Materials for Advanced Nuclear Energy Systems – Challenges and Opportunities

Dr. Jie Lian
Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Nuclear Engineering
Department of Materials Science & Engineering
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Abstract: Materials for current and future nuclear energy systems will be utilized in coupled extremes of high temperature, intense radiation, and extensive corrosion. Fundamental understanding of material behavior under these extreme environments is essential for the development of advanced materials with extended performance that can be used in such extremes for future nuclear energy systems. New materials and technologies are also required for effective waste managements for the sustainable development of advanced nuclear fuel cycles. In this presentation, the material challenges and opportunities for future nuclear energy systems will be highlighted, and the advancements achieved by the Nano-Nuclear and Energy Material Group led by Dr. Lian at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute will be discussed. The specific focus will be on the degradation behavior and mechanisms of materials under intensive radiation and corrosion, and the design, manufacturing and performance of nuclear fuels for current light water reactors and next generation nuclear reactors.

Biography: Dr. Jie Lian is a William Weightman Walker Professor, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI). He received his Ph.D. degree in Nuclear Engineering & Radiological Sciences from the University of Michigan in 2003. Lian joined RPI as an assistant professor at Nuclear Engineering program in 2008, and he was promoted to associate professor with tenure in 2013 and full professor in 2017. Dr. Lian has been working on multidiscipline research areas including fundamental materials behavior under extreme environments, advanced materials and technologies for effective waste management, innovate fuel design for future nuclear systems, materials for alternative energy applications, 2D-based materials such as graphene and metal halide perovskite and their assembly into macroscopic structures for functional applications. He has published over 300 papers in peer-reviewed journals including articles in high profile journals such as Science, Nature Materials and Nature Nanotechnology, which have been cited for more than 21,000 times with an H-index of 70 (google scholar). He is a member of the editorial board of NPJ Materials Degradation. Lian is a recipient of the National Science Foundation Early Career Award (2012), Research Excellent Award of Rensselaer SOE (2013 and 2020), TCT fellow, Singapore (2015), and James Tien 66 Early Career Award, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (2016)