Technical Paper
Characteristics of Cylindrical Thermionic Converters with Niobium Polycrystal-Based Collectors at High Temperatures of Electrodes
1992-08-03
929499
The results of experimental studies on voltagecurrent characteristics (VCC) of cylindrical cesium thermionic converters are given at high temperatures of electrodes (TE=2000 to 2100K and TC=1000 to 1300K), the emitter being made of mostly 110-oriented tungsten and the collectors of polycrystalline and oxygen-containing niobium. It is shown that the optimum operating temperature for the polycrystalline Nb collector is 1100K while for the oxygen-containing one it is 1200K. The peak power generated at TE=2100K is 8,5 and 17,0 W/cm2 correspondingly. The VCC family cited in the paper is of considerable interest for making thermal power calculations and optiziming the output electrical parameters of thermionic electricity-generating channels.
