Microscopic Fuel Particles Produced by Self-Assembly of Actinide Nanoclusters on Carbon Nanomaterials
- Univ. of Notre Dame, IN (United States)
Many consider further development of nuclear power to be essential for sustained development of society; however, the fuel forms currently used are expensive to recycle. In this project, we sought to create the knowledge and knowhow that are needed to produce nanocomposite materials by directly depositing uranium nanoclusters on networks of carbon- based nanomaterials. The objectives of the proposed work were to (1) determine the control of uranium nanocluster surface chemistry on nanocomposite formation, (2) determine the control of carbon nanomaterial surface chemistry on nanocomposite formation, and (3) develop protocols for synthesizing uranium-carbon nanomaterials. After examining a wide variety of synthetic methods, we show that synthesizing graphene-supported UO2 nanocrystals in polar ethylene glycol compounds by polyol reduction under boiling reflux can enable the use of an inexpensive graphene precursor graphene oxide in the production of uranium-carbon nanocomposites in a one-pot process. We further show that triethylene glycol is the most suitable solvent for producing nanometer-sized UO2 crystals compared to monoethylene glycol, diethylene glycol, and polyethylene glycol. Graphene-supported UO2 nanocrystals synthesized with triethylene glycol show evidence of heteroepitaxy, which can be beneficial for facilitating heat transfer in nuclear fuel particles. Furthermore, we show that graphene-supported UO2 nanocrystals synthesized by polyol reduction can be readily stored in alcohols, preventing oxidation from the prevalent oxygen in air. Together, these methods provide a facile approach for preparing and storing graphene-supported UO nanocrystals for further investigation and development under ambient conditions.
- Research Organization:
- Univ. of Notre Dame, IN (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Nuclear Energy (NE)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC07-05ID14517
- OSTI ID:
- 1333913
- Report Number(s):
- 12-3923; 12-3923
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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