NSUF - Nuclear Science User Facilities

Ben Maier

Profile Information
Name
Dr. Ben Maier
Institution
Westinghouse Electric Company
Position
Principal Engineer
h-Index
ORCID
0000-0003-0304-9128
Publications:
"A Novel Approach for Manufacturing Oxide Dispersion Strengthened (ODS) Steel Cladding Tubes using Cold Spray Technology" Ben Maier, Mia Lenling, Stuart Maloy, Kumar Sridharan, Nuclear Engineering and Technology Vol. 2019 Link
A novel fabrication method of oxide dispersion strengthened (ODS) steel cladding tubes for advanced fast reactors has been investigated using the cold spray powder-based materials deposition process. Cold spraying has the potential advantage for rapidly fabricating ODS cladding tubes in comparison with the conventional multi-step extrusion process. A gas atomized spherical 14YWT (Fe-14%Cr, 3%W, 0.4%Ti, 0.2%Y, 0.01%O) powder was sprayed on a rotating cylindrical 6061-T6 aluminum mandrel using nitrogen as the propellant gas. The powder lacked the oxygen content needed to precipitate the nanoclusters in ODS steel, therefore this work was intended to serve as a proof-of-concept study to demonstrate that free-standing steel cladding tubes with prototypical ODS composition could be manufactured using the cold spray process. The spray process produced an approximately one-millimeter thick, dense 14YWT deposit on the aluminum-alloy tube. After surface polishing of the 14YWT deposit to obtain desired cladding thickness and surface roughness, the aluminum-alloy mandrel was dissolved in an alkaline medium to leave behind a free-standing ODS tube. The as-fabricated cladding tube was annealed at 1000 °C for 1 hour in an argon atmosphere to improve the overall mechanical properties of the cladding.
Presentations:
"Cold Spray Coatings for Accident Tolerant Zr-Alloy Cladding in Light Water Reactors" Hwasung Yeom, Ben Maier, Peng Xu, Kumar Sridharan, ANS Annual Meeting 2018 June 18-22, (2018)
"Manufacturing of nanostructured ODS steel cladding tubes for advanced nuclear reactors using cold spray technology" Mia Lenling, Hwasung Yeom, Ben Maier, Greg Johnson, David Hoelzer, Peter Hosemann, Stuart Maloy, Kumar Sridharan, Jeffrey Graham, The Minerals, Metals and Materials Society (TMS) 2019 March 10-14, (2019)
NSUF Articles:
U.S. DOE Nuclear Science User Facilities Awards 35 Rapid Turnaround Experiment Research Proposals - Awards total approximately $1.3 million These projects will continue to advance the understanding of irradiation effects in nuclear fuels and materials in support of the mission of the DOE Office of Nuclear Energy. Wednesday, September 20, 2017 - Calls and Awards
DOE Awards 33 Rapid Turnaround Experiment Research Proposals - Projects total approximately $1.2 million These projects will continue to advance the understanding of irradiation effects in nuclear fuels and materials in support of the mission of the DOE Office of Nuclear Energy. Monday, June 18, 2018 - Calls and Awards

About Us

The Nuclear Science User Facilities (NSUF) is the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Nuclear Energy's only designated nuclear energy user facility. Through peer-reviewed proposal processes, the NSUF provides researchers access to neutron, ion, and gamma irradiations, post-irradiation examination and beamline capabilities at Idaho National Laboratory and a diverse mix of university, national laboratory and industry partner institutions.

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