Cooling pond for spent fuel elements of light water nuclear reactors

摘要

Spent fuel elements of light water nuclear reactors are stored in cooling ponds (1) until the decay of their afterheat or until reprocessing. For this purpose, the cooling ponds (1) are provided with so-called spent fuel storage racks (2). In order to avoid damage in the event of earthquakes, these spent fuel storage racks (2) are supported against one another and against the pond wall via special elements (4). The latter consist of a piston (42) guided in a cylinder (41) and represent with respect to forces which suddenly occur in the horizontal direction rigid supports against low changes in position, e.g. they are automatically adjusted in length due to thermal expansion.