Jeff Terry

Jeff Terry, professor of physics, will speak about his research in accident-tolerant nuclear fuel claddings at the AVS 62nd International Symposium & Exhibition in San Jose, Calif., on Thursday, October 22.

He and his team are trying to determine if silicon carbide could be an adequate cladding to withstand high temperatures resulting from a Loss of Coolant Accident (LOCA), like that at Fukushima, while reducing the possibility of hydrogen explosions.

They have conducted one of the first experiments to describe the physical and chemical properties of radioactive elements in silicon carbide under accident conditions.

This work has made use of the facilities at the Advanced Nuclear Test Reactor at Idaho National Laboratory and the characterization facilities at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Kurt Terrani, staff scientist and Weinberg Fellow in the Nuclear Fuel Materials Group at Oak Ridge, has been crucial to the project’s success, Terry said.

A story about the research and a video of the team explaining its work are available.

The AVS International Symposium and Exhibition addresses cutting-edge issues associated with materials, processing, and interfaces in the research and manufacturing communities. It is a group of the American Institute of Physics (AIP).