Undergraduate Research at Jefferson Lab

Analysis of a G-10 CR Spacer in the presence of 4K Helium Piping

Student: Nicholas Murray

School: University of Tennessee, Knoxville

Mentored By: Shirley Yang and John Wieliczko

To transport cryogenic helium at Jefferson Lab, vacuum-jacketed transfer lines consisting of an inner process line / multiple process lines and outer jacket are utilized. Since cryogenic helium can reach temperatures as low as 2-4K in process lines, a special material with excellent thermal resistance and relatively high strength, G-10CR, is commonly used to support the inner line. This project aims to understand some of the material properties of G-10CR and perform analysis to obtain the stresses, deformation, and heat leak of a particular G-10CR spacer. The coefficients of thermal conductivity and linear expansion of G-10CR under varying temperatures were calculated using equations from a database. These coefficients were applied to two engineering programs to obtain stresses and displacement on this G-10CR spacer. It was found that this G- 10CR spacer is not overstressed and the heat leak is acceptable. The simulation confirmed that G-10CR performs well in cryogenic systems.

[Watch the presentation on YouTube]