DR. WILLIAM A RUSSELL, M.D.
Medical Practice at Glen Meade Rd, Wilmington, NC

2003008, May 8, 2003

Nov 7, 2001

09/683004

William Russell - Wilmington NC, US
David Kropaczek - Kure Beach NC, US
Glen Watford - Wilmington NC, US

G21C017/00

376/259000

A system and method is provided for a continual updating of the optimization of multiple operational control-variables during the operation of a nuclear reactor over a plurality of fuel cycles. A networked computer system includes one or more hosts programmed to execute an optimization process to identify and make changes in quantitative values of operational control-variables that result in improved efficiency and operational flexibility. Optimization and updating of operational control-variables may proceed selectively under manual control for inputting specific optimization constraints and reactor state-point information or may proceed autonomously through a repetitive performing of the optimization process based upon a predetermined user-defined strategy stored on the network. Communications between users and networked processors is facilitated by use of a TCP/IP server connected to the Internet so that portions of the optimization process may be conducted contemporaneously at remote locations and/or the results made accessible to users via conventional browser enabled computers.

2008015, Jun 26, 2008

Dec 21, 2006

11/642824

Glen Alan Watford - Wilmington NC, US
David Joseph Kropaczek - Wilmington NC, US
William Earl Russell - Wilmington NC, US

G06N 5/02

706 52

Methods for evaluating robustness of solutions to constraint problems include: (a) determining one or more inputs for the constraint problem; (b) determining bias, uncertainty, or bias and uncertainty of the one or more inputs; (c) randomly perturbating at least one of the one or more inputs based on the bias, uncertainty, or bias and uncertainty of the one or more inputs to determine one or more modified inputs; (d) generating a solution to the constraint problem based on the one or more modified inputs; (e) storing the solution; (f) repeating (c) through (e) until multiple solutions are stored; and/or (g) determining the robustness of the stored multiple solutions by comparison of the stored multiple solutions to each other. The one or more modified inputs include the randomly perturbated input or inputs and/or the non-perturbated input or inputs.

2008015, Jul 3, 2008

Dec 28, 2006

11/617396

William Earl Russell - Wilmington NC, US

GLOBAL NUCLEAR FUEL - AMERICAS, L.L.C. - Wilmington NC

G21C 19/19

376267

A method for generating fuel loading data for a core in a nuclear reactor, wherein the core includes an array of fuel locations in the core, the method includes: defining an even cycle bundle shift map of fuel bundles to be shifted to another core location during an even fuel loading cycle; defining an odd cycle shift map of fuel bundles to be shifted to another core location during an odd loading cycle, wherein the odd cycle and even cycle are alternative and successive core refueling cycles; defining a discharge map identifying the another locations to receive the bundles from the locations identified in the even and odd cycle shift maps, and generating shuffling instructions indicating which fuel bundles from a prior fuel cycle are to be shifted to one of the another locations of the core for a subsequent fuel cycle, wherein bundles to be shifted during the even fuel loading cycle are selected from the fuel bundles to be shifted identified in the even cycle bundle shift map and bundles to be shifted during the odd fuel loading cycle are selected from the fuel bundles to be shifted identified in the odd cycle bundle shift map.

2004019, Sep 30, 2004

Mar 31, 2003

10/401601

William Russell - Wilmington NC, US
David Kropaczek - Kure Beach NC, US
Steven Sutton - Wilmington NC, US
William Cline - Wilmington NC, US
Christian Oyarzun - Wilmington NC, US
Glen Watford - Wilmington NC, US
Carey Merritt - Wilmington NC, US

G09B009/00

434/218000, 434/365000

In the method, a set of limits applicable to a core may be defined, and a test fresh fuel loading pattern design, to be used for loading the core, may be determined based on the limits. Reactor operation on at least a subset of the core may be simulated to produce a plurality of simulated results. The simulated results may be compared against the limits, and data from the comparison may indicate whether any of the limits were violated by the core during the simulation. A designer or engineer may use the data to modify the test fresh fuel loading pattern, creating one or more derivative fresh fuel loading pattern design(s) for simulation and eventual perfection as an acceptable fresh fuel loading pattern design for the core.

2004022, Nov 4, 2004

Mar 31, 2003

10/401602

William Russell - Wilmington NC, US
David Kropaczek - Kure Beach NC, US
Steven Sutton - Wilmington NC, US
William Cline - Wilmington NC, US
Christian Oyarzun - Wilmington NC, US
Glen Watford - Wilmington NC, US
Carey Merritt - Wilmington NC, US

G06G007/48

703/006000

In the method, a set of limits applicable to a core may be defined, and a test core loading pattern design, to be used for loading the core, may be determined based on the limits. Reactor operation on at least a subset of the core may be simulated to produce a plurality of simulated results. The simulated results may be compared against the limits, and data from the comparison may indicate whether any of the limits were violated by the core during the simulation. A designer or engineer may use the data to modify the test core loading pattern, creating one or more derivative core loading pattern design(s) for simulation and eventual perfection as an acceptable core loading pattern design for the core.

2007013, Jun 14, 2007

Dec 3, 2004

11/002677

Russell Fawcett - Atkinson NC, US
Randy Gonzales - Wilmington NC, US
Russell Higgins - Wilmington NC, US
Robert James - Wilmington NC, US
Michael Kiernan - Wilmington NC, US
William Russell - Wilmington NC, US
Steven Shelton - Wilmington NC, US
David Smith - Leland NC, US
Russell Stachowski - Wilmington NC, US
Lukas Trosman - Wilmington NC, US

G21C 3/34

376438000

A rod assembly for a fuel bundle of a nuclear reactor may include an upper end piece, lower end piece and a plurality of rod segments attached between the upper and lower end pieces and to each other so as to form an axial length of the rod assembly. The rod assembly may include an adaptor subassembly provided at given connection points for connecting adjacent rod segments or a given rod segment with one of the upper and lower end pieces. The connection points along the axial length of the rod assembly may be located where the rod assembly contacts a spacer in the fuel bundle. One (or more) of the rod segments may include an irradiation target therein for producing a desired isotope when a fuel bundle containing one (or more) rod assemblies is irradiated in a core of the reactor.

2004015, Aug 5, 2004

Jan 31, 2003

10/355013

David Kropaczek - Kure Beach NC, US
William Russell - Wilmington NC, US

G21C007/36

376/215000

The method of improving nuclear reactor performance involves generating an operational solution for a nuclear reactor based on a constraint accounting for a problem with operation of the nuclear reactor. The generated operational solution can then be implemented at the nuclear reactor.

2007013, Jun 14, 2007

Dec 3, 2004

11/002680

Russell Fawcett - Atkinson NC, US
Randy Gonzales - Wilmington NC, US
Russell Higgins - Wilmington NC, US
Robert James - Wilmington NC, US
Michael Kiernan - Wilmington NC, US
William Russell - Wilmington NC, US
Steven Shelton - Wilmington NC, US
David Smith - Leland NC, US
Russell Stachowski - Wilmington NC, US
Lukas Trosman - Wilmington NC, US

G21G 1/00

376202000

In a method of producing isotopes in a light water power reactor, one or more targets within the reactor may be irradiated under a neutron flux to produce one or more isotopes. The targets may be assembled into one or more fuel bundles that are to be loaded in a core of the reactor at a given outage. Power operations in the reactor irradiate the fuel bundles so as to generate desired isotopes, such as one or more radioisotopes at a desired specific activity or stable isotopes at a desired concentration.

2008015, Jun 26, 2008

Dec 22, 2006

11/644497

William Earl Russell - Wilmington NC, US
Robert James - Wilmington NC, US
Carlton W. Clark - Wilmington NC, US

G21C 3/33

376434

Assemblies and methods for mounting a fuel assembly in a nuclear reactor include a fuel assembly includes fuel rods within the fuel assembly and a lower tie plate with a fuel assembly mating fixture. A fuel support includes a fuel support mating fixture that is constructed to selectively engage the fuel assembly mating fixture during installation of the fuel assembly onto the fuel support. The fuel support mating fixture and the fuel assembly mating fixture provides for a predefined orientation of the fuel assembly to the fuel support upon mating.

2004005, Mar 25, 2004

Sep 19, 2002

10/246716

David Kropaczek - Kure Beach NC, US
William Russell - Wilmington NC, US
William Cline - Wilmington NC, US

G06F017/10

703/002000

In the method and apparatus for evaluating a proposed solution to a specific constraint problem, such as boiler water reactor core design, an application specific objective function is configured from a generic The generic objective function definition is a sum of a first number of credit terms plus a sum of a second number of penalty terms. A figure of merit can then be generated for proposed solutions to the constraint problem, and used, for example, in optimizing a solution to the constraint problem.