空间核动力技术概览与发展脉络初探

Survey and venation analysis on space nuclear power

在概略介绍现有技术方案基础上,初步探讨空间核动力技术的发展脉络,并分析其未来发展方向。基于固体核反应堆的空间核电源、核电推进及核热推进,是经过试验验证可行、具有一定技术基础并可预期实现空间应用的空间核动力技术。更先进的概念方案包括:基于气体核反应堆的核电源/核热推进、脉冲核爆推进、核裂变碎片推进等,它们的性能逐代跨越直至逼近理论极限。要充分利用核能的潜力,一方面需要提高单位质量核燃料的核能释放率,另一方面也需要减少核反应产物动能转换为无轨热运动的比率。核能潜力的充分利用需要以增加系统质量为代价。为满足未来宽广的空间任务需求,多物理机制驱动的大深度变工况一体化核能空间动力系统是未来必然发展趋势。

A preliminary discussion on developing venation of space nuclear power and direction of future development is given on the basis of a survey on state of arts. The space nuclear power source, nuclear electric propulsion and nuclear thermal propulsion based on solid core nuclear reactor, which are validated in experiments and are somewhat technical maturity, can be expected in space application in the near future. More advanced conceptual schemes include： nuclear power source and nuclear propulsion based on gas core.nuclear reactor, nuclear pulse propulsion, fission fragment rocket, etc., which represent a stairway of working performances up to theoretical limits. Two aspects must be considered when one wants to explore the potential of nuclear energy： raising the releasing rate of mass specific nuclear energy, and reducing the ratio that the kinetic energy of productions of nuclear reactions is converted into trackless thermal motion. The full use of the potential of nuclear energy in space is unavoidable to take the increase of system mass as a cost. The integrative space nuclear power system, which is driven by various physics mechanisms and can vary performances tremendously to satisfy broad requirements of space missions, will come forth in the future inevitably.