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Breadcrumb

  1. Research
  2. Scientific Discovery
  3. Nuclear & Particle Physics
  4. Fusion Energy Science

Fusion Energy Science

Developing materials to
withstand extreme conditions

  • Biology
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  • Computational Research
  • Earth System Science
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  • Nuclear & Particle Physics
    • Dark Matter
    • Neutrino Physics
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    • Fusion Energy Science
  • Quantum Information Science

Through fusion, the sun produces light and energy. Fusion energy occurs when two nuclei combine in plasma, forming an entirely new atom in the process. The promise and benefits of this environmentally friendly, carbon-free energy source are enormous. Scientists are working to harness the energy produced by fusion as an alternative form of power generation to produce electricity. For this reason, the pathway to fusion energy is one of the U.S. Department of Energy’s 14 Grand Challenges for Engineering in the 21st Century.

Unlike the sun, creating fusion energy on Earth is challenging. Fusion reactors are limited by materials that can withstand the extreme conditions fusion creates. PNNL's unique scientific capabilities are helping advance fusion energy in areas, such as materials design for harsh environments, mechanical testing under realistic conditions, irradiated material handling and characterization, microscopy and microanalysis, tritium science, advanced manufacturing, high-performance computing, and machine learning.

Innovative materials for a hostile environment

In a fusion energy reactor, materials at the plasma interface are regularly exposed to extreme operating conditions, such as high temperatures, large heat loads, and bombardment by energetic particles. PNNL’s research focuses on developing durable fusion energy reactor materials, which is supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Fusion Energy Sciences program in the Office of Science. PNNL is advancing the field of fusion reactor materials research through new techniques to develop materials that can withstand extreme operating conditions.

STEM
Fusion energy sciences researcher Karen Kruska uses the JEOL ARM 200CF STEM. This instrument enables atom-by-atom imaging resolution and unmatched spatial resolution for atom-to-atom chemical mapping of materials, including energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and electron energy-loss spectroscopy. The completely new electron column design offers atomic spatial energy resolution combined with high probe currents for microanalysis. (Photo by Andrea Starr | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory)

Multipronged approach: fusion energy theory, experiments, and computation

A distinguishing feature of PNNL’s Fusion Energy Science-funded research program is the tight coupling between theory, experiments, and computation that leads to deeper insights into the performance of materials. Our computing research spans vast length and time scales from density functional theory to finite element models. These efforts benefit from PNNL’s strengths in data science, high-performance computing, and applied mathematics. Our scientists are applying machine learning to analyze the microstructure of irradiated materials, develop new models of atomic interactions, and extract fundamental physical insights from large datasets.

Our research efforts are coordinated with fusion materials programs at other national laboratories and universities. This includes international collaborations on irradiation experiments and post-irradiation examination of candidate materials for fusion service.

Award winning technology to advance fusion energy research

With a rich history of materials research and development, our researchers are using PNNL’s Solid Phase Processing capabilities to tackle the fusion materials challenge. Solid Phase Processing holds the promise of enabling scalable, cost-effective fabrication of fusion reactor materials. Our work spans materials, such as tungsten alloys and composites, oxide dispersion strengthened steel, vanadium alloys, nickel, and palladium coatings. These materials play a central role in fusion reactor design because they can resist radiation damage, erosion, and thermal shock.

PNNL is using its R&D 100 award winning technology, Shear Assisted Processing and Extrusion (ShAPE™), to demonstrate scalable fabrication of oxide dispersion strengthened steel for fusion reactor blankets. ShAPE™ is an energy-efficient manufacturing method that transforms and improves metals into high-performing components while using less energy than conventional extrusion. It holds the potential to decrease the energy intensity of manufacturing and deliver higher-performing components at a lower cost for fusion reactors.

Related Capabilities

Advanced Computer Science, Visualization, & Data
Condensed Matter Physics & Materials Science

Facilities

Radiochemical Processing Laboratory Applied Process Engineering Laboratory Materials Science and Technology Building FEI Helios NanoLab DualBeam Focused Ion Beam/Scanning Electron Microscope JEOL GrandARM 300CF AC-Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope

News

October 2, 2020
PNNL Technologies Garner Six R&D 100 Honors
July 23, 2020
Handbook of Materials Modeling Edited by Ram Devanathan
November 16, 2020
Using AI to Detect Defects in Fusion Reactor Materials

Contact

Ram Devanathan
Computational Materials Scientist
ram.devanathan@pnnl.gov
509-371-6487

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