| About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
2025 TMS Annual Meeting & Exhibition
|
| Symposium
|
Composite Materials for Nuclear Applications III
|
| Presentation Title |
Tritium Breeder Composites for Fusion Applications |
| Author(s) |
Michael J. Moorehead, Priyanshi Agrawal, Stephanie Pitts, Larry Aagesen, Pierre-Clément Simon, Chase Taylor, Jorgen Rufner, Timothy Yoder, Danny Hermawan, Edwin García |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Michael J. Moorehead |
| Abstract Scope |
Due to the short half-life of tritium, all fusion reactors planned for long-term operation using a deuterium-tritium fuel cycle must produce sufficient tritium from reactions outside the core to maintain reactor operation. Typically, the core is surrounded by a tritium breeder blanket filled with lithium-containing materials which react under a neutron flux to form tritium that can then be collected. Here, reactor designers are forced to choose between using chemically reactive liquid breeders (e.g., Pb-Li, FLiBe, Li) or solid breeders, which often have lower lithium concentrations and questionable mechanical integrity under irradiation (e.g., Li4SiO4, Li2TiO3). To expand this pool of options, this work has sought to produce composite tritium breeder materials using lithium-containing ceramics and metal reinforcements. The resultant composite tritium breeders simultaneously feature higher lithium densities and improved mechanical integrity, including tensile strength and toughness, compared to other tritium breeders previously reported in literature. |
| Proceedings Inclusion? |
Planned: |
| Keywords |
Nuclear Materials, Powder Materials, |