Ion Beam Application to Nuclear Material Damage Assessment

Abstract

With a substantial rise in world temperature as a result of uncontrolled greenhouse gasses released, particularly by industrialized countries, the need for efficient and economical energy has been increasing, necessitating the addition of the energy mix of one that will not harm the environment. This has pushed the nuclear sector to develop more advanced nuclear power plant systems. Quality materials capable of withstanding extreme radiation doses, high temperatures, and occasionally harsh corrosive conditions are required. This has resulted in the examination of the current materials already in use by earlier generations of the reactor system to determine their usefulness in advanced ones that would be subjected to even tougher environmental conditions than before and also design new materials that are of such strength and abilities. Since it can be accurately regulated and less time-consuming, ion beam technology has been extensively used in accelerator facilities and computer simulations to analyze the radiation deterioration of these materials. This chapter shed further insight into the many applications of ion beam technology in the evaluation of nuclear material damage. Apart from irradiation damage assessment, it also provided some understanding of numerous areas in the nuclear sector where ion beam technology is used.