{style="max-width: 100%; float:right; width:321px; margin:0px 0px 15px 15px;"} The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Nuclear Energy’s Nuclear Science User Facilities program awarded 41 Rapid Turnaround Experiment (RTE) projects today that support the deployment of advanced reactors, fuel cycle development and the continued operation of the nation’s nuclear reactor fleet. RTE awards advance nuclear science and technology by providing nuclear energy researchers with timely access to irradiation testing, post-irradiation examination and technical expertise provided through the NSUF program at no cost to the researchers. The cost of access to the research capabilities provided to complete this work is equal to approximately $3 million. Awards were granted to 41 principal investigators from 18 institutions, including universities, national laboratories and industries. Competitively-selected projects encompass a range of nuclear fuels and materials research that will advance next-generation nuclear power technologies. Key materials being studied include advanced metallic fuels, structural alloys, cladding and moderators that could be promising candidates for use in advanced nuclear reactors. These projects have the potential to advance accident-tolerant fuels and corrosion-resistant materials for molten salt and advanced reactors, improve structural material resilience to extend reactor lifetimes, and develop sensing and monitoring systems for safer, more efficient nuclear operations. All experiments will look at various properties of materials that have undergone irradiation at various reactors, doses, temperatures, times and produced using manufacturing methods. Researchers will characterize these samples using mechanical testing, microstructural analysis and a range of microscopy techniques. Click [here](https://nsuf.inl.gov/Home/Projects) to find current and past awards. Learn more about NSUF awards and resources at [nsuf.inl.gov/](https://nsuf.inl.gov/) **FY 2026 First Call RTE award recipients** | Principal Investigator | Institution | Project Title | | --- | --- | --- | | Priyanka Agrawal | University of North Texas | Radiation Examination of Novel Ni-Based Alloy (Ni-Cr-Mo-W-(Ti/Al)) for Molten Chloride Fast Reactor Structural Applications | | Michenna Allen | Texas A&M University | Proof-testing of a Rapid Screening Technique for Assessing Corrosion of Conventional and Additively Manufactured Alloys Under Simultaneous Irradiation and Exposure to Molten Salt | | Rashed Almasri | North Carolina State University | Investigation of Nano-Grained Microstructure Formation in UC Using In situ Ion Irradiation | | Jose Arregui-Mena | Oak Ridge National Laboratory | Comprehensive Characterization of the Irradiation Effects of Glassy Carbon at High Neutron Doses | | Mukesh Bachhav | Idaho National Laboratory | High-Resolution Microstructural and Compositional Studies on PWR RPV Welds | | Sumit Bhattacharya | Argonne National Laboratory | Post-Irradiation Examination of MITR-Irradiated Advanced Moderator Module (AMM) Capsules: Multilayer Barrier Integrity, Hydrogen Retention, and Microstructural Evolution | | Scott Bozeman | Oregon State University | Evaluating the Radiation-Corrosion Stability of Ni2(Cr, Mo, W) Domains in Chloride Molten Salts | | Donald Brown | Los Alamos National Laboratory | Kinetics of Dislocation Recovery in Irradiated and Deformed Tantalum | | Andrew Caldwell | First American Nuclear Co. | Effect of Extrusion Temperature on Mechanical Property Evolution for FeCrAl-ODS Alloys Following Neutron Irradiation at Liquid Metal Fast Reactor Operating Temperatures | | Arya Chatterjee | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | Understanding Enhanced Ductility in High Dose Neutron Irradiated Ferritic Steels | | William Chuirazzi | Idaho National Laboratory | Exploring Irradiation Effects on Laser Powder Bed Fusion Produced Stainless Steel 316L | | Edward Cowles | North Carolina State University | Phase Stability Under Irradiation of Polymorphic Gallium Oxide Semi-conductor: Effect of Processing Route, Dopant and Temperature | | William Cureton | Oak Ridge National Laboratory | Synchrotron X-Ray Diffraction and Computed Tomography of Irradiated TRISO Fuel | | Eirini Galliopoulou | Idaho National Laboratory | Effect of Equal-Channel Angular Pressing on Creep Behavior of Neutron-Irradiated Fe-9Cr Steel | | Tamim Hossain | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | In-Situ Synchrotron X-Ray Diffraction Study of In-Service Baffle Former Bolt Material Under Uniaxial Tension at the Advanced Photon Source | | Hannah Hutton | University of Michigan | Nanoscale Feature Stability and Irradiation Response in GRX-810 at Elevated Temperatures | | Philip Jensen | First American Nuclear Co. | Irradiation Temperature-Dependence of the Mechanical Properties of Low-dpa MA956 From Shear-Punch and Microhardness Testing | | Djamel Kaoumi | North Carolina State University | Effect of Heat Treatment on the radiation resistance of Multi-Principal Element Alloys | | Amey Khanolkar | Idaho National Laboratory | Post-Irradiation Examination of Printed Strain Gauges Subject to Neutron Exposure | | Jordan Kruse | Westinghouse Electric Company | Irradiation of 54Fe Targets for ASTM International Inter-Laboratory Study of E263, "Standard Test Method for Measuring Fast-Neutron Reaction Rates by Radioactivation of Iron" | | Yogesh Kumar | University of Florida | Evaluation of Interconnected Porosity in an Irradiated Annular U-10Zr Fuel | | Calvin Lear | Oak Ridge National Laboratory | Probing Hydrogen Embrittlement Mechanisms in Neutron-Irradiated RAFM Steel F82H | | Sukanya Majumder | Purdue University | SEM and TEM Characterization of Phase Reverted U-10Mo Alloys Neutron Irradiated to Mid Dose Sub-Eutectoid Temperatures | | Ellie Mastrobattista | Oklo Inc. | Investigation Into Thermal Properties of UPuZr Fuel With Varying Compositions | | Chris McRobie | North Carolina State University | Advancing Surrogate Irradiation Methods Through a Multi-Length Scale Investigation of Defects in 316SS | | Subhashish Meher | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory | Radiation Tolerance and Microstructural Evolution in Solid-State-Processed High-Entropy Alloys | | Mary Meyer | University of Florida | Evaluation of the Mechanical Properties of Phases in an Annular U-10Zr Irradiated Fuel | | John Muth | North Carolina State University | Fast-Neutron Irradiation of SiC LGAD/PiN Radiation Detectors and Their Layer-Equivalent Bulk Material Analogs | | Steven Nguyen | University of California-Irvine | TEM Characterization of Uranium Secondary Phases at the Contact Interface Between UO2 Fuel and Zircaloy-4 Cladding Under Hydrothermal Conditions | | Emma Orcutt | Idaho National Laboratory | High-Resolution Thermal Conductivity Study of ATR Irradiated YHx | | Mahmud Hasan Ovi | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | In Situ Synchrotron X-Ray Diffraction Study of Neutron-Irradiated AM 316L Stainless Steel Under Uniaxial Tension | | Charles Payne | Idaho National Laboratory | Coating vs. Dopant Effects on Optical Fiber Sensor Drift During High-Dose Neutron Irradiation | | Ronit Roy | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | Effect of Prior Particle Boundaries on Deformation Mechanisms in Irradiated PM-HIP Alloys | | Anton Schneider | Los Alamos National Laboratory | High-Resolution Microscopy of Uranium Mononitride MiniFuel to Quantify Lower-Length-Scale Parameters | | William Simon | Texas A&M University | Irradiation Tolerance and Surface-Layer Stability of Plasma-Nitrided SS316H | | David Sprouster | Stony Brook University | Quantifying Hydrogen Defects in Irradiated Zirconium Alloys | | Stephen Taller | Oak Ridge National Laboratory | The Role of Temporal Temperature Gradients on Microstructure Evolution Using Proton Irradiations | | Sven Vogel | Los Alamos National Laboratory | Characterization of Irradiated Yttrium-Hydride Solid-State Moderator Materials | | Sadie Wicks | University of Florida | Identifying the Roles of Irradiation and Stress in Dislocation-Mediated Grain Subdivision | | Xinghang Zhang | Purdue University | In Situ Dual Beam Irradiation on Additively Manufactured T91 ODS Steel | | Lingfeng Zhou | University of Michigan | Mechanistic Insight into Mo-Induced ⟨100⟩ Loop Evolution in FeCrAl Alloys Using In Situ Irradiations |