Nuclear fuel for marine propulsion system pdf

Marine power and propulsion mechanical engineering mit. Development and utilization of nuclear thermal propulsion. Diesel engine as an prime mover, concerning development trends of marine propulsion plants, in the future the following can be found. Speaking generally about the present estimates, he pointed out that marine nuclear plants are now in. Man also planned to undertake a risk assessment on the use of ammonia as a gaseous fuel for propulsion.

A marine nuclear propulsion plant must be designed to be highly reliable and selfsufficient, requiring minimal. Its very energydense, so a sub could be underway at high power for decades without refueling. With the exception of isolated protests by tiny groups of. Gao discussed the history, costs, and current status of space nuclear thermal propulsion programs being developed by the department of defense dod and the national aeronautics and space administration nasa with support from the department of energy doe. The success of nuclear propulsion will depend on the understanding and utilization of the topics in this paper. In recent years, the navy has used nuclear propulsion systems for its. Jan 14, 2016 nuclear marine propulsion is propulsion of a ship or submarine with heat provided by a nuclear power plant. The heart of todays navy vessel, whether it is a cruiser, destroyer, frigate, corvette, minehunter or support craft, is the propulsion system. The role of nuclear power and nuclear propulsion in the.

The high torque delivered from the abc engine with a well designed propulsion system ensures an optimal performance at the lowest fuel consumption while complying with the existing and future emission regulations. Early versions of this vehicle were proposed to take off from the ground with significant associated nuclear fallout. The power plant heats water, to produce steam and it is this steam that powers the steam. The main components that define this design are the nuclear reactor seen at the front of the spacecraft, the power conversion unit that transforms the nuclear power into electrical power, and their electric propulsion system that incorporates the thrusters, fuel. With the concept first being realized shortly after world war ii. When compared with conventional rocket engines, a nuclear propulsion system would in theory be less massive, and could provide sustained thrust with greater energy. Pdf marine nuclear propulsion leonam l s guimaraes.

The primary concept of a nuclear thermal propulsion system is to generate significant heat using a light nuclear reactor. As an example of changing times in marine propulsion, consider the two cruisers. But only a few nuclear merchant ships were built as an experiment. Nuclear fuel, only used in nuclear submarines, using highly enriched fuel 20. The idea of using nuclear material for propulsion dates back to the beginning of the 20th century. A sustained challenge from gas turbines has been undermined by fuel price rises although combined diesel and gas turbine solutions remain an option for highpowered installations and diminishing fossil fuel availability may yet see nuclear propulsion revived in the longer term. Nuclear fuel for marine propulsion systems is becoming increasingly popular due to its negligible emission through nuclear propulsion.

Nuclear propulsion includes a wide variety of propulsion methods that use some form of nuclear reaction as their primary power source. The liquid fuelcoolant mix is driven by pump through the core where it. Advanced nuclear propulsion systems could have extremely high performance and unique capabilities a first generation ntp system could serve as the dc3 of space nuclear power and propulsion 10. The nuclear system that is used on vessels is called a. Naval spent nuclear fuel is packaged for shipment in formidable containers that meet or exceed all requirements of the naval nuclear propulsion program, the nuclear regulatory commission, and the department of transportation. In the current scenario of extreme fuel shortage, nuclear ships are the answer that everyone has been looking for.

I acknowledge the great amount of work done by others who have published material in print or posted information on the internet pertaining to international marine nuclear propulsion programs, naval and civilian nuclear powered vessels, naval weapons systems, and other marine nuclear applications. A ship in which nuclear energy in a reactor, rather than combustion of fuel in a boiler, generates steam which drives the engine to propel the ship explanation of nuclear marine propulsion. However, todays advocates of nuclear propulsion systems point out that the. Pdf nuclear propulsion in highperformance cargo vessels. Over half of its aircraft carriers are nuclear powered. What nuclear power offers the shipping industry the cost of nuclear fuel is low and stable, which means speed is not an economic limitation for nuclear powered ships. This also means that the inherent design co 2 index of a new ship, the energy efficiency design index eedi, will be reduced. Powercell sweden ab signed a contract with a european shipyard regarding the development and delivery of a 3mw megawatt marine fuel cell system. Currently, nuclear thermal propulsion is under development again in various forms to provide a superior propulsion system for deep space exploration. The license agreement grants marinemax the exclusive worldwide marine industry rights to develop, manufacture, and sell propulsion and auxiliary boat power systems capable of running on hydrogen extracted from seawater.

The united states army air forces initiated project nepa on may 28, 1946. Spacecraft powered by typical electric propulsion systems may eject propellant at up to 20 times the speed of conventional chemical systems, delivering a much higher specific impulse, or the amount of thrust obtained for the weight of fuel burned. Nuclear propulsion nuclear energy remains an attractive potential means of propulsion for future spacecraft. Nepa operated until may 1951, when the project was transferred to the joint atomic energy commission aecusaf anp. Nasa team pushing towards thermal nuclear propulsion systems. Project orion was a study of a spacecraft intended to be directly propelled by a series of explosions of atomic bombs behind the craft nuclear pulse propulsion. Marine steam turbines as a m ain engine can be classified in two. Nuclear propulsion subject matter experts smes nuclear thermal propulsion ntp nuclear electric propulsion nep fuel specialists nuclear power subject matter experts smes radioisotope power systems rps fission power systems fps nuclear power and propulsion capability leadership model power technical discipline team tdt. Nuclear marine propulsion wikipedia republished wiki 2. Support the final stages of the naval nuclear propulsion programs mission through transportation and processing spent nuclear fuel for packaging and safe longterm storage after it has been removed from aircraft carriers and submarines. Recently, alfa laval, which is one of the marine fuel system developers, announced that it is exploring the next generation of fuel gas supply systems to accommodate lpg and eventually ammonia for engines. The aircraft nuclear propulsion anp program and the preceding nuclear energy for the propulsion of aircraft nepa project worked to develop a nuclear propulsion system for aircraft.

Jan 22, 20 now, as part of the advanced exploration systems program at nasa, the nuclear cryogenic propulsion stage team is tackling a threeyear project to demonstrate the viability of and to evaluate. Marine propulsion engines market size global industry. Work on nuclear marine propulsion started in the 1940s, and the first test reactor started up in usa in 1953. Uses fossil fuel conventional or nuclear power to produce steam.

Nuclear propulsion an overview sciencedirect topics. Schematic of a nuclear electric propulsion spacecraft. A preliminary study on an alternative ship propulsion system. In an ntr, a working fluid, usually liquid hydrogen, is heated to a high temperature in a nuclear reactor and then expands through a rocket nozzle to create thrust. The s6g reactor plant was rated at 148 mwth and the d2w core was rated at 165 mwth. Collectively, these robust containers have traveled safely over 1.

The diesel engine is currently the most widespread of marine prime movers. This section provides the schedule of lecture topics and includes select lecture notes for the course excluding lessons on aircraft propulsion and jet engine rotordynamics. The uk naval nuclear propulsion programme and highly. The core design of a small modular pressurised water reactor. With the advent of nuclear propulsion and growing popularity of lng, the marine propulsion engines market is expected to witness considerable growth over the forecast period. A very persuasive reason for investigating the applicability of nuclear power in rockets is the vast energy density gain of nuclear fuel when compared to chemical combustion energy. The power plant heats water to produce steam for a turbine used to turn the ships propeller through a gearbox or through an electric generator and motor. The authors have been working to develop a concept nuclear thermal engine that uses a grooved ring fuel element as an alternative to the traditional hexagonal rod design. Fossil fuel propulsion displacement operating profile nuclear propulsion lifecycle costs nuclear propulsion oil price. Naval nuclear propulsion system and us enterprise fas us navy. The conceptual design of a nuclear power propulsion system npps. Nuclear thermal propulsion systems nuclear thermal propulsion systems were the first nuclear style propulsion system to be analyzed for use in spacecraft. The propulsion system may be split in three parts fig. The uk naval nuclear propulsion programme and highly enriched.

The uk naval nuclear propulsion programme and highly enriched uranium dr nick ritchie university of york, uk february 2015 the uk naval nuclear propulsion programme nnpp is highly dependent upon the united states for reactor technology and, in the past, highly enriched. At current conventional marine fuel prices and assuming that large ships will be. In a hybrid system, mechanical and electric engines work together to provide power for propulsion and hotel loads, optimizing the fuel efficiency of vessels with a flexible power demand. The role of the ncps in the development of advanced nuclear propulsion systems could be analogous to the role of the dc3 in the development of advanced aviation. Easy access to the engine components and low noise levels ensure a more ef. Craft that uses a nuclear power propulsion system npps. Gao06789r propulsion systems for navy ships and submarines. Global marine propulsion engines market by product usd million, 2012 2020.

Jun 10, 2015 amongst all the speculations and standing doubts about use of marine propulsion system based on nuclear energy, there are some key factors that make this a good idea, whatever way you look at it. Fossil fuel steam plants widely used in surface combatants until the late 60s, when they began to be replaced by gas turbines nuclear fuel steam plants currently used by. Strategies for the commercial success of nuclear powered. Nuclear propulsion is the alternative to vulnerable fuel resupply. Spent fuel storage system level options between new terminals nuclear regulation. Nuclear propulsiona vital technology for the exploration. The preliminary project of such a carrier fuel system is.

Study of a tricarbide grooved ring fuel element for. To answer this question there are a few subquestions. In which way will nuclear energy be suitable for ship propulsion. Supersystem level modular nuclear powered tug boat or power box hydrogen for ship power generated by nuclear nuclear reactor in ship on existing routes bulk carriers oil tankers lng lpg vessels system level sub system level. So far, exaggerated fears about safety have caused political restriction on port access. Nuclear marine propulsion is propulsion of a ship or submarine with heat provided by a nuclear power plant. Even if allowed, security requirements associated with the use of heu could result in very significant impacts to the cost and schedule of development, qualification, and utilization of nuclear thermal propulsion ntp systems that use heu. Nuclear propulsion pdf nuclear marine propulsion, particularly aircraft carriers fig.

Nuclear thermal rocket propulsion systems lawrence. When nuclear energy was first harnessed, the us navy became extremely interested in using it to power its fleet of submarines. Speaking generally about the present estimates, he pointed out that marine nuclear. Marine nuclear propulsion presentation to kivinns symposium 31117.

Nuclear naval propulsion 7 the s1c reactor used an electric drive rather than a steam turbine like in the subsequent s5w reactor design rated at 78 mwth and a 93 percent u235 enriched core that was the standard in the 1970s. Find out information about nuclear marine propulsion. The system introduction nuclear marine propulsion is a ship propulsion using a nuclear reactor. It sets out how we got to the current technological solutions and examines a wide range of possibilities for future ship powering options. In future, constraints on fossil fuel use in transport may bring marine nuclear propulsion into more widespread use. Many of these warships and naval auxiliaries demand highperformance, flexible and durable propulsion systems. Rms qm queen mary was a steamer cruise of 29 pax, built in 1936 and retired in 1967.

One of the goals in the marine industry today is to reduce the impact of co 2 emissions from ships and, therefore, to reduce the fuel consumption for the propulsion of ships to the widest possible extent at any load. A nuclear thermal rocket ntr is a type of thermal rocket where the heat from a nuclear reaction, often nuclear fission, replaces the chemical energy of the propellants in a chemical rocket. Game changing technology for deep space exploration. Nuclear power in marine propulsion maritime symposium rotterdam. Nuclearpowered ships nuclear submarines world nuclear. Environmental concerns, stringent emission norms, availability of fossil fuels are the factors driving global nuclear fuel market for marine propulsion systems. The course also investigates thermodynamic analyses of rankine, brayton, diesel, and combined cycles, reduction gears and integrated electric drive. Steam propulsion first type of propulsion to replace sail power. Nuclear fuel market for marine propulsion systems industry. Navys interest in marine nuclear propulsion in 1939, resetting the clock on 17 january 1955 with the worlds first underway on nuclear power by the uss nautilus, and then tracing the development and exploitation of nuclear.