Energy absorber for sodium-heated heat exchanger

Claim 1

A HEAT EXCHANGER COMPRISING: AN OUTER SHELL; A LIQUID SODIUM OUTLET IN SAID SHELL; A LIQUID SODIUM INLET IN SAID SHELL; A PLURALITY OF TUBES FOR CARRYING WATER, AND EXTENDING WITHIN SAID SHELL BETWEEN SAID LIQUID SODIUM INLET AND SAID LIQUID SODIUM OUTLET; AN ENERGY ABSORBER WHOLLY WITHIN SAID OUTER SHELL HAVING A SIDEWALL DEFINING CHAMBER, A CHANNEL OPENING INTO SAID CHAMBER, AND A NONE-WAY VALVE, SAID VALVE BEING POSITIONED SO THAT NOTHING CAN FLOW THROUGH SAID CHANNEL WITHOUT FLOWING THROUGH SAID VALVE AND SAID VALVE BEING OPERABLE SO THAT IT PERMITS FLOW ONLY INTO SAID CHAMBER UNTIL THE PRESSURE IS REDUCED TO A SAFE LEVEL SO THAT SAID VALVE CAN BE OPENED TO ALLOW THE CONTENTS OF SAID CHAMBER TO ESCAPE SLOWLY AND TO EVENTUALLY FLOW OUT OF SAID LIQUID SODIUM OUTLET, SAID ENERGY ABSORBER BEING CAPABLE OF WITHSTANDING THE PRESSURE RESULTING FROM AN INADVERTANT WATER-SODIUM REACTION OVER THE ENTIRETY OF SAID SIDEWALL; WHEREBY WHEN WATER IS CARRIED BY SAID TUBES, SAID TUBES ARE HEATED BY A STREAM OF LIQUID SODIUM FLOWING FROM SAID LIQUID SODIUM INLET TO SAID LIQUID SODIUM OUTLET AND SAID CHANNEL EXTENDS INTO SAID STREAM OF FLOWING SODIUM AND SAID CHAMBER CONTAINS GAS, AN INADVERTANT SODIUM-WATER REACTION WILL RESULT IN A PRESSURE BUILDUP WHICH IS ATTENUATED BECAUSE SODIUM AND THE PRODUCTS OF SAID REACTION WILL ENTER SAID CHAMBER THROUGH SAID CHANNEL TO COMPRESS SAID GAS WITH THE PRODUCTS OF SAID REACTION BEING RETAINED WITHIN SAID ENERGY ABSORBER.