| Project Detail |
Using a computationally-guided approach, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has developed carbide strengthened alloys in small laboratory-scale trials that show good resistance to corrosion by fluorides but with significantly improved strength and/or creep rupture life at temperatures up to 850°C compared with Hastelloy® N. The team proposes to identify a small subset of alloys, fabricate larger trials, measure salt resistance, and evaluate creep and irradiation resistance to enable alloy composition modifications, down-select the best alloy capable of meeting property requirements, and develop processing and welding techniques to fabricate components using this down-selected alloy. This project will decrease risks associated with new alloy development and significantly accelerate the timeline for commercialization of the structural alloy for use in high-efficiency MSR, FHR, and CSP systems.
Potential Impact:
Carbide-strengthened alloys will likely provide the proper combination of molten salt resistance, creep resistance, and irradiation resistance required for high-temperature FHRs and MSRs. |
