Abstract
An integration study was performed by Rocketdyne coupling an SP‐100 reactor to either a Brayton, Stirling, or K‐Rankine power conversion system. The application was for a surface power system to supply power requirements to a lunar base. A power level of 550 kWe was selected based on the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Space Exploration Initiative 90‐day study. Reliability studies were initially performed to determine optimum power conversion redundancy. This study resulted in selecting three operating engines and one standby unit. Integration design studies indicated that either of the three power conversion systems could be integrated with the SP‐100 reactor. From a performance consideration, the Brayton and Stirling mass was approximately 45% higher than the K‐Rankine. The K‐Rankine radiator area was 45% of the Stirling, which in turn was about 40% of the Brayton.
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