Publications

Jan, 2024

Journal

Rapid Quenching of Molten Salts as an Approach for the Coordination Characterization of Corrosion Products

A new apparatus was built to rapidly cool molten salts in liquid argon to prevent contamination during quenching and enable new insight into the structure in the liquid state. To test the applicability of the apparatus, several industrially relevant chloride salt compositions were first melted, rapidly solidified, and then characterized. The design proved applicable for th…

Dec, 2023

Journal

Neutron Irradiation of Alloy N and 316L Stainless Steel in Contact with a Molten Chloride Salt

Capsules containing NaCl–MgCl2 salt with 316L stainless steel or alloy N samples were irradiated in the Ohio State University Research Reactor for 21 nonconsecutive hours. A custom irradiation vessel was designed for this purpose, and details on its design and construction are given. Stainless steel samples that were irradiated during exposure had less corrosive attack tha…

Dec, 2023

ORNL Report

UCN Kernel Fabrication for HFIR Irradiation

Nov, 2023

Journal

Response of ZrC to swift heavy ion irradiation

Zirconium carbide (ZrC) is commonly used for energy sector research, as well as a surrogate for the proposed advanced nuclear fuel candidate uranium carbide. This study investigates structural modifications to nanocrystalline and microcrystalline ZrC resulting from dense electronic excitations induced by swift heavy ion exposure. Samples were irradiated with 946 MeV Au ion…

Nov, 2023

Journal

Synthesis of U3O8 and UO2 microspheres using microfluidics

Uranium-bearing microspheres below 50µm with a narrow size distribution allows for a wider variety of fuel forms. To accommodate the smaller size, gel microspheres with a composition of UO3∙nH2O∙mNH3 were synthesized using microfluidics and subsequently converted to U3O8 and UO2. To accommodate the slower flow rates required by microfluidics, a more stable broth was establ…

Nov, 2023

ORNL Report

UCN MiniFuel Irradiation Experiment: Final Design Report

Nov, 2023

ORNL Report

FY22 ZrC Insulator Development for Space Nuclear Propulsion

Nov, 2023

Conference Paper

Design of a MiniFuel Irradiation Experiment to Study Fuel Performance Phenomena in Ceramic Fuels

Nov, 2023

Conference Paper

Performance of alloy 600 in flowing commercial Cl salt at 600°-750°C

For the next generation of concentrating solar power (CSP) plants, K-Mg-Na chloride salts are being explored as a potential higher temperature thermal storage medium. However, there are concerns about compatibility of structural alloys with the salt. To move beyond simple static pot compatibility experiments while a pumped salt loop is being constructed, thermal convection…

Nov, 2023

Conference Paper

Re‐establishing the paradigm for evaluating halide salt compatibility to study commercial chloride salts at 600°C–800°C

Chloride salts are one candidate for a >700°C concentrating solar power (CSP) cycle, however, many reports from the literature suggest very high reaction rates between chloride salts and structural alloys. Historically, a specific methodology was established for evaluating halide salt compatibility based on solution kinetics. This study returned to that paradigm where the…

Nov, 2023

Journal

Enabling chloride salts for thermal energy storage: implications of salt purity

Molten salts for use as heat transfer fluids in concentrated solar or nuclear power plants have experienced a resurgence over the past decade with a special focus on chloride-based salt mixtures, particularly for use in concentrating solar power and fast-spectrum nuclear reactors. Salt purification, specifically oxide removal, is required even for high purity commercial sa…

Nov, 2023

Journal

Amorphous and partially-amorphous metal coatings for corrosion resistance in molten chloride salt

Amorphous metal coatings were developed to improve the corrosion resistance of structural alloys in molten salts for use as salt-facing materials in concentrating solar power (CSP) and molten salt reactor (MSR) applications. Three coatings were tested. One Fe-based, fully amorphous coating, and two Ni-based partially amorphous coatings. The candidate coatings were applied…