| AVS 66th International Symposium & Exhibition | |
| Actinides and Rare Earths Focus Topic | Monday Sessions |
| Session AC-MoA |
| Session: | Early Career Scientists |
| Presenter: | Lingfeng He, Idaho National Laboratory |
| Authors: | L. He, Idaho National Laboratory T. Yao, Idaho National Laboratory V. Chauhan, The Ohio State University A. Sen, Purdue University Z. Hua, Idaho National Laboratory M. Bachhav, Idaho National Laboratory M. Khafizov, The Ohio State University J. Wharry, Purdue University M. Mann, Air Force Research Laboratory T. Wiss, European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) J. Gan, Idaho National Laboratory D. Hurley, Idaho National Laboratory |
| Correspondent: | Click to Email |
Oxide nuclear fuels have been widely used in light water reactors. The thermal conductivity of nuclear fuels is closely related to energy conversion efficiency as well as reactor safety. Understanding the mechanisms that cause the degradation in thermal conductivity in a high radiation environment is important for the design and development of new high-burnup fuels. For oxide nuclear fuels, phonon scattering by point defects, extended defects such as dislocation loops and bubbles, and grain boundaries plays a significant role in limiting the thermal transport properties. In this work, detailed microstructural characterization of pristine and ion irradiated ThO2 and UO2 has been performed by using electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD), atomic-resolution scanning transmission electron microscope (S/TEM), atom probe tomography (APT) and time-domain Brillouin scattering (TDBS) techniques. The thermal conductivity before and after irradiation has been determined using laser-based modulated thermoreflectance (MTR) technique. This work is partially supported by the Center for Thermal Energy Transport under Irradiation, an Energy Frontier Research Center funded by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Sciences.