Nickel-Base Alloys for Molten Chloride Fast Reactors - Corrosion Studies

Nuclear energy is an important part of the mix of electrical energy sources for the US and across the world. A new generation of nuclear reactors (Generation IV), including molten salt reactors (MSRs) are being designed and/or under development. Materials selection for these advanced reactors involves corrosion studies to understand the compatibility between the salts of interest and the materials of construction. In this project, the corrosion behavior of commercial and custom Ni-base superalloys in molten chloride salts was investigated. Novel molten salt test methods were developed to meet the demanding requirements for this application. A range of characterization methods was employed to understand the corrosion of these alloys. This presentation will highlight key aspects of alloy design, test response, and insights based on our current understanding of the metallic alloy corrosion performance.