The 26 peer-reviewed papers collected here together offer a plenitude of up-to-date information on Materials Challenges for Future Nuclear Fission and Fusion Technologies. The papers are conveniently arranged into MATERIALS CHALLENGES FOR FUTURE NUCLEAR FISSION AND FUSION TECHNOLOGIES, Low Activation Structural Materials for Nuclear Fusion Systems, Functional, Cladding and Fuel Materials for Nuclear Fission Reactors, Radiation Effects, MATERIALS TECHNOLOGY FOR NUCLEAR WASTE TREATMENT AND DISPOSAL.
Nuclear Energy and the Evolution of Fission to Fusion Power: The Role of Plasma and Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) in Bridging Technologies by Ronald Legarski, Yash Patel, and Zoltan Csernus offers an authoritative exploration of the development and future of nuclear energy. The book traces the journey from the discovery of nuclear fission to the emerging promise of fusion power, highlighting the role of Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) and plasma technologies in advancing clean energy. Ronald Legarski, an expert in simplifying complex technical ideas, delves into how nuclear advancements, including SMRs and grid technologies, can revolutionize energy production. Yash Patel, an accomplished entrepreneur and trained Nuclear Engineer, contributes his extensive experience in project management and high-energy physics, providing insights into innovation and regulatory compliance in nuclear technology. Zoltan Csernus, with over 40 years of experience as a master electrician, specializes in power quality improvements and groundbreaking harmonics reduction technology, playing a key role in SMR and energy storage developments. This comprehensive guide is indispensable for energy professionals, engineers, and those looking to understand the future of nuclear power. It covers the scientific breakthroughs, reactor technologies, environmental considerations, and future prospects of nuclear energy, offering a thorough look at how fission and fusion technologies will help shape a sustainable energy future.
High-performance alloys that can withstand operation in hazardous nuclear environments are critical to presentday in-service reactor support and maintenance and are foundational for reactor concepts of the future. With commercial nuclear energy vendors and operators facing the retirement of staff during the coming decades, much of the scholarly knowledge of nuclear materials pursuant to appropriate, impactful, and safe usage is at risk. Led by the multi-award winning editorial team of G. Robert Odette (UCSB) and Steven J. Zinkle (UTK/ORNL) and with contributions from leaders of each alloy discipline, Structural Alloys for Nuclear Energy Applications aids the next generation of researchers and industry staff developing and maintaining steels, nickel-base alloys, zirconium alloys, and other structural alloys in nuclear energy applications. This authoritative reference is a critical acquisition for institutions and individuals seeking state-of-the-art knowledge aided by the editors’ unique personal insight from decades of frontline research, engineering and management. Focuses on in-service irradiation, thermal, mechanical, and chemical performance capabilities. Covers the use of steels and other structural alloys in current fission technology, leading edge Generation-IV fission reactors, and future fusion power reactors. Provides a critical and comprehensive review of the state-of-the-art experimental knowledge base of reactor materials, for applications ranging from engineering safety and lifetime assessments to supporting the development of advanced computational models.
Symposium A, 'Material Challenges in Current and Future Nuclear Technologies' was held at the 2011 MRS Fall Meeting in Boston, Massachusetts, November 28-December 2, 2011. The symposium addressed current questions in nuclear materials development, such as the effects of radiation damage on core materials. At the same time, emphasis was placed on research to pre-empt future issues, such as materials with applications in both the proposed GenIV fission designs and fusion reactor cores. There was also linkage between both areas of research, as the requirements for both future fusion and fission reactor technologies are often very similar. The articles in this volume are separated into four broad areas, fuel, radiation effects, corrosion, and structural materials. Each of the areas combines both simulation and experimental work, highlighting the cross-linkage between them and how they can be used to holistically develop new materials for nuclear technologies.
Power production and its consumption and distribution are among the most urgent problems of mankind. Despite positive dynamics in introducing renewable sources of energy, nuclear power plants still remain the major source of carbon-free electric energy. Fusion can be an alternative to fission in the foreseeable future. Research in the field of controlled nuclear fusion has been ongoing for almost 100 years. Magnetic confinement systems are the most promising for effective implementation, and the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor is under construction in France. To accomplish nuclear fusion on Earth, we have to resolve a number of scientific and technological problems. This monograph includes selected chapters on nuclear physics and mechanical engineering within the scope of nuclear fusion.
One major goal of the World Materials Research Institute Forum - WMRIF is to promote young scientists in the field of materials science and engineering. To enhance the international knowledge exchange between young postdoctoral scientists all over the world, WMRIF meanwhile regularly organizes joint workshops among the member institutes. These workshops also represent an increasingly appreciated platform to get known to each other and to build co-operations. For such workshops, various topics are selected, pointing to future perspectives and challenges in the field of Materials Science and Engineering. This time, the presentations of the workshop focused on the four subjects Challenges in conclusive, realistic and system oriented materials testing Materials challenges for water supply Materials challenges in the extraction and recovery of scarce elements and minerals Materials challenges for nuclear fission and fusion. This book comprises the peer-reviewed contributions during the 2nd International Workshop for Young Materials Scientists at BAM Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing, Berlin, Germany. It also provides a very informative overview of recent results for all materials scientists.
In the fall of 2010, the Office of the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) Secretary for Science asked for a National Research Council (NRC) committee to investigate the prospects for generating power using inertial confinement fusion (ICF) concepts, acknowledging that a key test of viability for this concept-ignition -could be demonstrated at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) in the relatively near term. The committee was asked to provide an unclassified report. However, DOE indicated that to fully assess this topic, the committee's deliberations would have to be informed by the results of some classified experiments and information, particularly in the area of ICF targets and nonproliferation. Thus, the Panel on the Assessment of Inertial Confinement Fusion Targets ("the panel") was assembled, composed of experts able to access the needed information. The panel was charged with advising the Committee on the Prospects for Inertial Confinement Fusion Energy Systems on these issues, both by internal discussion and by this unclassified report. A Panel on Fusion Target Physics ("the panel") will serve as a technical resource to the Committee on Inertial Confinement Energy Systems ("the Committee") and will prepare a report that describes the R&D challenges to providing suitable targets, on the basis of parameters established and provided to the Panel by the Committee. The Panel on Fusion Target Physics will prepare a report that will assess the current performance of fusion targets associated with various ICF concepts in order to understand: 1. The spectrum output; 2. The illumination geometry; 3. The high-gain geometry; and 4. The robustness of the target design. The panel addressed the potential impacts of the use and development of current concepts for Inertial Fusion Energy on the proliferation of nuclear weapons information and technology, as appropriate. The Panel examined technology options, but does not provide recommendations specific to any currently operating or proposed ICF facility.
To meet the demands of exponentially growing global energy consumption, extensive research is necessary for future fusion and Generation IV fission reactor power plants; however, structural material performance is a limiting factor. Conventional materials cannot withstand the complex thermomechanical loading, higher operating temperatures, and high irradiation doses. Consequently, research efforts are underway to develop and qualify novel structural materials. Likewise, research on fuel materials seeks to understand and mitigate issues such as oxidation and evolution of the fuel microstructure to high burn-up. To minimize trial-and-error experiments, major fission and fusion materials programs have expanded their use of multiscale materials modeling and simulation. The modeling efforts, in concert with specific experimental validation activities, complement the large experimental programs. This book highlights nuclear materials issues and challenges on experimental and modeling platforms. Topics include: fundamental defect behavior; experimental and theoretical investigations of radiation damage; behavior of oxide dispersion strengthened steels and other advanced structural materials; corrosion and surface coatings; and modeling and performance of nuclear fuels.
Electricity, supplied reliably and affordably, is foundational to the U.S. economy and is utterly indispensable to modern society. However, emissions resulting from many forms of electricity generation create environmental risks that could have significant negative economic, security, and human health consequences. Large-scale installation of cleaner power generation has been generally hampered because greener technologies are more expensive than the technologies that currently produce most of our power. Rather than trade affordability and reliability for low emissions, is there a way to balance all three? The Power of Change: Innovation for Development and Deployment of Increasingly Clean Energy Technologies considers how to speed up innovations that would dramatically improve the performance and lower the cost of currently available technologies while also developing new advanced cleaner energy technologies. According to this report, there is an opportunity for the United States to continue to lead in the pursuit of increasingly clean, more efficient electricity through innovation in advanced technologies. The Power of Change: Innovation for Development and Deployment of Increasingly Clean Energy Technologies makes the case that America's advantagesâ€"world-class universities and national laboratories, a vibrant private sector, and innovative states, cities, and regions that are free to experiment with a variety of public policy approachesâ€"position the United States to create and lead a new clean energy revolution. This study focuses on five paths to accelerate the market adoption of increasing clean energy and efficiency technologies: (1) expanding the portfolio of cleaner energy technology options; (2) leveraging the advantages of energy efficiency; (3) facilitating the development of increasing clean technologies, including renewables, nuclear, and cleaner fossil; (4) improving the existing technologies, systems, and infrastructure; and (5) leveling the playing field for cleaner energy technologies. The Power of Change: Innovation for Development and Deployment of Increasingly Clean Energy Technologies is a call for leadership to transform the United States energy sector in order to both mitigate the risks of greenhouse gas and other pollutants and to spur future economic growth. This study's focus on science, technology, and economic policy makes it a valuable resource to guide support that produces innovation to meet energy challenges now and for the future.
Operating at a high level of fuel efficiency, safety, proliferation-resistance, sustainability and cost, generation IV nuclear reactors promise enhanced features to an energy resource which is already seen as an outstanding source of reliable base load power. The performance and reliability of materials when subjected to the higher neutron doses and extremely corrosive higher temperature environments that will be found in generation IV nuclear reactors are essential areas of study, as key considerations for the successful development of generation IV reactors are suitable structural materials for both in-core and out-of-core applications. Structural Materials for Generation IV Nuclear Reactors explores the current state-of-the art in these areas. Part One reviews the materials, requirements and challenges in generation IV systems. Part Two presents the core materials with chapters on irradiation resistant austenitic steels, ODS/FM steels and refractory metals amongst others. Part Three looks at out-of-core materials. Structural Materials for Generation IV Nuclear Reactors is an essential reference text for professional scientists, engineers and postgraduate researchers involved in the development of generation IV nuclear reactors. Introduces the higher neutron doses and extremely corrosive higher temperature environments that will be found in generation IV nuclear reactors and implications for structural materials Contains chapters on the key core and out-of-core materials, from steels to advanced micro-laminates Written by an expert in that particular area
