Hydride-based shielding materials for compact fusion power reactors

核聚变反应堆的小型化依赖于先进材料的发展，这是因为中子屏蔽的空间有限。一类显示出有希望的中子衰减效率的材料是第三族和第四族金属氢化物，例如基于Y、Z和Hf的氢化物。它们的卓越性能归功于金属原子的伽马射线衰减和氢的中子慢化。我们的实验室致力于开发这些材料，通过使用新的方法处理这些材料，并了解它们在极端聚变反应堆环境中的降解机理[1]。这些条件包括严重的热应力和机械应力、腐蚀和辐射。我们工作的最终目标是为聚变反应堆的设计提供信息，并允许开发具有增强的损伤容忍度的材料。

The miniaturisation of nuclear fusion reactors is dependent on the development of advanced materials, due to the restricted space for neutron shielding. One class of material that shows promising neutron attenuation efficiency is the group group III and IV metal hydrides, such as those based on yttrium, zirconium, and hafnium. Their outstanding performance is due to the combined gamma ray attenuation of the metal atom and neutron moderation of hydrogen.Our lab is committed to the development of these materials by processing these materials by new methods and understanding their degradation mechanisms in extreme fusion reactor environments [1]. These conditions include severe thermal and mechanical stresses, corrosion and irradiation. The ultimate goal of our work is to inform fusion reactor design and allow the development of materials with enhanced damage-tolerance.