Experimental study on the heat transfer performance of a stainless-steel heat pipe with sintered fiber wick

A kind of stainless-steel heat pipe with sintered fiber wick is investigated with the aim to improve the heat dissipation when it is used in spent fuel pool in nuclear power plant. The effects of test angle, porosity and the filling rate on the heat transfer performance of the heat pipe are studied. At test angle 90°, the permeability plays an important role on the power limit since gravity can provide the necessary driving force. Larger porosity involves with poor heat conductivity although it results in better permeability. When test angle is zero gravity is no longer the driving force. In this case, the evaporation section can still avoid dry burning because part of the evaporation section is dipped in the deionized water. Therefore, permeability and filling ratio are two important factors influencing the power limit. Filling rate determines the vapor flowing space. When test angle is smaller than zero, gravity becomes resistance force. Then the lag tension and the filling rate exert greatest influence on the performance of the heat pipe. Smaller porosity corresponds to smaller contact angle.

Investigation on Solid State Phase Transformations in a 2510 Duplex Stainless Steel Grade

Duplex and Super Duplex Stainless Steels are very prone to secondary phases formation related to ferrite decomposition at high temperatures. In the present paper the results on secondary phase precipitation in a 2510 Duplex Stainless Steel, heat treated in the temperature range 850-1050 °C for 3-30 minutes are presented. The precipitation starts at grain boundaries with a consistent ferrite transformation for very short times. The noses of the TTP curves are at 1000 °C for σ-phase and at 900 °C for χ-phase, respectively. The precipitation sequence involves a partial transformation of χ into σ, as previously evidenced in 2205 and 2507 grades. Furthermore, the experimental data were compared to the results of Thermo-Calc calculations.