Industrialisation of Ebflow for Pressure Vessel Manufacture

The ability to weld thick sections efficiently is critical to drive widespread deployment of cost-effective solutions to meet low-carbon energy needs. Thick section local vacuum electron beam welding is considered a key enabling technology in the serialised fabrication of micro modular reactors (MMR) and other large tubular structures.

CVE, TWI, and Cammell Laird have been working collaboratively for over three years to produce the UK’s first full-size MMR vessel segment.

Supported by Innovate UK, the EBManPower project has demonstrated a low cost and rapid pressure vessel manufacture solution for thick section vessels for nuclear and other industries, using existing UK logistical and manufacturing capabilities. EBManPower focussed on using CVE’s Ebflow system, deployed at the Cammell Laird’s shipyard in Birkenhead, to demonstrate the viability of cost-effective MMR fabrication.

Electron beam welding has been used for the nuclear and aerospace industries for decades. This is the first time that a commercially available local vacuum EB system has been deployed in an industrial environment.

This project has received funding from Innovate UK, grant agreement: 3534/104220. Innovate UK is part of UK Research and Innovation, a non-departmental public body funded by a grant-in-aid from the UK government.

There will be a demonstration day held at TWI Ltd (10:00-14:30), followed by an optional visit to Cambridge Vacuum Engineering (14:30-17:00) to view the Ebflow system, on the 20th July 2021.

A maximum of 25 physically attending visitors can be accommodated at TWI. For those unable to attend, a live stream of the presentations will be offered.

The full agenda is as follows:

• 10:00 – 12:30: Technical presentations
• 12:30 – 14:00: Lunch and demonstrator viewing
• 14:00 – 14:30: Presentation and closing remarks
• 14:30 – 15:00: Travel to CVE (transport not provided)
• 15:00 – 17:00: Equipment showcasing at CVE