A HIGH EFFICIENCY VAPOR-FED ALKALI METAL THERMAL-TO-ELECTRICCONVERTER SYSTEM FOR DIRECT CONVERSION

THE ALKALI METAL THERMAL TO ELECTRIC CONVERTER (AMTEC) IS A HIGH TEMPERATURE, HIGH EFFICIENCY SYSTEM WITH NO MOVING PARTS FOR CONVERTING THERMAL TO ELECTRICAL ENERGY. PUBLISHED CONCEPTUAL DESIGN STUDIES ON NUCLEAR SPACE POWER SYSTEMS USING AN AMTEC VAPOR-FED CELL HAVE SHOWN THAT THIS TECHNOLOGY OFFERS SIGNIFICANT ADVANTAGES OVER A RANGE OF OTHER ENERGY CONVERSION TECHNOLOGIES. ZERO-GRAVITY (G) FLUID MANAGEMENT AND INTEGRATION OF AN ELECTROMAGNETIC (EM) OR CAPILLARY PUMP INTO CELL OPERATION ARE KEY ELEMENTS IN THE OPERATION OF THIS CELL. THIS PROJECT PROVIDES THE REQUIRED BASIC RESEARCH TO QUANTIFY EM/CAPILLARY PUMP OPERATIONAL CAPABILITIES, IDENTIFY INNOVATIVE DESIGN SOLUTIONS, AND DEVELOP THE CELL CONCEPT FOR ZERO-G SPACE OPERATION. PHASE I INVOLVES DETERMINATION OF CAPILLARY PUMPING LIMITS AND INCLUDES A SMALL STATE-OF-THE-ART DEMONSTRATION TEST AND AN ASSESSMENT OF ADVANCED TECHNOLOGIES. PLANNED FOR PHASE II IS THE DESIGN OF AN AMTEC CELL THAT USES THE CAPILLARY PUMP CAPABILITIES AND MINIMIZES THE NECESSARY CONTRIBUTION OF THE EM PUMP. THIS TECHNOLOGY IS TO BE INTEGRATED WITH ADVANCED CONDENSER DESIGNS TO PROVIDE AN OPERATIONAL ZERO-G CELL.