ADVANCED SYSTEMS AND CONCEPTS FOR FUTURE NAVAL WARFARE - COMPACT NUCLEAR REACTOR PROPULSION

THROUGHOUT THE HISTORY OF MILITARY CONFLICT, INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY IN THE HANDS OF RESOURCEFUL LEADERSHIP HAS PROVED TO BE AN UNEQUALED FORCE MULTIPLIER. NAVAL BATTLE FORCE WARFARE IN THE YEARS 2000 AND BEYOND MUST BE CAPABLE OF MISSION EXECUTION AND DEFENSE IN A MULTIPLICITY OF SUBSURFACE, SURFACE, AEROSPACE AND SPACE PLATFORMS. MANY OF THESE MISSIONS REQUIRE PROPULSION SYSTEMS AND POWER GENERATION NOT AVAILABLE WITH STATE-OF-THE-ART SYSTEMS. BELTRAN, INC., IN CONJUNCTION WITH DR. JAMES R. POWELL, IS APPLYING THE WORK OF THE DOE BROOKHAVEN NATIONAL LABORATORY IN THE DESIGN OF SMALL COMPACT NUCLEAR REACTORS WHICH CAN BE APPLIED TO NAVAL BATTLE FORCE WARFARE APPLICATIONS. SINCE NUCLEAR FUELS PROVIDE APPROXIMATELY ONE MILLION TIMES THE ENERGY PER UNIT WEIGHT OF CHEMICAL FUELS, VAST INCREASES IN PERFORMANCE ARE POSSIBLE FOR UNMANNED VEHICLE APPLICATIONS WHICH CAN INCLUDE REMOTELY PILOTED VEHICLES (RPV) AIRCRAFT, TORPEDOS, SUBMERSIBLE RPV'S (ROBOT SUBMARINES), AND SPACECRAFT OR SATELLITE PROPULSION AND POWER GENERATION.