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:
Nov. 24, 1998
Filed:
Nov. 27, 1996
Sterling J Weems, Chevy Chase, MD (US);
William E Sylvester, New Carrollton, MD (US);
MPR Associates, Inc., Alexandria, VA (US);
Abstract
An apparatus for repairing cracked core spray supply piping in a boiling water reactor vessel includes a pair of clamps extending circumferentially around the piping on opposite sides of a crack and a preloading mechanism urging the clamps toward one another to apply and maintain an axially compressive load on the piping tending to close the crack. For vertical sections of core spray supply piping, the clamps are secured at vertically spaced locations with each of the clamps including a first jaw extending circumferentially around a first portion of the piping and including a first opening oriented substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of the piping and an elongate passage or channel oriented substantially perpendicular to and in communication with the first opening. A second jaw extends circumferentially around a second portion of the pipe in horizontally opposed relation to the first jaw and includes an elongate extension slidably received in the elongate channel and defining a second opening partially aligned with the first opening, with a wedge being movably disposed in the aligned openings to cause the second jaw to move relative to the first jaw in a direction substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the piping in response to straight, vertical operations. For horizontal sections of core spray supply piping, the clamps are secured at horizontally spaced locations with each of the clamps having a pair of jaws extending circumferentially around the piping in opposed relation and a horizontal preloading mechanism extending between the jaws in tension, the horizontal preloading mechanism being similar to the clamping mechanism used for vertical sections to facilitate installation using straight, vertical operations.