Robert Mariani

Profile Information
Name
Robert Mariani
Institution
Idaho National Laboratory
Position
Distinguished Staff Scientist
h-Index
ORCID
0000-0002-7502-3536
Expertise
Actinide Alloys, Cladding, Coatings, Electrochemistry, Electrorefining, Fuel Alloys, Fuel Cycle, Nuclear Fuel
Publications:
"Structural Evolution of Oxidized Surface of Zirconium-Silicide under Ion Irradiation" Hwasung Yeom, Li He, Robert Mariani, Kumar Sridharan, Applied Surface Science Vol. 455 2018 333-342 Link
Additional Publications:
"Experimental Results of Conductive Inserts to Reduce Nuclear Fuel Temperature During Nuclear Volumetric Heating" Benjamin W. Spencer, Philip G. Petersen, Nicolas E. Woolstenhulme, David Ban, David Frazer, Laura Sudderth, Sarah Hamilton, James K. Jewell, Robert D. Mariani, Jason L. Schulthess, [2022] Journal of Nuclear Materials · DOI: 10.1016/j.jnucmat.2022.154176
"Initial Evaluation of Fuel-Reactor Concepts for Advanced LEU Fuel Development" Andrew Nelson, Roger Blomquist, Dennis Keiser, Jr., Gilles Youinou, Gerard Hofman, George Griffith, Robert Mariani, [2020] · DOI: 10.2172/1602767
"Assessment of Te as a U-Zr fuel additive to mitigate fuel-cladding chemical interactions" Jinsuo Zhang, Michael T. Benson, James A. King, Robert D. Mariani, Yi Xie, [2019] Journal of Nuclear Materials · DOI: 10.1016/j.jnucmat.2018.10.050
"Behaviors of Ce, Pr, and Nd in liquid cesium by ab initio molecular dynamics simulations" Jinsuo Zhang, Cetin Unal, Robert D. Mariani, Xiang Li, [2018] Journal of Applied Physics · DOI: 10.1063/1.5041727

The fuel cladding chemical interaction (FCCI) phenomenon is potentially the main factor restricting the application of metallic fuels in liquid sodium cooled fast reactors. The understanding of the lanthanide (Ln) transport behaviors in liquid Cs filled pores in U-Zr fuel is essential for understanding FCCIs. By using ab initio molecular dynamics, fundamental properties of the metallic system Cs-Ln, such as density of states and coordination number, have been studied. Then, the Ln diffusivities in liquid cesium and the solution viscosity were calculated. For validating the model, the viscosity of the pure liquid Cs which has been well measured is also calculated at three temperatures, which indicates the present model has a high accuracy in calculation of viscosity and self-diffusivity of Cs in liquid Cs.

"Microstructural characterization of as-cast U-20Pu-10Zr-3.86Pd and U-20Pu-10Zr-3.86Pd-4.3Ln" Lingfeng He, James A. King, Robert D. Mariani, Alexander J. Winston, James W. Madden, Michael T. Benson, [2018] Journal of Nuclear Materials · DOI: 10.1016/j.jnucmat.2018.05.062
"Thermodynamic stability studies of Ce-Sb compounds with Fe" Jinsuo Zhang, Michael T. Benson, Robert D. Mariani, Yi Xie, [2018] Journal of Nuclear Materials · DOI: 10.1016/j.jnucmat.2017.12.008
"Ab initio molecular dynamics study of the properties of cerium in liquid sodium at 1000 K temperature" Xiang Li, Jinsuo Zhang, R. D. Mariani, Cetin Unal, Adib Samin, [2015] Journal of Applied Physics · DOI: 10.1063/1.4937910

For liquid-sodium-cooled fast nuclear reactor systems, it is crucial to understand the behavior of lanthanides and other potential fission products in liquid sodium or other liquid metal solutions such as liquid cesium-sodium. In this study, we focus on lanthanide behavior in liquid sodium. Using ab initio molecular dynamics, we found that the solubility of cerium in liquid sodium at 1000 K was less than 0.78 at. %, and the diffusion coefficient of cerium in liquid sodium was calculated to be 5.57 × 10−9 m2/s. Furthermore, it was found that cerium in small amounts may significantly alter the heat capacity of the liquid sodium system. Our results are consistent with the experimental results for similar materials under similar conditions.

Source: ORCID/CrossRef using DOI