Two NEEP professors, Kumar Sridharan and Oliver Schmitz, have received a patent for a new material that can withstand the harsh conditions of a fusion reactor. Already licensed to a fusion industry partner, this technology could meet a major need in the industry: plasma-facing components that are compact, durable, and easy to repair.
The technology is a cold-sprayed tantalum coating (U.S. Patent No.12709806) developed by the Nuclear and Applied Materials Research Group. Tantalum not only has a high melting point and outstanding corrosion resistance, but researchers also discovered that—when applied with the cold spray process—the coating can absorb high levels of hydrogen due to its unique microstructure. The groups have also received publications in journals: Physica Scripta and Nuclear Fusion, for this research
In fusion devices, hydrogen ions can become neutralized and escape from the plasma, causing power loss. This tantalum coating absorbs those errant particles and, when the material is heated up, expels them back into the plasma – all without suffering any changes to its material structure.
Even better, repairing these cold-sprayed reactor components is as simple as applying a new coating.