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:
Sep. 01, 1992
Filed:
Jun. 03, 1991
Steven P Congdon, Los Gatos, CA (US);
Russell M Fawcett, San Jose, CA (US);
General Electric Company, San Jose, CA (US);
Abstract
Fuel assemblies of a boiling-water nuclear reactor are inverted during refueling methods. Assemblies burned in a first orientation are subjected to greater burnup near their bottoms and greater conversion of fertile fuel to fissile fuel near their tops. Inverting the assemblies promotes burnup of the actinide products from the conversion of the last cycle. Thus, the procedure greater energy production efficiency and reduced actinide radioactive waste are achieved. One inverted fuel assemblies can be removed for disposal. Alternatively, they can be reinverted to burnup actinide fissile fuel generated at the bottom (while it was downstream of the top) during the second operating cycle. Further inversions are provided for, but the major gains occur during the first and second inversions.