Korea's first nuclear power/nuclear fusion iron ion beam irradiation service

The Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute will begin the first iron (Fe) ion beam irradiation service in Korea for nuclear power and nuclear fusion material research in March.



High-energy neutrons emitted from nuclear reactors and nuclear fusion reactors can damage key components such as nuclear fuel cladding and structural materials, so related research is essential.



Research is needed to assess the extent of material damage. Direct neutron irradiation tests using research reactors or neutron generators require considerable time and cost.



The Nuclear Physics Applied Research Department of the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute will begin the first iron ion irradiation service in Korea using KAHIF. [Photo = Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute]



To supplement these limitations, research is actively being conducted overseas to irradiate ions with physical properties similar to neutrons.



Ions are particles in which atoms lose or gain electrons and become charged. They are created by vaporizing atoms at high temperatures and then using an electric field. If accelerated ions are irradiated to materials, results similar to neutron irradiation damage can be obtained.



Considering that heavier ions can cause greater damage quickly, the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) established the Heavy Ion Irradiation Facility (KAERI Heavy-ion Irradiation Facility, KAHIF) in 2019. Since then, it has been providing heavy ion beam irradiation services such as argon (Ar) and helium (He) since 2022.



Iron ion beam irradiation is an effective method for quickly and precisely assessing damage to steel materials widely used in operating nuclear power plants, next-generation nuclear reactors, nuclear fusion reactors, and application industries.



When the same iron ion beam is irradiated to steel materials, unnecessary physical and chemical reactions that occur when irradiating other ion beams are eliminated, allowing for a pure irradiation damage impact assessment.



Due to these advantages, the demand for iron ion beams in the nuclear and nuclear fusion fields has been steadily increasing, but iron is difficult to change into gas and ion extraction is difficult, making it difficult to implement the technology.



To meet these needs, the institute established a metal ion source device that can ionize and accelerate metal elements, and secured iron ion beam acceleration and irradiation technology for the first time in Korea.



After ionizing solid iron compounds into a gaseous state, we successfully extracted and irradiated 100 billion iron ions (Fe 13 or higher) per second using a bipolar electromagnet that can select only the desired ions with an electromagnetic field.



As a result of confirming the energy of the accelerated iron ions and the degree of damage to the material, we confirmed that it is possible to experiment with 3 dpa (Displacement per atom, a unit of radiation damage), which is the level of damage that occurs when a light water reactor operates for a full cycle, in just one day.



Dong-won Lee, Head of the Nuclear Physics Applied Research Division, said, "This research will be an oasis for domestic researchers who have been dependent on overseas facilities." He added, "We will strive to provide world-class ion beam irradiation services by going beyond iron ions and establishing additional difficult ion sources, such as nickel, and securing a high-temperature testing environment."





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