2D Ultrasonic Antenna System for Imaging in Liquid Sodium
Léonard Le Jeune,
Raphaële Raillon,
Gwénaël Toullelan,
François Baqué,
Laura Taupin
Affiliations
Léonard Le Jeune
French Alternative Energies and Nuclear Energy Commission—Laboratory for Integration of Systems and Technology CEA-LIST, 91191 Gif-sur-Yevtte Cedex, France
Raphaële Raillon
French Alternative Energies and Nuclear Energy Commission—Laboratory for Integration of Systems and Technology CEA-LIST, 91191 Gif-sur-Yevtte Cedex, France
Gwénaël Toullelan
French Alternative Energies and Nuclear Energy Commission—Laboratory for Integration of Systems and Technology CEA-LIST, 91191 Gif-sur-Yevtte Cedex, France
François Baqué
French Alternative Energies and Nuclear Energy Commission—Division of Nuclear Energy CEA-DEN, 13108 Saint-Paul-lez-Durance Cedex, France
Laura Taupin
French Alternative Energies and Nuclear Energy Commission—Laboratory for Integration of Systems and Technology CEA-LIST, 91191 Gif-sur-Yevtte Cedex, France
Ultrasonic techniques are developed at CEA (French Alternative Energies and Nuclear Energy Commission) for in-service inspection of sodium-cooled reactors (SFRs). Among them, an ultrasound imaging system made up of two orthogonal antennas and originally based on an underwater imaging system is studied for long-distance vision in the liquid sodium of the reactor’s primary circuit. After a description of the imaging principle of this system, some results of a simulation study performed with the software CIVA in order to optimize the antenna parameters are presented. Then, experimental measurements carried out in a water tank illustrate the system capabilities. Finally, the limitations of the imaging performances and the ongoing search of solutions to address them are discussed.
