Cooling arrangements within the pressure vessel containing the core; Selection of specific coolants

Introduced: September 1968

Last revised: January 2006

Classification Context

Section:: PHYSICS
Class:: NUCLEAR PHYSICS; NUCLEAR ENGINEERING
Subclass:: NUCLEAR REACTORS

Filing statistics

IPC G21C 15/00 belongs to the parent subclass G21C, which recorded 29,798 patent applications worldwide between 2013 and 2023. Annual filings declined from 2,773 in 2013 to 2,661 in 2023 (-4%), peaking at 3,001 applications in 2021. The most active applicants in class G21 are CHINA GENERAL NUCLEAR POWER CORPORATION (2,364 applications), CGN POWER COMPANY (1,899 applications) and CHINA NUCLEAR POWER ENGINEERING COMPANY (1,870 applications).

Source: EPO PATSTAT, worldwide filings

Related Keywords

COOLING of nuclear reactors

7 direct subcodes

Child Classifications

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G21C 15/02 Arrangement or disposition of passages in which heat is transferred to the coolant, e.g. for coolant circulation through the supports of the fuel elements
G21C 15/16 comprising means for separating liquid and steam
G21C 15/18 Emergency cooling arrangements; Removing shut-down heat
G21C 15/2 Partitions or thermal insulation between fuel channel and moderator, e.g. in pressure tube reactors
G21C 15/22 Structural association of coolant tubes with headers or other pipes, e.g. in pressure tube reactors
G21C 15/24 Promoting flow of the coolant
G21C 15/28 Selection of specific coolants

Top Applicants

Top 10 applicants by patent filingsfor class G21, 2013–2023, worldwide · Source: EPO PATSTAT

CHINA GENERAL NUCLEAR POWER CORPORATION 2,364
CGN POWER COMPANY 1,899
CHINA NUCLEAR POWER ENGINEERING COMPANY 1,870
NUCLEAR POWER INSTITUTE OF CHINA 1,517
KOREA ATOMIC ENERGY RESEARCH INSTITUTE KR 1,367
WESTINGHOUSE ELECTRIC CORPORATION US 1,295
KOREA HYDRO & NUCLEAR POWER COMPANY KR 1,196
CHINESE ACADEMY OF SCIENCES 1,044
CHINA INSTITUTE OF ATOMIC ENERGY 1,011
HITACHI-GE NUCLEAR ENERGY 955