NSUF 18-1405: In-situ TEM study of radiation and oxidation tolerance of MAX-phase-like materials

This project aims to understand the fundamental mechanism of the radiation/oxidation tolerance in MAX-phase-like alloys by in-situ TEM experiments, which is significant for designing accident tolerant, MAX-phase-like nuclear cladding materials for current light water reactors and next generation fission reactors. MAX phase alloys manifest multi-layered nano-structures and are composed by three kinds of elements: M is an early transition metal; A is a group III or IV element; and X is either C or N. The atomic ratios between the three elements follow the rule of M:A:X=(n+1):1:n. It is one of the candidates for accident tolerant fuel (ATF) cladding and Gen IV nuclear fuel cladding materials. Unlike traditional MAX materials, we have fabricated some novel MAX-phase-like alloys that share a similar multilayer structure as MAX but does NOT adopt the atomic ratio in MAX’s definition. Also, our new materials contain only low-neutron absorption elements. For example, we have synthesized Zr3Al3C5 and Al4SiC4. We have also performed heavy ion radiation on these samples, and found Al4SiC4 can maintain its unique multilayered structures even after 10 DPA of heavy ion irradiation, while Zr3Al3C5 shows severe damages. Since both of them manifest multilayered structure, the discrepancy of radiation tolerance is mainly due to the composition difference. A thorough understanding of the effect of chemical composition on the radiation-damage-resistance is vital for developing more accident-tolerant MAX-phase-like materials.

Here we propose in-situ TEM experiments on these new MAX-phase-like materials to evaluate their radiation/oxidation resistance at micro/nano scale, with work divided into two parts: (1) In-situ TEM observation of oxidation at Center for Functional Nanomaterials (CFN) of Brookhaven National Laboratory (Facility time awarded, proposal #35118) (2) In-situ TEM visualization of nanostructure evolutions during ion radiation at IVEM-Tandem facility in Argonne National Laboratory (Facility time under application via this proposal).

The performance of different MAX-phase-like materials will be compared during these in-situ experiments. Through direct observation of the micro/nano structural evolution in TEM and atomic/multi-scale modelling, we plan to draw a more complete picture of the origin of the radiation/oxidation resistance in this novel MAX-phase-like materials, and validate our predictions in atomic simulations. Our ultimate goal is to develop a guideline for designing accident tolerant MAX-phase-like alloys as nuclear cladding materials.

추가 정보

필드	값
Abstract	This project aims to understand the fundamental mechanism of the radiation/oxidation tolerance in MAX-phase-like alloys by in-situ TEM experiments, which is significant for designing accident tolerant, MAX-phase-like nuclear cladding materials for current light water reactors and next generation fission reactors. MAX phase alloys manifest multi-layered nano-structures and are composed by three kinds of elements: M is an early transition metal; A is a group III or IV element; and X is either C or N. The atomic ratios between the three elements follow the rule of M:A:X=(n+1):1:n. It is one of the candidates for accident tolerant fuel (ATF) cladding and Gen IV nuclear fuel cladding materials. Unlike traditional MAX materials, we have fabricated some novel MAX-phase-like alloys that share a similar multilayer structure as MAX but does NOT adopt the atomic ratio in MAX’s definition. Also, our new materials contain only low-neutron absorption elements. For example, we have synthesized Zr3Al3C5 and Al4SiC4. We have also performed heavy ion radiation on these samples, and found Al4SiC4 can maintain its unique multilayered structures even after 10 DPA of heavy ion irradiation, while Zr3Al3C5 shows severe damages. Since both of them manifest multilayered structure, the discrepancy of radiation tolerance is mainly due to the composition difference. A thorough understanding of the effect of chemical composition on the radiation-damage-resistance is vital for developing more accident-tolerant MAX-phase-like materials. Here we propose in-situ TEM experiments on these new MAX-phase-like materials to evaluate their radiation/oxidation resistance at micro/nano scale, with work divided into two parts: (1) In-situ TEM observation of oxidation at Center for Functional Nanomaterials (CFN) of Brookhaven National Laboratory (Facility time awarded, proposal #35118) (2) In-situ TEM visualization of nanostructure evolutions during ion radiation at IVEM-Tandem facility in Argonne National Laboratory (Facility time under application via this proposal). The performance of different MAX-phase-like materials will be compared during these in-situ experiments. Through direct observation of the micro/nano structural evolution in TEM and atomic/multi-scale modelling, we plan to draw a more complete picture of the origin of the radiation/oxidation resistance in this novel MAX-phase-like materials, and validate our predictions in atomic simulations. Our ultimate goal is to develop a guideline for designing accident tolerant MAX-phase-like alloys as nuclear cladding materials.
Award Announced Date	2018-05-17T10:59:44.783
Awarded Institution	Center for Advanced Energy Studies
Facility	Microscopy and Characterization Suite
Facility Tech Lead	Alina Zackrone, Wei-Ying Chen, Yaqiao Wu
Irradiation Facility	None
PI	Ju Li
PI Email	[email protected]
Project Type	RTE
RTE Number	1405