A Heat Pipe Coupled Planar Thermionic Converter: Performance Characterization, Nondestructive Testing, and Evaluation

This report provides the technical details on the research activities conducted by Wright Laboratory and UES, Inc. personnel during the period of August 1990 to November 1991. The performance of two heat pipe coupled, planar thermionic energy converters was characterized using experimental and analy...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Young, Timothy J, Lamp, Thomas R, Tsao, Bang-Hung, Ramalingam, Mysore L
Format: Report
Language:English
Subjects:
CESIUM
COMPUTERS
CONVERTERS
CURRENT DENSITY
DENSITY
DIODES
ENERGY
FACILITIES
FAILURE
FLORIDA
HEAT
HEAT PIPES
LABORATORIES
MOLYBDENUM
NONDESTRUCTIVE TESTING
PE63218C
PEAK POWER
PERSONNEL
PIPES
POWER
RESERVOIRS
RHENIUM
SIMULATION
THERMIONIC COUPLER
Thermodynamics
TOMOGRAPHY
WUWLD8120001
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Summary:This report provides the technical details on the research activities conducted by Wright Laboratory and UES, Inc. personnel during the period of August 1990 to November 1991. The performance of two heat pipe coupled, planar thermionic energy converters was characterized using experimental and analytical methods. Nondestructive failure analysis was performed to evaluate the causes for the failure of a molybdenum-rhenium converter. The experimentation was carded out at the thermionic facilities at the USAF Wright Laboratory while the computer simulations were performed at Wright Laboratory and the University of Central Florida. A maximum current density of 10.1 amps/cm2 and a peak power density of 7.7 watts/cM2 were obtained from the rhenium-rhenium diode operating in the ignited mode.