Abstract
EXPERIMENTS have been performed in the reactor Pluto as a stage in the development of cæsium-neutralized diodes for the direct conversion of fission heat to electric power. This work is similar to that being carried out in the United States, and the first fission-operated diode was reported by Grover at Los Alamos in 19591. Due to its greater cathode area, the present device has produced a larger value of output current than hitherto reported and incorporates a number of new features. Measurements were made with two rigs, the object being to test the fuel rod material and method of mounting, to determine temperature distributions and heat transfer data and to study the performance of the diodes as generators.
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References
Grover, G. M., Nucleonics, 54 (1959).
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DUNN, P., RICE, G., SANDERS, L. et al. Direct Conversion of Fission Heat to Electric Power. Nature 195, 65–66 (1962). https://doi.org/10.1038/195065b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/195065b0
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