Grant: Canada Research Chairs

Nuclear power is an important tool in the fight against climate change due to its ability to generate baseload power without the generation of greenhouse gas emissions. The deployment of small modular reactors (SMRs) has garnered interest in Canada due to their lower capital costs, their ability to be deployed to remote regions, and various advantages unique to advanced SMR designs, such as how the high-temperature process heat generated as a byproduct in some designs can be used in industrial processes to de-carbonize them. While standard nuclear fuel consists of a uranium oxide pellet clad in a zircon alloy, these advanced SMR designs propose to use of novel fuels, such as fuels made up of uranium particles coated in many protective layers as well as fuels made with molten salt. However, these novel nuclear fuels introduce corrosion issues that must be resolved before licensing can occur, and there remain unresolved safety issues with existing designs caused by corrosion as well. As a Canada Research Chair in SMR Safety and Licensing, Dr. Arthur Situm is studying corrosion challenges related to SMR fuel while also working to train the personnel necessary for the successful deployment and operation of SMRs. Dr. Situm’s lab is developing strategies to mitigate the corrosion of metals when using novel molten salt fuels. Furthermore, his lab aims to enhance the safety of standard nuclear fuel through the development and study of fuel cladding materials that are better able to resist corrosion under a simulation of an accident where reactor coolant is lost. Finally, research is being conducted at his lab on whether corrosion issues would occur if novel nuclear fuels are disposed of using Canada’s current disposal strategy. Dr. Situm’s lab makes use of a state-of-the-art Raman microscope connected to an inert glovebox for in situ molten salt analysis. Additionally, this research makes use of materials characterization techniques only available at synchrotron and neutron sources. Overall, Dr. Situm’s research program will provide valuable insight to both government and private industry as they build and deploy SMRs, while also helping students develop the skills and knowledge necessary to work in this emerging industry.