A safe reaction
Nuclear reactors might one day be constructed using materials that can self-heal following radiation damage, thanks to a materials study by scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
A safe reaction
Nuclear reactors might one day be constructed using materials that can self-heal following radiation damage, thanks to a materials study by scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Structural materials for fission & fusion energy
Structural materials represent the key for containment of nuclear fuel and fission products as well as reliable and thermodynamically efficient production of electrical energy from nuclear reactors. Similarly, high-performance structural materials will be critical for the future success of proposed fusion energy reactors, which will subject the structures to unprecedented fluxes of high-energy neutrons along with intense thermomechanical stresses.
Discovery and design of nuclear fuels
To facilitate the discovery and design of innovative nuclear fuels, multi-scale models and simulations are used to predict irradiation effects on properties such as thermal conductivity, oxygen diffusivity, and thermal expansion. The multi-scale approach is illustrated using results on ceramic fuels, with a focus on predictions of point defect concentration, stoichiometry, and phase stability. The high performance computer simulations include coupled heat transport, diffusion, and thermal expansion, and gas bubble formation and evolution in a fuel element consisting of UO2 fuel and metallic cladding.
Revolutionizing biodegradable metals
Development of biodegradable metal implants is a complex problem because it combines engineering and medical requirements for a material. This article discusses the development of sensing and corrosion control techniques that can help in the design of biodegradable metallic implants.

Feature

Nuclear reactor materials at the atomic scale

22 December 2009
Emmanuelle A. Marquis, Jonathan M. Hyde, David W. Saxey, Sergio Lozano-Perez, Vanessa de Castro, Daniel Hudson, Ceri A. Williams, Samuel Humphry-Baker, George D.W. Smith

With the renewed interest in nuclear energy, developing new materials able to respond to the stringent requirements of the next-generation fission and future fusion reactors has become a priority. An efficient search for such materials requires detailed knowledge of material behaviour under irradiation, high temperatures and corrosive environments. Minimizing the rates of materials degradation will be possible only if the mechanisms by which it occurs are understood.

Atomic-scale experimental probing as well as modelling can provide some answers and help predict in-service behaviour. This article illustrates how this approach has already improved our understanding of precipitation under irradiation, corrosion behaviour, and stress corrosion cracking. It is also now beginning to provide guidance for the development of new alloys.

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