Corrosion-resistant nuclear fuel materials

Next-generation nuclear fuels such as uranium mononitride (UN) are designed to improve the economics of nuclear energy. The high uranium density and thermal conductivity increases reactor efficiency and extends fuel lifetimes. However, the deployment of UN is hindered by its reactivity with steam. This project seeks to understand the corrosion mechanisms of UN fuel combined with additives such as Zr and Cr. In situ neutron scattering is used to monitor reactions in real time, tracking structure evolution on the atomic scale. Samples are prepared overseas by international collaborators at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), KTH Sweden and the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), and experiments take place at the Australian Centre for Neutron Scattering at ANSTO.