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Applied Sciences
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Nuclear Materials: Alloy Design, Processing, Microstructure, Properties, and Qualification
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Nuclear Materials: Alloy Design, Processing, Microstructure, Properties, and Qualification

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Materials Science and Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 January 2026 | Viewed by 726

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Rongjie Song

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho Falls, ID 83401, USA
Interests: alloy design; structural materials; fuel cladding; manufacturing; thermomechanical processing; heat treatment; microstructural characterization; mechanical testing and properties; corrosion; qualification
Dr. Andrea M. Jokisaari

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho Falls, ID 83401, USA
Interests: kinetics and thermodynamics of phase transitions; alloys; environmental effects; extreme environments; radiation damage; corrosion; rapid qualification; physics-based modeling; physics-informed machine learning
Dr. Lingfeng He

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Nuclear Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA
Interests: nuclear fuels; structural materials; spent nuclear fuels; nuclear waste forms; synthesis/manufacturing; advanced characterization; radiation effects; molten salt corrosion; oxidation; mechanical properties; thermal properties

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are excited to announce a Special Issue of Applied Sciences dedicated to Nuclear Materials, focusing on critical advances in alloy design, processing, microstructural characterization, properties, and the qualification of structural materials for nuclear applications. This Special Issue seeks to provide a platform for the latest research that pushes the boundaries of knowledge and innovation in the field of nuclear materials.

We invite submissions of original research articles, review papers, and case studies that focus on (but not limited to) the following areas:

  • Alloy Design: The development of new alloys tailored for nuclear applications, including high-performance steels and superalloys.
  • Processing Techniques: Innovations in manufacturing processes such as casting, advanced manufacturing, and advanced heat treatments for nuclear materials.
  • Microstructure: Advanced characterization of microstructural features in nuclear alloys and their evolution under nuclear reactor environmental conditions (e.g., radiation, corrosion, high-temperature, stress).
  • Material Properties: Mechanical properties of nuclear alloys, including tensile, creep, fatigue, with or without exposure to radiation, corrosion resistance, etc.
  • Modeling and simulation: Effects of extreme environments on the behavior of materials.
  • Testing and Qualification: Standardized testing methods, accelerated material qualification processes, and regulatory compliance for nuclear applications.
  • Applications: Case studies demonstrating the application of novel materials in nuclear reactors, fission and fusion systems, and other relevant technologies.

Dr. Rongjie Song
Dr. Andrea M. Jokisaari
Dr. Lingfeng He
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • nuclear materials
  • material design
  • processing
  • microstructural characterization
  • mechanical testing
  • qualification

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 797 KiB  
Article
Radiation Hardness of Oxide Thin Films Prepared by Magnetron Sputtering Deposition
by Marko Škrabić, Marija Majer, Zdravko Siketić, Maja Mičetić, Željka Knežević and Marko Karlušić
Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(13), 7067; https://doi.org/10.3390/app15137067 (registering DOI) - 23 Jun 2025
Abstract
Thin amorphous oxide films (a-SiO2, a-Al2O3, a-MgO) were prepared by magnetron sputtering deposition. Their response to high-energy heavy ion beams (23 MeV I, 18 MeV Cu, 2.5 MeV Cu) and gamma-ray (1.25 MeV) irradiation was studied by [...] Read more.
Thin amorphous oxide films (a-SiO2, a-Al2O3, a-MgO) were prepared by magnetron sputtering deposition. Their response to high-energy heavy ion beams (23 MeV I, 18 MeV Cu, 2.5 MeV Cu) and gamma-ray (1.25 MeV) irradiation was studied by elastic recoil detection analysis and infrared spectroscopy. It was established that their high radiation hardness is due to a high level of disorder, already present in as-prepared samples, so the high-energy heavy ion irradiation cannot change their structure much. In the case of a-SiO2, this resulted in a completely different response to high-energy heavy ion irradiation found previously in thermally grown a-SiO2. In the case of a-MgO, only gamma-ray irradiation was found to induce significant changes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nuclear Materials: Alloy Design, Processing, Microstructure, Properties, and Qualification)
32 pages, 6287 KiB  
Article
A Study of the Thermodynamic Properties of Nd-C and Ce-C TRISO Fission Product Binary Systems
by Ryan Varga, Steven J. Cavazos, Elizabeth S. Sooby, Markus H. A. Piro and Bernard W. N. Fitzpatrick
Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(11), 6229; https://doi.org/10.3390/app15116229 - 1 Jun 2025
Viewed by 384
Abstract
TRISO fuels are proposed for portable and modular power reactor technologies. Expansion is dependent upon improvements to safety through a thorough understanding of fission product behavior as related to functional containment design philosophies. Significant knowledge gaps exist in the thermodynamic behavior of neodymium [...] Read more.
TRISO fuels are proposed for portable and modular power reactor technologies. Expansion is dependent upon improvements to safety through a thorough understanding of fission product behavior as related to functional containment design philosophies. Significant knowledge gaps exist in the thermodynamic behavior of neodymium and cerium fission products solubility in graphite, which play a role in the qualification of TRISO fuels. DSC measurements were conducted on Nd-C and Ce-C carbide fission products to expand upon calculated phase equilibria. Various crucible tests, calibrant experimentation, sample generation and sample preparation techniques, and new thermodynamic measurements have been performed. New phase equilibria were produced to improve Nd-C and Ce-C phase diagrams and further inform models of fission product behavior within TRISO fuels. The following phase transition temperatures are reported for Nd-C, with an error of ±32.7 °C: 10 mol%C—844.6 °C, 891.2 °C, and 911.2 °C; 16 mol%C—724.1 °C and 771.2 °C; 20 mol%C—731.8 °C; 25 mol%C—726.1 °C and 762.2 °C; 30 mol%C—718.5 °C and 976.4 °C; 35 mol%C—825.1 °C and 995.3 °C; 40 mol%C—1274.6 °C. The following phase transition temperatures are reported for Ce-C with an error of ±32.7 °C: 20 mol%C—878.6 °C; 32 mol%C—714.7 °C and 857 °C; 67 mol%C—1138.7 °C. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nuclear Materials: Alloy Design, Processing, Microstructure, Properties, and Qualification)
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