History
In 1966, ETEC began as the Liquid Metals Engineering Center (LMEC). The LMEC was created by the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission to provide development and non-nuclear testing of liquid metal reactor components. The Liquid Metals Information Center (LMIC) was established at the same time by the AEC. The LMIC served as a technical information library relating to liquid metals and liquid metal components for the United States government. Both the LMEC and LMIC supported the United States Government’s Liquid Metal Fast Breeder Reactor program.
The LMEC and the LMIC were established within a western portion of Santa Susana Field Laboratory called Area IV. In 1978, the LMEC charter was expanded to include general energy-related technology and the center was renamed the Energy Technology Engineering Center. Research and development at ETEC primarily involved metallic sodium because the proposed Fast Breeder Reactor required liquid sodium to operate. Sodium was chosen because it has desirable heat transfer properties, a low operating pressure when compared to water, and sodium has a relatively low melting point.
The liquid metal components tested included steam generators, pumps, valves, flow meters and a variety of instrumentation. Investigation into the metallurgical properties of piping exposed to the high temperatures for long periods of time was also performed. The Components were designed and fabricated then installed into a test facility and evaluated under operating conditions with the overall goal of improving the reliability and safety of the components and ultimately, the nuclear reactor the components would be used in.
The ETEC personnel operated several unique test facilities to evaluate nuclear reactor component tests using metallic sodium. One facility, the Sodium Pump Test Facility, capable of circulating up to 55,000 gallons of liquid sodium per minute at temperatures up to 1,300 °F (704 °C), was the largest sodium pump test facility in the world.
Read more about this topic: Energy Technology Engineering Center
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