwardly; sodium is melted in the oil of the heating oil vessel and flown out therein through the cut opening; and then the inner tube is pulled out from the NaS cell.

Apparatus for disposing of spent NaS cells

A process for treating a radioactive waste, includes drying a radioactive waste containing a radioactive substance(s) and a sodium compound(s), to convert it into a dried material, heating the dried material to convert it into a molten salt, and subjecting the molten salt to electrolysis using the salt as an anolyte and .beta.-alumina as a sodium ion-permeable membrane. This process can recover metallic sodium or sodium hydroxide, each of extremely low radioactivity from a radioactive waste containing a radioactive substance(s) and a sodium compound(s), at a high purity at a high current efficiency.

Process for treatment of radioactive waste

A process for peeling an outer tube of a spent NaS cell, including the steps of: (1) holding opposite end portions of the spent NaS cell; (2) forming annular cut lines in the outer tube of the cell at the opposite end portions; (3) forming a straight cut line in the outer tube to be continued to the annular cut lines; (4) inserting a pawl into the straight cut line; and (5) peeling the outer tube of the spent NaS cell by turning at least one of the spent NaS cell and the pawl relative to each other. Instead of the pawl, a chisel may be inserted into the straight cut line, and the outer tube of the spent NaS cell is peeled by applying an impact force upon the outer tube of the cell through the chisel. Apparatuses for peeling the outer tube from the spent NaS are also disclosed.

Process and apparatus for peeling outer tubes from spent NaS cells

A process for peeling an outer tube of a spent NaS cell, concluding the steps of: (1) holding opposite end portions of the spent NaS cell; (2) forming annular cut lines in the outer tube of the cell at the opposite end portions; (3) forming a straight cut line in the outer tube to be continued to the annular cut lines; (4) inserting a pawl into the straight cut line; and (5) peeling the outer tube of the spent NaS cell by turning at least one of the spent NaS cell and the pawl relative to each other. Instead of the pawl, a chisel may be inserted into the straight cut line, and the outer tube of the spent NaS cell is peeled by applying an impact force upon the outer tube of the cell through the chisel. Apparatuses for peeling the outer tube from the spent NaS are also disclosed.

Process and apparatus for peeling outer tubes from spent NaS cells by

A process is disclosed for disposing of a spent NaS cell, which process comprises the steps of: cutting an opening in the NaS cell for flowing out sodium from the cell and allowing an inner tube to be pulled out from the NaS cell; placing oil on sodium inside the inner tube of the spent NaS cell in a given thickness, while the cut opening is directed upwardly; setting the spent NaS cell in a workpiece-setting vessel outside a heating oil vessel, while the cut opening is directed downwardly, thereby flowing out the oil on the sodium inside the inner tube, said workpiece-setting vessel being provided at a bottom with a hole for allowing an inner tube to be pulled out from the the spent NaS cell, immersing the spent NaS cell set in the workpiece-setting vessel into oil in the heating oil vessel in the state that the cut opening is directed downwardly; sodium is melted in the oil of the heating oil vessel and flown out therein through the cut opening; and then the inner tube is pulled out from the NaS cell.

Process for disposing of spent NaS cells

A process for disposing of sodium sulfur cells, comprising the steps of: cross-cutting each of the cells to form an opening; setting a plurality of the cells, as one set, into a work-setting pipe unit such that the opening of each of the cells is downwardly directed; flowing down sodium from a set of the cells inside a heating oil through the opening by heating; inserting pawls of a chuck into an inner tube of each of a plurality of the cells through the opening and a bottom of the work-setting pipe unit; and extracting the inner tube from an outer tube in each of the cells.

Process for disposing of sodium sulfur cells

An apparatus for disposing of a plurality of sodium sulfur cells is disclosed, which comprises: a work-setting pipe unit including a plurality of cell-holding pipes, a work-setting station for setting the cells into the work-setting pipe unit, a heating oil vessel, a sodium-extracting station, an inner tube-extracting station, an unloading station where the remaining sodium sulfur cells are unloading from the work-setting pipe unit, and a transferring unit for transferring said work-setting pipe unit among said stations.

Growing community of inventors

Nagoya, Japan

Yoshihiko Kurashima