Lecture Series: Challenges of materials for nuclear applications

Abstract

Nuclear energy is an essential component of the UK energy landscape and a key to tackling global climate challenges.

Nuclear environments pose some unique challenges to the materials used and their manufacturing. In this talk, a few case studies of structural materials for nuclear applications will be presented.

The recent development of nuclear materials research at the University of Birmingham will then be introduced, including the development, capabilities and potentials of the high flux accelerator-driven neutron facility and the in-situ irradiation characterisation facility; both are currently being commissioned.

Presenter bio

Yu-Lung Chiu is a Professor of Physical Metallurgy at the University of Birmingham. His research concerns the microstructure and mechanical properties relationship of engineering alloys and has applied electron microscopy and micro-mechanical characterisation techniques to study the structure and chemistry of materials down to fine scales and to develop new insights of elementary deformation mechanisms which often govern the macroscopic performance of materials.

His current research efforts involve the development of fast, high resolution, large volume materials characterisation capabilities and the study of the irradiation damage and degradation of nuclear materials.