United States Patent 1191

[11]

Ploger et al.

1451 Nov. 18, 1975

1541 EXPLOSIVE-ACTIVATED PLUG

[75} lnventors: Manfred Ploger; Lothar Stieding,
both of Erlangen. Germany
[73] Assignce: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft, Munich,

Germany

3,919,940

OTHER PUBLlCATlO NS

Pub1.: Military Explosives" Dept. of Army Tech.

Manual TM 9-Apr1 1963 (pp. 102-105. 152-159).
PI'UHUI') E.tuminer-Richard C, Queisser

[22] Filed:
Aug. 15, 1973
[21] Appl. No; 388,754

Attorneyv Agent, or l-irmKen)'on 1S; Kenyon Reilly

Carr & Chapin

[30]

15 71

Ass/smut Eruminer~Daniel M. Yasich

Foreign Application Priority Data

Aug. 25. 1972

German) ........................... . 2241753

[52]

US. Cl. ............. .. 102/24 R; 29/421 E; 138/89:

1511
[58]

Int. Cl. ........................ .. F4211 3/04; F1611 55/18

Field of Search .... 1. 138/89, 97, 103; 102/24 R;

138/97
29/421 E

[56]

References Cited
UNITED STATES PATENTS

1212.044

8/1940

1344.510

10/1967

3.785.291

1/1974

Ridle}; ............ .,
Kamcishi

ct a] 1 . . 4 . 1 1

ABSTRACT

An explosive-activated plug for sealing the end of a

defective tube in a heat exchanger having parts made
of a nickel-chromium. heat-resistant alloy. is charged
with a detonutor and explosive encased by an alumi

num sleeve and having compositions which leave only

lead-free products of combustion after ?ring. This
keeps the heat exchanger free from lead which tends
to promote intergranular corrosion of the nickel

chromium alloy when the heat exchanging medium is

pressurized water, and facilitates handling of the

102/24 R X
1 . . 1 1 . ..

29/421

charge.

4 Claims, 1 Drawing Figure

Bergbauer et ul ........... 11 29/421 E X

23
21
35

2
0L
\

22

Ll.
L5

U.S. Patent

3,919,940

Nov. 18, 1975

23
21

as
2

4.1
(I)

,3

41.1.
as

22

? as
32

H1 v

3,919,940
2

and removal of the cartridge of an installed plug, appar

EXPLOSIVE-ACTIVATED PLUG

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A pressurized water-coolant nuclear reactor installa

tion provides useful heat by a water flow through the

ently some of the lead could remain to contaminate the

pressurized water-coolant flow through the heat ex

changer tubes. With the pressurized water operating at
5 temperatures in the area of 300C, the lead apparently
could initiate the intergranaular stress-corrosion attrib

utable to the possible cracking problem involved by the

nickel-chromiun alloy parts of the heat exchanger, the
changers of the tubular type. The water-coolant is pres
coolant operating under a pressure consistent with
surized to prevent it from boiling and it is passed
maintaining it liquid at the temperatures noted. The
alloy particularly involved was lnconel 600.
through the heat exchangers tubes which convert
Concerning the ?ring failure possibilities, it was as
water into steam which can be used for power pur
certained that handling of the cartridge involved possi
poses. The pressurized watercoolant is radioactive to
some degree and it must not be permitted to come into
ble displacement ofthe relative positions of the detona
contact with the water being converted to steam in the 15 tor and explosive. The cartridge casing of molded
heat exchanger.
paper or plastic was required to transmit the explosive
force to the plug body and then permit removal of the
For the above reason, the heat exchanger is carefully
constructed with its tubes and tube sheet made ofnick
cartridge, but improved security of the parts was con
sidered to be desirable.
el-chromium, heat-resistant alloy, as exempli?ed by In
The present ivention solves the intergranular stress
conel 600. The tubes are subject to rigid inspections,
reactors pressure vessel and one or more heat ex

and if one becomes faulty, the ends of that tube must be

plugged to put it safely out of service. The heat ex

corrosion trouble possibility by using compositions for

changer is usually the vertical type with a horizontal

sibly leave any lead after ?ring. In particular, the deto

nator composition is diazodinitrophenol (CHH2N4OS)

both the detonator and the explosive which cannot pos

tube sheet in which an upstanding nest of U-shaped

tubes are installed, the bottom of the heat exchanger's 25 and the explosive providing the plug-to-tube welding
casing being constructed to feed the pressurized water~
force is tetryl (C1H5N5O5). Neither can leave lead de
coolant into the U-shaped tubes at one end of the nest
posits.
with the coolant exhausting at the other end.
Furthermore, the cartridge is made more positively

reliable concerning firing certainty by encasing both

To plug the ends of a faluty tube, explosive-activated
plugs are used, an example being disclosed by U.S. Pat. 30 the detonator and the explosvie, each in cyclindrical
form, together in a thin aluminum sheath or tube me
No. 3,590,877, dated July 6, 1971. An improved form
chanically integrating the two parts, the tube being sur
of such a plug is disclosed by the Bergbauer et. al. U.S.
rounded by the former molded paper or plastic car
patent application Ser. No. 253,853, ?led May 16,
tridge casing. Aluminum has been found to be so softly
1972 and issued Jan. I5, 1974 as U.S. Pat. No.
3,785,29l. Among other features, this improved plug

35 malleable or easily deformable as to not detract appre

has a body made of the same alloy as the tube to be

ciably from the explosive force relied on to weld the

plugged, and having a blind bore extending into the

body from its back end and its back end external por
tion being tapered to assure that that portion of the
plug ?rmly welds to the tubes inside under the force

plug body to the tubes inside, while being mechani

cally rigid enough to reliably position the tube parts.

The molded paper or plastic cartridge casing prevents
the aluminum tube itself from welding to the inside of

the plug body, the cartridge being as easily removed

resulting when the explosive is detonated, the exxplo

sive being positioned within the tapered portion. Also,
the necessary detonator and the explosive are encased
by non-metallic material, such as molded paper or plas
tic, to form a cartridge which after the plug body is in 45
serted in the end ofa faulty tube, may be inserted in the

bodys blind bore and, after ?ring, removed so that only

the plug remains, welded to the tubes inside.
It has been found that after a heat exchanger having
one or more of its tubes thus plugged has been in ser

vice for some time, that it is troubled by possible stress

corrosion cracking problems, apparently intergranular

from the plug body after ?ring as it was when com

pletely non-metallic in nature.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
An example of the present invention is illustrated in
the form of a longitudinal section by the single FIG

URE of the accompanying drawing.

50

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to this drawing, the numeral 2 designates

the plug with its cartridge 3, the plug body 21 being

largely cylindrical but having its back end 22 tapered

in nature. Insertion of the cartridge intto the blind bore

with an angularity indicated at a of from 2 to 6. The
of the plug body after the latter was pushed in a tube
end, had to be done very carefully to assure positive ?r 55 plug body is in this case made of Inconel 600, widely
used in the construction of nuclear reactor pressurized
ing by the detonator, the latter being electrically ?red
water-coolant heat exchangers. Otherwise than for this
after installation of the cartridge, from a remote safe
tapered back end 22, the plug body has a diameter ?t
location. Firing failure, if it occurred, would require
ting slidably but snugly the inside of the tube T to be
manual removal of the cartridge for its inspection, this
60 plugged. The blind bore is shwon at 23, it extending for
being hazardous.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention results from a study of the pos

sible intergranular stress-corrosion trouble, and firing

substantially the full length of the plug body. The latter

has a somewhat sharply tapered front end for ease of
initial insertion in the tube to be plugged.

The cartridge 3 is shown inserted in the plug body's

65 blind bore and as being made of the molded paper or

failures.
plastic, the cartridge having the tail piece 33 facilitating
These studies resulted in the discovery that the deto
its insertion in the blind bore 23 after the plug body is
nator and explosive compositions were such that their

products of combustion contained lead. After firing

inserted, it being understood that the plug body would

3,919,940
3

normally be dimensioned to form a force ?t with the

I. An explosive-activated plug for sealing the end of

a tube comprising part of a heat exchanger including
tube parts made of nickel-chromium, heat-resistant al
loy, said plug being made of a corresponding alloy as
the nickel chromium alloy and shaped for a snug. slide
able insertion in the tube end and having a longitudi
nally extending blind bore in which is removably posi

tubes inside sufficient to keep the plug in position after

its initial insertion. The electric detonator wires 41 are

shown as leading through the molded cartridge casing

from the detonator shown at 44, the explosive charge
45 being located within the tapered back portion of the

plug body. The body's tapered portion avoids using a

shaped explosive charge, both the detonator 44 and the

tioned a cartridge including a detonator and an explo

explosive charge 45 being cylindrical, and therefore

sive, the cartridge including an explosive force-trans

mitting casing made of non-metallic material; wherein

easy to fabricate.
The new thin-walled aluminum tube is shown at 46, it

the improvement comprises an aluminum thin walled

tubing mechanically integrating both said detonator

and explosive, and said detonator and explosive having
compositions which after combustion leave only lead
free deposits.

being long enough to integrate the detonator and ex

plosive charge mechanically.

As previously described, both the detonator and ex

plosive have compositions leaving only lead-free depos

its after firing: the tube 46 is made of aluminum. After
?ring, the cartridge casing may be removed as easily as
was the casing made completely of non-metallic parts,
the aluminum tube not welding to the inside of the plug
body. After ?ring, the plug body is welded to the inside

2. The plug of claim 1 in which said thin walled tub

ing is a thin metal sleeve enclosing the detonator and
explosive, said sleeve being inside of said force-trans

of the tube as firmly as ever.

charge of diazodinitrophenol and said explosive is a

mitting casing made of non-metallic material.

3. The plug of claim 1 in which said detonator is a

charge of tetryl.
Also, as previously described, the detonator charge
4. The plug of claim 2 in which said detonator is a
44 is diazodinitrophenol (C,H,N,O,,) and the explosive
charge is tetryl (C1H5N5Os). Neither leave lead depos 25 charge of diazodinitrophenol and said explosive is a

charge of tetryl.

its.
What is claimed is:

it

30

35

45

55

65

=8