Research
Molten Salt Chemistry & Corrosion #
Recent interest in molten salt reactors and molten salt-based thermal storage calls for better structural materials against molten salt corrosion and detailed understanding of the molten salt-metal interaction. We seek to study the fundamental aspects of the molten salt-metal interaction and molten salt chemistry itself via electrochemical methods and computational/machine learning methods. Grain boundaries and microstructural effects are of special interest.
[References]
74. Corrosion-Resistant Coatings in Molten Salts Suggested by Computational Phase-Stability Diagrams
Acta Materialia 2026 309 122063
Seongwon Ham†, Choah Kwon†, Minho Kim, Han Lim Cha, Ho-A Kim, Jong-Il Yun, Jun Woo Park, Jongwoo Lee, SeungYop Paek, Jinsuo Zhang, Ju Li*, Sangtae Kim*
72. Materials design for Tellurium capture to prevent corrosion in molten salt reactors via atomic-scale thermodynamic modeling and experimental validation
Journal of Nuclear Materials 2026 624 156478
Kanghyeon Kim†, Ho Lee†, Minho Kim, Seongwon Ham, Amanda Leong, Matthew Si, Woohyuk Lee, Hyeon-Kyo Song, Wonyoung Choi, Jinsuo Zhang*, Sangtae Kim*
52. Spectroscopic and theoretical analyses of the reaction of SrO in molten chloride and fluoride salts
Journal of Nuclear Materials 2024 592 154962
Dokyu Kang†, Choah Kwon†, Wonseok Yang, Seokjoo Yoon, Yunu Lee, James T.M. Amphlett, Sang-Eun Bae, Sangtae Kim*, Sungyeol Choi*
42. Physical properties of KCl-UCl3 molten salts as potential fuels for molten salt reactors
Journal of Nuclear Materials 2023 577 154329
Hyeonwoo Kim†, Choah Kwon†, Seongwon Ham, Juhyung Lee, Sung Joong Kim*, Sangtae Kim*
Hydrogen Embrittlement #
Zr-based cladding for the spent nuclear fuel serves as the last protection layer for the high-level nuclear waste. Hydrogen embrittlement in nuclear fuel cladding is one critical mechanism for the cladding’s mechanical failure, causing brittle fracture and cracks. Understanding the thermodynamics, kinetics and fatigue/creep behavior of Zr-based cladding is critical for the spent nuclear fuel disposal, and we seek to establish a fundamental understanding based on experimental and computational tools. The effect of the light element interstitials including H, O or C on the alloy and hydride phases are to be explored.
[References]
57. The influence of solid solution hydrogen and precipitated hydride on the creep behavior of Zircaloy-4
Journal of Nuclear Materials 2024 600 155244
Ho-A Kim, Sungjun Choi, Yong-Soo Kim, Jiwon Park, Joo-Hee Kang*, Sangtae Kim
49. Microstructure and mechanical properties of hydride blisters formed on Zircaloy-4 claddings
Journal of Nuclear Materials 2024 588 154777
Ho-A Kim†, Ju-Seong Kim†, Yundong Lee, Sangbum Kim, Youho Lee, Yong-Soo Kim, Joo-Hee Kang*, Sangtae Kim*
Stress and Temperature Impact on Electrochemistry #
Stress couples to various aspects of electrochemical reactions, including the electrochemical potential, diffusion, composition or phase behavior. This fundamental aspect of materials science has various exciting features that we can employ into device concepts. Some examples include the electrochemically driven mechanical energy harvesters or electrochemical actuators. However, understanding such behavior has been difficult to establish. We attempt to study the fundamental materials science aspects of stress-electrochemistry coupling by 1) designing novel device concepts and 2) in situ characterization techniques.
[References]
25. Strong stress-composition coupling in lithium alloy nanoparticles
Nature Communications 2019 10 1 3428
Hyeon Kook Seo, Jae Yeol Park, Joon Ha Chang, Kyun Sung Dae, Myoung-Sub Noh, Sung-Soo Kim, Chong-Yun Kang, Kejie Zhao, Sangtae Kim*, Jong Min Yuk*
23. Li alloy-based non-volatile actuators
Nano Energy 2019 57 653–659
Myoung-Sub Noh, Hyunseok Lee, Young Geun Song, Inki Jung, Ruiguang Ning, Sung Wook Paek, Hyun-Cheol Song, Seung-Hyub Baek, Chong-Yun Kang*, Sangtae Kim*
4. Electrochemically driven mechanical energy harvesting
Nature Communications 2016 7 1 10146
Sangtae Kim, Soon Ju Choi, Kejie Zhao, Hui Yang, Giorgia Gobbi, Sulin Zhang, Ju Li
See the full list on the Publications page. Funding information is available on the Grants page.