NUCLEAR BATTERY presented by:

PRAYAG P

4KM08EC041

WHAT WE WILL COVER…!!!INTRODUCTIONHISTORICAL DEVELOPMENTSENERGY PRODUCTION MECHANISMFUEL CONSIDERATIONSMAIN FUELSADVANTAGESDRAWBACKSAPPLICATIONSCONCLUSION

INTRODUCTION With the advancement in Technology, there exist a great need for small, compact,

reliable & light weight power supplies.

For very high power applications such as RADAR, adv. Commn satellites & for high Tech. weapons Nuclear Battery is used.

Nuclear Battery: Thermo-Electric generator converts the radio active energy released during decay of natural radio active element into electrical energy.

A long-term energy source with life-span measured in decades & 200 times efficient than ordinary battery.

Provide clean, safe & endless energy. Does not rely on nuclear reaction & does not produce radio active waste.

Nuclear Accelerated Generator(NAG) –New form of nuclear power conversion tech. MEMS lab is using adv. Tech. for the fabrication of NAG devices.

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENTSNuclear Battery was introduced in the beginning of 1950 and was patented

on Mar 3, 1959 to TRACER Lab.

Paul Brown first developed radioisotope electric power system.

Brown’s discovery of a method to harness magnetic energy emitted by the alpha & beta particles inherent in nuclear material was the key to Nuclear battery.

The amount of power generated from the electric charges & the kinetic energy produced by successive collision of alpha & beta particles has been very small.

Brown invented an approach to “organize” these magnetic fields so that the otherwise unobservable energy can be harnessed.

ENERGY PRODUCTION MECHANISMBETAVOLTAICS Betavoltaics are generators of electric current, which uses energy from a

radioactive source emitting beta particles.

The functioning is similar to a solar panel which converts photons into electric current.

Uses a Si wafer to capture electrons emitted by radioactive material & is coated with a diode material to create a potential barrier.

The radiation absorbed in the vicinity of potential barrier will generate electron –hole pairs which in turn flow in an electric circuit due to the VOLTAIC EFFECT.

SELF RECIPROCATING CANTILEVER

Consist of a cantilever which collects the charged particles emitted from the radioisotope .

The Electrostatic force between radioisotope & the cantilever attracts the cantilever towards the source.

When it reaches near the radioisotope, the charge gets neutralized & electrostatic force is removed as a result cantilever retracts back to original position..This cycle repeats.

The cantilever acts as a charge integrator allowing energy to be stored & convert it into mechanical & electrical forms.

FUEL CONSIDERATIONSMajor criteria considered in the selection of fuels are:

Avoidance of gamma in the decay chain

The fuel which gives off gamma radiation requires shielding for safety that adds weight in mobile applications.

Eg:- Radium-226

Half-Life

Period of time it takes for the amount of substance undergoing decay to decrease by half..

Particle Range

Charged particle ionize & lose energy in many steps until energy is

almost zero, the distance to this point I called Range of Particle.

MAIN FUELSNickel-63 (Ni-63)

Strontium-90 (Sr-90)

Promitium-147 (Pm-147)

Uranium-238 (U-238)

Tin-121 (Sn-121)

Uranium-235 (U-235)

Tantalum-180m

Proposed Model of NAG

A prototype car model using NAG

ADVANTAGESFuel Source:

Radioactive isotopes which are being produced as a part of radioactive waste are used as fuel. Can withstand more than 400 yrs. No meltdowns, no danger of explosions & other catastrophic incidents.

Oil Dependency:

A large percent of foreign dependence could be eliminated if use device such as NAG more widely, which in turn will decrease the price of oil & gas.

Safety: NAG needs no large scale containment or special shielding. No ext.

emissions & produces no contaminated steam that can leak. No nuclear waste. Also Radioisotopes that power NAG do not need to be cooled. 1 Gm of Sr-90 can produce 10,000 watts of power & heat.

Adaptability: NAG is Adaptable to widely differing applications, both in civilian & military. Able

to handle tasks for large metropolitan & rural areas alike. Tanks fitted with NAG could run for years without any interruption. Civilian needs include disaster relief activities.

Cost/Efficiency: Cost of fuel is considerably less as the radioactive isotopes are present abundantly.

Power Output: NAG Technology could produce power 30-50 times more than conventional nuclear

technology.

Radiological Damage: It is very safe. Device is self contained with little or no X-rays. Beta particles are

never emitted outside the casing of device. Special shielding is added for the Gamma rays.

Repair & Maintenance: Every NAG will have a life –span of min. 10 yrs then the source can be replaced

very easily. Maintenance, removal & reinsertion is very simple.

DRAWBACKSThe initial cost of production is very high. Price will drop as product goes

operational.

For certain specific applications, size of nuclear battery may cause problem.

The existing laws may come as a blow for usage & disposal of radioactive materials.

Nuclear energy began to lose its status following a series of major accidents occurred before which reduced its social acceptance.

APPLICATIONSSpace Applications: when satellite pass through radiation belts such as Van-Allen belts around

the earth there is chance for the destruction of solar cells. Operations on moon & mars require heavy batteries where long periods of darkness . In opaque atmosphere such as venus lack of light.

Medical Applications: Due to increased longevity n better reliability it is used in medical devices

such as pacemakers, implanted defibrillators etc. In cardiac pacemakers.Mobile Devices: Xcell-N nuclear powered laptop battery that provide 7-8 thousand times

the life of a normal battery. Xcell is in continous work for the last 8 months and has not been turned off.

Automobiles: Initial stages of development. Hopefully soon the conventional

fuels will be replaced from the automobiles by Nuclear battery. Fox Valley Electric Auto Association already conducted seminars on its scope.

Military Applications:

Nuclear Battery is a very beneficial resource for Army as it is much lighter compared to other chemical batteries and will last longer. The source is well suited to active RF equipments, sensors n ultra wide band commn chips.

Under Water Sea Probes & Sea Sensors:

Use of sensors that works for a long time is used to detect any natural calamities such as earthquakes n Tsunami. Thus the underwater sea probes & sea sensors makes use of Nuclear Battery for their functioning.

CONCLUSION As the Technology grows need for power also

grows. Also we don’t have much abundant fuels present in the earth’s crust to meet this need. Thus the use of power as heat & electricity from the radioisotopes can be used to meet this need which has high longevity.

REFERENCE“Power from Radioisotopes” USAEC, Division of Technical

Information.“Nuclear and Radiochemistry” , Gerhart Friedlandler,

Joseph .W. Kennedy.“The Half-life of a Nuclear Battery” , Philip. H. Talbert.“Particles and Nuclei, An Introduction to the Physical

Concepts” , B. Povh, K. Rith, C. Scholz and F. Zetche.

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