Nuclear Materials Science

by Karl Whittle

Overview

In this book, Karl Whittle provides a solid overview of the intersection of nuclear engineering and materials science at a level approachable by advanced students from materials, engineering and physics. The text explains the unique aspects needed in the design and implementation of materials for use in demanding nuclear settings. A unique feature of this title is the additional material within including, accompanying videos, problems and teaching aids.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780750311052
Publisher:	Iop Publishing Ltd
Publication date:	08/05/2016
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	100
Product dimensions:	7.26(w) x 10.37(h) x 0.66(d)

About the Author

Karl Whittle obtained his undergraduate degree at the University of Kent, a masters from the University of Aberdeen, and PhD from The Open University. After completing his PhD he undertook postdoctoral appointments at the universities of Bristol, Cambridge and Sheffield, researching amorphous materials, and nuclear waste options. He then moved to the Australia Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO), where he led research into the effects on materials of radiation damage. In 2012 he moved back the UK as a Senior Lecturer in nuclear materials at the University of Sheffield, and in 2015 he moved to the University of Liverpool as the Chair in nuclear engineering. Over the years he has developed international research links, and has active collaborations across the world.

Table of Contents

Preface xiv

Acknowledgement xviii

Author biography xix

1 Atomic considerations 1-1

1.1 Isotopes 1-1

1.2 Nuclear stability and radioactive decay 1-2

1.3 Alpha-decay (α-decay) 1-3

1.4 Beta-decay (β-decay) 1-3

1.5 Beta⁺/positron emission or electron capture 1-4

1.6 Gamma emission 1-4

1.7 How do the mechanisms relate to each other? 1-4

1.8 Radioactive half-life 1-5

1.9 Decay series 1-6

1.10 Observations on isotope stability 1-7

1.11 Binding energy 1-7

1.12 Fission and fusion 1-9

1.13 Spontaneous fission 1-10

1.14 Inducing fission and chain reactions 1-11

1.15 Neutron absorption and fissile and fertile isotopes 1-11

1.16 Increasing fission yield 1-12

1.17 What are the key criteria for nuclear fission? 1-13

1.17.1 Required components 1-13

1.17.2 Desirable components 1-14

References 1-14

2 Radiation damage 2-1

2.1 Key definitions 2-2

2.1.1 Primary knock-on atom (pka) 2-2

2.1.2 Threshold displacement energy (TDE) 2-2

2.1.3 Displacements per atom (dpa) 2-2

2.2 Radiation damage 2-3

2.3 Prediction of damage-the Kinchin-Pease methodology 2-4

2.3.1 Nuclear and electronic stopping factors/powers 2-5

2.3.2 How do these powers effect the stopping of the incident particles? 2-5

2.3.3 The Kinchin-Pease methodology for predicting levels of damage 2-5

2.3.4 Modifications to Kinchin-Pease 2-8

2.4 Implications of damage 2-9

2.4.1 No recovery from damage 2-9

2.4.2 Full recovery from damage 2-9

2.4.3 Partial recovery from damage 2-9

2.5 Outcomes from damage 2-9

2.5.1 Basic recovery 2-9

2.5.2 Damage vs recovery 2-11

2.6 Modelling damage build-up in materials 2-12

2.6.1 Direct impact 2-13

2.6.2 Defect accumulation 2-14

2.6.3 How do they compare? 2-14

2.7 The bulk effects of damage 2-18

2.7.1 Expansion (swelling) 2-18

2.7.2 Radiation-induced segregation 2-19

2.7.3 Thermal conductivity 2-19

2.7.4 Embrittlement 2-20

2.7.5 Cracking 2-20

References 2-22

3 Nuclear fuel, part 1: fuel and cladding 3-1

3.1 What is required from fuel in a fission reactor? 3-1

3.2 Reminder of the fission process 3-1

3.3 What are the realistic types of fuel? 3-2

3.4 Uranium 3-2

3.4.1 Oxides of uranium 3-4

3.4.2 Uranium (IV) oxide (UO₂) 3-4

3.4.3 Uranium (VI) oxide (UO₃) 3-5

3.4.4 Uranium (IV/VI) oxides 3-6

3.4.5 Hyper/hypostoichimetric UO₂2±x 3-7

3.5 Plutonium 3-8

3.5.1 Oxides of plutonium 3-8

3.5.2 Plutonium (TV) oxide (PuO₂)) 3-9

3.5.3 Mixed oxide fuel (MOX) 3-10

3.5.4 What form is the fuel? 3-10

3.6 Fuel containment 3-11

3.7 Zirconium-based cladding 3-14

3.7.1 Material properties of zirconium 3-14

3.7.2 Development of zirconium-based alloys for nuclear applications 3-15

3.7.3 Zirconium hydridation 3-17

3.8 Iron-based cladding 3-19

3.8.1 Advanced gas-cooled reactor cladding 3-19

3.9 How do fuel and cladding relate to each other? 3-19

References 3-20

4 Nuclear fuel, part 2: operational effects 4-1

4.1 Initial stages 4-1

4.2 Classical effects from heating 4-2

4.2.1 Why does sintering occur? 4-3

4.2.2 What are the outcomes of sintering? 4-3

4.2.3 Why do we care? 4-4

4.3 Fission products 4-4

4.3.1 Volatiles/gaseous 4-6

4.3.2 Metal particulates 4-6

4.3.3 Combined effects 4-6

4.3.4 Key impacts of fission 4-7

4.4 Initial reactor operation 4-7

4.5 Fuel cladding under operation within the core 4-10

4.5.1 Damage formation and expansion 4-11

4.5.2 Hardness and ductility 4-11

4.6 Fuel and cladding 4-11

4.6.1 Pellet-clad interaction (PCI) 4-12

4.7 Cladding corrosion 4-13

4.7.1 Corrosion mitigation and CRUD 4-14

4.7.2 Stress corrosion cracking (SCC) 4-15

4.7.3 The role of zirconium hydrides 4-16

4.7.4 Radiolysis of cooling water 4-17

References 4-18

5 Evolution of reactor technologies 5-1

5.1 Generation I-prototype reactors 5-2

5.1.1 Pressurised water reactors (PWR) 5-6

5.1.2 Gas-cooled reactor (MAGNOX) 5-7

5.2 GenII-commercial reactors 5-9

5.2.1 Advanced gas-cooled reactors (AGR) 5-10

5.3 GenerationIII/generationIII+-evolved designs 5-11

5.3.1 Westinghouse AP and Areva EPR 5-11

5.3.2 GE-Hitachi ABWR 5-13

5.3.3 General design considerations 5-13

5.4 Molten salt reactors 5-14

5.4.1 The molten salt reactor experiment (MSRE) 5-14

5.4.2 Aircraft reactor project 5-14

5.5 Summary 5-16

5.5.1 Early reactors (GenI) 5-16

5.5.2 Commercial reactors (Genii) 5-17

5.5.3 Evolved designs (GenIII/Genin+) 5-17

References 5-17

6 The challenges for materials in new reactor designs 6-1

6.1 Generation IV-genesis 6-1

6.2 Reactor types 6-2

6.2.1 Very high temperature reactor (VHTR) 6-2

6.2.2 Molten salt reactor (MSR) 6-2

6.2.3 Supercritical water reactor (SCWR) 6-2

6.2.4 Gas-cooled fast reactor (GFR) 6-4

6.2.5 Sodium-cooled fast reactor (SFR) 6-4

6.2.6 Lead-cooled fast reactor (LFR) 6-5

6.3 Material challenges in GenIV 6-6

6.3.1 Fuel 6-6

6.3.2 TRI-ISOtropic (TRISO) fuel 6-7

6.4 Containment 6-9

6.4.1 Key requirements for cladding 6-10

6.4.2 Liquid fuel 6-11

6.5 Radiation damage 6-14

6.6 Alternative reactor technology 6-16

6.7 Travelling wave reactor 6-16

6.8 Thorium reactors 6-17

6.8.1 Properties of thorium 6-17

6.8.2 Thorium-based fuel 6-17

6.8.3 Thorium reactor designs 6-19

6.9 Small modular reactors (SMR) 6-20

6.9.1 Proposed designs 6-20

References 6-21

7 The challenges of nuclear waste 7-1

7.1 Sources of nuclear waste 7-1

7.2 Natural sources of uranium/thorium 7-2

7.2.1 Oklo-a natural nuclear reactor 7-3

7.2.2 Development of ceramic waste forms 7-5

7.2.3 Supercalcine 7-7

7.2.4 Designing ceramic waste forms 7-7

7.2.5 Synroc 7-8

7.2.6 Criticality prevention 7-9

7.3 Long-term effects in waste forms 7-9

7.3.1 Radiation damage 7-9

7.4 Long-term behaviour of nuclear waste 7-10

7.4.1 Bulk effect of amorphisation 7-11

7.4.2 Helium bubble formation 7-12

7.5 Geological disposal of nuclear waste 7-12

7.5.1 Corrosion and nuclear waste 7-13

7.6 Ceramics and glasses-comparison 7-14

7.6.1 Ceramics 7-14

7.6.2 Glasses 7-15

7.6.3 Glass-ceramics 7-16

7.7 Transmutation 7-17

7.7.1 Implications of beta-decay 7-17

References 7-20

8 Materials and nuclear fusion 8-1

8.1 Atomic background and recap 8-1

8.2 Requirements for fusion 8-4

8.3 ITER-the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor 8-5

8.3.1 Design of ITER 8-5

8.4 Outcomes and challenges in fusion 8-5

8.4.1 Fuel 8-6

8.4.2 Heat 8-6

8.4.3 Helium 8-7

8.4.4 Neutron production 8-8

8.5 Material requirements 8-8

8.5.1 First/plasma-facing wall 8-9

8.6 Radiation damage and the first wall 8-9

8.7 Sputtering 8-10

8.8 Gas bubble formation 8-12

8.8.1 Direct implantation of He from plasma 8-12

8.9 The divertor 8-13

8.10 Breeding and heat generation 8-16

8.11 Tritium breeding 8-17

8.11.1 Solid breeding 8-17

8.11.2 Liquid breeding 8-17

8.11.3 Pb-Li eutectic 8-17

8.11.4 Molten salt-FLiNaBe 8-17

8.11.5 Comparison of methods 8-18

8.12 Challenges in fission and fusion 8-20

References 8-20

9 Mistakes made and lessons learnt 9-1

9.1 Windscale-Pile 1 9-1

9.1.1 Wigner energy 9-3

9.1.2 Graphite 9-3

9.1.3 Timeline of incident 9-4

9.1.4 Aftermath 9-5

9.1.5 What caused the tire? 9-6

9.1.6 Key outcomes from the fire 9-6

9.2 Three Mile Island-Reactor 2 9-6

9.2.1 The China syndrome 9-7

9.2.2 Three Mile Island nuclear reactor complex 9-7

9.2.3 Timeline of incident 9-7

9.2.4 Aftermath 9-9

9.2.5 What caused the initial problem that led to the incident? 9-10

9.2.6 Key outcomes from the incident 9-10

9.2.7 Loss of coolant accident (LOCA) 9-10

9.3 Chernobyl-Reactor 4 9-12

9.3.1 Reaktor Bolshoy Moschonosty Kanalny (RBMK)-1000 9-12

9.3.2 Timeline of incident 9-13

9.3.3 Aftermath 9-15

9.3.4 What caused the incident? 9-15

9.3.5 Key outcomes from the incident 9-16

9.4 Fukushima Daiichi 9-16

9.4.1 Boiling water reactor (BWR) 9-17

9.4.2 Timeline of incident 9-18

9.4.3 Aftermath 9-19

9.4.4 What caused the incident? 9-20

9.4.5 Key outcomes from the incident 9-20

9.5 How do the incidents compare? 9-20

References 9-21