Mass and Performance Estimates for 5 to 1000 kW(e) Nuclear Reactor Power Systems for Space Applications LOUIS O. CROPP, DONALD R. GALLUP & ALBERT C. MARSHALL1 SUMMARY Masses and radiator areas of typical space nuclear power concepts are estimated as a function of the continuous electrical power required during a ten-year mission. Results are presented as a function of power level in the range of 5 to 1000 kW electrical. Three general reactor types will be discussed: (1) the radiatively cooled Star-C reactor technology with thermionic conversion external to the core; (2) liquid metal cooled technology with pin-type thermionic fuel element conversion in the core; and (3) the liquid metal cooled SP-100 reactor technology with thermoelectric, Brayton, Stirling, and Rankine conversion systems. Mass estimates include all satellite subsystems except the payload itself. Area estimates include radiators to dump waste heat from the power conversion and power conditioning subsystems but not the payload. All system components utilize near-term technology with the exception of the SP-100 Rankine and refractory Stirling concepts. 1 .0 Executive Summary The design of nuclear reactors for space power applications is influenced by many technical, programmatic, and political considerations. The desire to develop long-lived, safe, reliable power sources is paramount and has been the subject of many papers. Those needs and some of the more important reactor characteristics are briefly mentioned here but this report focuses on how the mass and radiator area of the leading near-term reactor power system concepts vary over the range of 5 to 1000 kW(e). In the United States, requirements for long-term continuous power in space have been modest and have been fulfilled using solar and radioisotope power sources. Future requirements fall in the range of 5 to 1000 kW(e) where nuclear reactors could provide advantages in many applications. In 1983, the United States embarked on a program, called the SP-100, to develop a space reactor technology capable of providing tens to hundreds of kilowatts of electrical power with the reference design to provide 100 kW(e). During that time the Air Force continued to examine its military mission requirements and concluded that reactors capable of providing 5 to 40 kW(e) may serve Air Force needs for many years (Ref. 1). As a result, reactor concepts other than the SP-100 that have been proposed for this low end of the power range have attracted attention within the Air Force. This in turn * Sandia National Laboratories, P.O. Box 5800, Albuquerque, NM 87185.
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