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TRP -> Campaign/Number -> TRP 03
TRP 03. Corrosion of Steel by Lead Bismuth Eutectic
June 2001 - May 2004
Research Objectives & Methods
This research program has analyzed various steel samples that have been exposed to lead bismuth eutectic as part of the national program to develop LBE and allied technologies. The goal of this research was to understand the basic science of corrosion in the steel/LBE system. This information will be paramount in developing engineering efforts to control, avoid, and/or minimize the effect of corrosion of steels by LBE in transmuter and LBE systems. Additionally, this program provided UNLV researchers with hands-on experience that will be crucial in developing the UNLV molten metal program.
Investigators performed post-experiment testing and analysis on steel samples that have been exposed to lead bismuth eutectic. Surface analysis techniques were employed that included scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectrometry, and laser Raman spectrometry.
These techniques, applied to the steel surface, have probed the surface morphology, elemental composition, and oxidation states as a function of position. Chemical alterations and resulting chemical species were studied at the steel surface. Additionally, the experimental facilities at the Advanced Light Source (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory) and the Advanced Photon Source (Argonne National Laboratory) were used to characterize the systems. This allowed spectroscopic characterization of the stainless steel before and after interaction with LBE to determine its composition.
Researchers
- John Farley, Physics
- Allen Johnson, Chemistry
- Dale Perry, Physics
Collaborators
- Ning Li, LBE Project Leader, Los Alamos National Laboratory
- Eric P. Loewen, Idaho National Laboratory
Students
-
Dan Koury, Masters, Physics
MS Thesis - Thao Trung Ho, Masters, Chemistry
- Brian Hosterman, Masters, Physics
- Julia Manzerova, Masters, Chemistry
- Umar Younas, Masters, Physics
- Denise Parsons, Masters, Physics
- Lindsay Wylie, Undergraduate, Physics
- Chris Harland, Visiting Undergraduate, University of Puget Sound
- Stacey Sidle, Visiting Undergraduate, Rhodes College