The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jun. 18, 1991
Filed:
Jul. 17, 1990
John T Land, Pensacola, FL (US);
Ronald J Hopkins, Pensacola, FL (US);
Westinghouse Electric Corp., Pittsburgh, PA (US);
Abstract
A combined support and guide tube member for use in a nuclear reactor is disclosed which both suspends an upper core plate from an upper support plate and receives and guides a control rod assembly through mutually aligned apertures in the support and core plates. The tube member generally comprises an elongated tubular body having an upper and lower mounting assembly for detachably mounting the upper and lower ends of the body around selected, aligned apertures in the support plate and core plate, respectively. The upper mounting assembly includes four mounting lugs disposed 90 degrees around the upper edge of the tubular body, as well as mounting bolts for detachably connecting the mounting lugs around an aperture in the support plate. The support plate aperture includes four cloverleaf cutouts which are complementary in shape to the four mounting lugs of the upper mounting assembly so that the entire support and guide tube member may be easily removed from the nuclear reactor by merely aligning the lugs with the cloverleaf cutouts, and withdrawing the tube member through the selected aperture. The tubular body of the tube member includes an array of flow ports for uniformly discharging pressurized water flowing out of the upper core plate in such a manner so as to avoid localized water jets which can vibrate and fret the rodlets forming the control rod assemblies. Finally, the combined support and guide tube member is formed from the same type of stainless steel forming the support and core plates to minimize stresses caused by differential thermal expansion.