SBIR/STTR Research Award
Heat Pipe Emitters for Thermionic Fuel Elements
Award amount
$68,895Program and phase
SBIR · Phase IAward year
1992Award details
- Awarding agency
- Department of Defense
- Branch
- Missile Defense Agency
- Recipient company
- Boyd Lancaster, Inc.
- Proposal award date
- Not reported
- Contract end date
- Not reported
- UEI
- HUT3XNPLRL77
- Solicitation number
- Not reported
- Topic code
- Not reported
Research abstract
Isothermalizing a Thermionic Fuel Element (TFE) may increase efficiency from 8.78% to 10.8%. Phase I will design an isothermal heat pipe for the thin emitter wall of a long TFE. Recently demonstrated two-phase flow in sintered power metal wick structures will be used to achieve isothermal conditions in heat pipes. Hardware will be tested to demonstrate the principle. A successful design will also permit out-of-core thermionic reactors whereby a heat pipe delivers heat from the core to the thermionic unit, circumventing current problems of fuel swelling, neutron damage and life expectancy and allowing simplification of future designs.
Technology keywords
Not reported
Other awards by this recipient
Verified by the same UEI. These are other public SBIR/STTR award pages, not a merged company record.
- Additive Manufacturing of Heat Pipe Wicks
- Radar/EW Aperture Cold Plate Innovation for Increased Thermal Performance
- Innovative Heat Sink Technology for Application to Aircraft Systems
- Radar/EW Aperture Cold Plate Innovation for Increased Thermal Performance
- Durable Solution for Compressor Airfoil Leading Edges in Gas Turbine Engines
Research funding history
137 SBIR/STTR records share this UEI (1983–2014). Reported award amounts total $29,166,147. Reported amounts are not federal obligations.
Phases: Phase I, Phase II
Agencies: Department of Defense, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Department of Energy, Environmental Protection Agency, National Science Foundation