Zhihan Hu

Profile Information
Name
Dr. Zhihan Hu
Institution
Texas A&M University
Position
Graduate research assistant
Affiliation
Texas A&M University
h-Index
7
ORCID
0000-0002-1535-7489
Biography
<p><span style="color: rgba(13, 13, 13, 1); font-family: Söhne, ui-sans-serif, system-ui, -apple-system, &quot;Segoe UI&quot;, Roboto, Ubuntu, Cantarell, &quot;Noto Sans&quot;, sans-serif, &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;, Arial, &quot;Apple Color Emoji&quot;, &quot;Segoe UI Emoji&quot;, &quot;Segoe UI Symbol&quot;, &quot;Noto Color Emoji&quot;; font-size: 16px">Zhihan Hu is currently a postdoc in the Department of Nuclear Engineering at Texas A&amp;M University. He obtained a BS in Physics from the University of Science and Technology in China in 2019. He joined Texas A&amp;M University in 2019 as a PhD student, and graduated in 2024. His research interest is nuclear materials degradation under extreme conditions. He has published 25 journal publications, with an h-index of 7.</span><br></p>
Expertise
Corrosion, Fuel Cladding, Ion Irradiation, Neutron Irradiation, Nuclear Fuel, Steels, Swelling
Publications:
"Ion irradiation and examination of Additive friction stir deposited 316 stainless steel" Priyanka Agrawal, Ching-Heng Shiau, Aishani Sharma, Zhihan Hu, Megha Dubey, Yu Lu, Lin Shao, Ramprashad Prabhakaran, Yaqiao Wu, Rajiv Mishra, Materials &amp; Design Vol. 238 2024 112730 Link
This study explored solid-state additive friction stir deposition (AFSD) as a modular manufacturing technology, with the aim of enabling a more rapid and streamlined on-site fabrication process for large meter-scale nuclear structural components with fully dense parts. Austenitic 316 stainless steel (SS) is an excellent candidate to demonstrate AFSD, as it is a commonly-used structural material for nuclear applications. The microstructural evolution and concomitant changes in mechanical properties after 5 MeV Fe++ ion irradiation were studied comprehensively via transmission electron microscopy and nanoindentation. AFSD-processed 316 SS led to a fine-grained and ultrafine-grained microstructure that resulted in a simultaneous increase in strength, ductility, toughness, irradiation resistance, and corrosion resistance. The AFSD samples did not exhibit voids even at 100 dpa dose at 600 °C. The enhanced radiation tolerance as compared to conventional SS was reasoned to be due to the high density of grain boundaries that act as irradiation-induced defect sinks.