Testability of a heat pipe cooled thermionic reactor

As part of the Air Force Phillips Laboratory thermionics program, Rocketdyne performed a design study for an in‐core thermionic fuel element (TFE) heat pipe cooled reactor power system. This effort involved a testability evaluation that was performed starting with testing of individual components, followed by testing at various stages of fabrication, and concluding with full system acceptance and qualification testing. It was determined that the system could be thoroughly tested to ensure a high probability of successful operation in space after launch.