Ushering in safe, low-carbon electricity generated by nuclear fusion


Date:
February 22, 2022
Source:
University of Surrey
Summary:
Engineers are working to develop a new, economically viable and
safe source of low carbon electricity through nuclear fusion.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== Materials engineers at the University of Surrey and the UK Atomic Energy Authority are supporting an international effort to develop a new,
economically viable and safe source of low carbon electricity through
nuclear fusion.


==========================================================================
The Surrey research team will be using their expertise to upgrade stress measurement techniques that can allow scientists to map the residual
pressure within a volume of steel, rather than in single points. The
Surrey team's new approach will be used to prove whether welds are safe
and effective to use in future fusion energy plants.

Dr Tan Sui, Senior Lecturer in Materials Engineering at the University
of Surrey, who led the research, said: "Developing techniques and
introducing new approaches to UK research is essential if we're to move
towards energy generated through fusion, which could be a key part of the world's long-term energy needs by the second half of this century. Our
next step is to process the data acquired through these processes into a simulation model which will enable us to accurately predict the residual
stress on EUROFER 97 steel joints after welding." Dr Yiqiang Wang, Senior Materials Engineer at the UK Atomic Energy Authority, said: ''We are now entering the engineering design phase for the next generation of nuclear
fusion power plants, building upon decades of research at UKAEA and the
wider international fusion community. Our team will tackle engineering challenges to accelerate fusion demonstrators. This collaboration between
the University of Surrey, UKAEA, EUROfusion, the Science and Technology Facilities Council's ISIS Neutron and Muon Source and industry will
continue to demonstrate the efficiencies offered by cross-sector and international partnerships in accelerating the development of fusion
energy technologies." EUROFER 97[TM] steel (a European reference
steel invented in 1997) has been specially developed as a structural
material candidate for components of future fusion power plants. To be effective, it will need to withstand temperatures of 550DEGC and high
levels of irradiation without degrading. The Surrey team is focusing
on investigating the integrity and longevity of the steel welds, which
would be required in the construction of the fusion reaction chamber.

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by University_of_Surrey. Note: Content
may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal References:
1. Bin Zhu, Nathanael Leung, Winfried Kockelmann, Saurabh Kabra,
Andrew J.

London, Michael Gorley, Mark J. Whiting, Yiqiang Wang, Tan
Sui. Revealing the residual stress distribution in laser
welded Eurofer97 steel by neutron diffraction and Bragg edge
imaging. Journal of Materials Science & Technology, 2022; 114:
249 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmst.2021.12.004
2. Bin Zhu, Yiqiang Wang, Jiři' Dluhos, Andy J. London, Michael
Gorley,
Mark J. Whiting, Tan Sui. A novel pathway for multiscale
high-resolution time-resolved residual stress evaluation of
laser-welded Eurofer97.

Science Advances, 2022; 8 (7) DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abl4592 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/02/220222135406.htm

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