Nuclear reactor core assembly

Claim 1

IN A NUCLEAR REACTOR COMPRISING A CYLINDRICAL PRESSURE VESSEL, A CYLINDRICAL SHELL DISPOSED COAXIALLY WITHIN SAID PRESSURE VESSEL AND AXIALLY MOVABLE THEREIN A GENERALLY CYLINDRICAL CORE ASSEMBLY COMPRISING A PLURALITY OF MODERATOR BLOCKS HAVING SIDE FACES PARALLEL TO SAID CORE AXIS ARRANGED WITHIN SAID CYLINDRICAL SHELL, MEANS SURROUNDING THE RADIAL PERIPHERY OF SAID CORE ASSEMBLY AND CLOSELY EMBRACING THE OUTER RADIAL SURFACE OF SAID CORE ASSEMBLY, MEANS ARRANGED AT THE OUTER SURFACE OF SAID EMBRACING MEANS WITHIN SAID CYLINDRICAL SHELL ACTING LATERALLY INWARDLY THROUGH SAID EMBRACING MEANS UPON SAID MODERATOR BLOCKS PREPENDICULAR TO THE PLANE SIDE FACES LATERALLY FORCING ADJACENT BLOCKS AGAINST ONE ANOTHER, SAID MEANS HAVING A PLURALITY OF RESTRAINT WEDGES ARRANGED ALONG AND AROUND THE OUTER SURFACE OF SAID EMBRACING MEANS, AND A PLURALITY OF COMPRESSION WEDGES COACTING WITH SAID RESTRAINT WEDGES AND TRANSMITTING A PORTION OF THE LATERAL REACTIVE FORCE FROM SAID MODERATOR BLOCKS TO SAID CYLINDRICAL SHELL AND A PORTION TO THE LONGITUDINAL MOVEMENT OF SAID SHELL, AND MEANS FOR RESILIENTLY ATTACHING SAID SHELL TO SAID PRESSURE VESSEL TO RESIST THE AXIAL MOVEMENT OF SAID SHELL IN SAID PRESSURE VESSEL.