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- Title
Powering the Red Planet in Pursuit of Becoming Interplanetary Species.
- Authors
Mehta, Vedant
- Abstract
Microreactors are state-of-the-art reactor concept with power level rated in- between 1 kWe to 10 MWe. Yttrium-Hydride is being considered as primary moderator for microreactor due to its superior hydrogen containment capability compared to other hydrides. However, as all hydrides, yttrium hydride experiences hydrogen dissociation (and thus losses) at elevated temperatures. This loss affects the neutronics of the system due to the availability of less hydrogen, and hence less moderation. Several material property data is missing for yttrium hydride. In the first part of the study, we investigate material data generation from the first principle quantum mechanical simulations. These properties include thermal scattering laws, diffusion coefficients, heat capacities etc. In parallel, advanced multiphysics simulation techniques are developed to further understand the dependence of neutronics and thermomechanics on hydrogen dissociation. The newly created data from quantum mechanics is then implemented in the advanced multiphysics toolset to properly understand how the microreactor evolves over time. Finally, system optimization is applied to generate the ideal reactor candidate for space applications including nuclear electric propulsion and surface power production. This presentation covers material data generation, benchmark, multiphysics toolset creation, and system optimization.
- Subjects
ELECTRIC propulsion; SYSTEMS availability; MATHEMATICAL optimization; HEAT capacity; MATERIALS science; THERMAL properties; ELECTRIC propulsion of space vehicles
- Publication
New Mexico Journal of Science, 2019, Vol 53, p38
- ISSN
0270-3017
- Publication type
Article