Products & Development Information
- Nuclear Thermal Rocket Environmental Simulator (NTRES)
This ASME Section VIII, Division 1 vessel was manufactured for the Propulsion Research Laboratory at Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) here in Huntsville, AL. TBE worked in conjunction with the MSFC designers to develop a U-stamped vessel that was both manufacturable and met their design needs. When completely assembled the vessel weighs over 17,000 lbs and measures 4 ft. in diameter and over 15' long. The vessel is rated to 1100 psig and has an integral water jacket for cooling purposes.
Nuclear Waste Canisters
TBE has been manufacturing nuclear waste storage canisters for over 6 years. To date, we have manufactured over 1,250 canisters for the Savannah River Site. These canisters are manufactured in our Huntsville, AL facility using a leading-edge automatic robotic welding system. Every weld receives full radiography to ensure that no defects occur. Each canister is then subjected to pressure testing and helium leak testing prior to being prepared for shipment.
Fuel Square Bundle Tubes
The Experimental Boiling Water Reactor (EBWR) Fuel Square Bundle Tubes were fabricated by TBE during the period of September 2002 to April 2003 and shipped to WSRC for storage of nuclear fuel. WSRC used this hardware for experimental development purposes. The Bundle Tubes were fabricated of 6061 aluminum tube using welding procedures and welders qualified to ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, Section IX.
Material Test Reactor Equivalent (MTRE) Storage Racks
The Material Test Reactor Equivalent (MTRE) Storage Racks were fabricated by TBE during the period September 2002 to April 2003 and shipped to WSRC to store Bundling Tubes, which contain nuclear fuel. WSRC used the MTRE Storage Racks for experimental development purposes. The Racks are approximately 3.5 ft wide by 6 ft long by 12 ft high and are constructed of 6061 aluminum 6 x 6 square tubes in a 4 x 10 array with aluminum channel and tube supports and bracing. The fabrication was performed using welding procedures and welders qualified to ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, Section IX.
Gas Centrifuge Enrichment Plant (GCEP) Contract
In 1980, Teledyne Brown Engineering was first awarded a contract to provide production equipment for a Gas Centrifuge Enrichment Plant being constructed in Piketon, Ohio. This U.S. Department of Energy project was considered to be one of the world’s largest fabrication and assembly projects and involved many national companies. TBE’s part in this project was to provide service module assemblies to equip the first processing building at the plant, which consisted of eight processing buildings, each of which housed several hundred of the service and aisle module assemblies. The major assemblies were 44 feet by 8 feet by 13 feet in size and were compared to the equivalent of 250 railroad cars strung together in each 7-acre building at the Piketon facility.
TBE’s Decatur Operations, previously a steel component and assembly facility for nuclear power plant fabrication, underwent a major “switchover” to accommodate the unique and high-quality welding requirements for GCEP. TBE not only succeeded in meeting the challenging first delivery deadline, but its shipment was the first production equipment to arrive at the plant in Piketon. Teledyne Brown’s success in this manufacturing area continued when the contract option for additional units was granted in 1982.
TBE's Nuclear Steel Manufacturing History - Decatur Operations
Teledyne Brown Engineering has a successful history of manufacturing large structural steel assemblies and components for the nuclear power industry. In 1974, Teledyne Brown established the Decatur Operations facility due to an outgrowth of the Company’s commercial products activities – at that time, the fastest-growing major element of TBE. The plant ran second-shift operations, underwent major equipment expansions, and continued to add sales and staff as dramatic growth continued.
Some structural assemblies fabricated at the Decatur Operations facility weighed more than 15 tons each. Carbon, alloy, and stainless-steel manufacturing techniques were employed to comply with ASME nuclear codes, AWS specifications, and NRC requirements. The Company’s reputation and ability to meet these rigid quality standards led to its venture into structural assemblies for nuclear power plants until the construction of such plants diminished and there was no longer a need for plant equipment.
