Roadmap for the application of ion beam technologies to the challenges of nuclear energy technologies

The use of ion beams to estimate materials performance for nuclear energy applications is advancing at a rapid rate with ion irradiations having been shown to produce radiation effects data of direct relevance for understanding neutron-induced displacement damage. Ion beam irradiation shows considerable promise for assisting in down selecting candidate materials for use in nuclear energy systems. Furthermore, ion beams allow rapid achievement of materials damage levels not accessible by neutron irradiation in test reactors due to cost and time constraints. Compared to test reactor irradiations, the relatively open configuration of ion beam irradiations allows capture of data on the effects of irradiation under very specific conditions of temperature, radiation dose, and radiation dose rate that are difficult or impossible to achieve otherwise. There are still multiple challenges to the deployment of ion beam data in support of reactor materials qualification arising from the lack of a detailed mechanistic understanding of potential difference between ion-induced and neutron induced materials damage. Recently, the Nuclear Science User Facilities presented a roadmap for the development and enhancement of current U.S. ion beam irradiation technologies within university and national laboratory settings, and especially for the deployment of new highly controlled in situ interrogation of materials during irradiation to provide dynamic and mechanistic data for model development. In this presentation, the status and capabilities of relevant U.S. ion beam facilities will be summarized and recommended best practices for performing ion irradiations will be described. The potential role of ion beam irradiations to assist the development and deployment of reactor materials will be outlined. Key objectives include developing methods for rapid and cost-effective materials selection and development, characterizing fundamental material response under irradiation, and developing a robust mechanistic understanding of microstructure evolution under irradiation (including development and validation of reliable predictive models for microstructure evolution).