Full Text:
Materials exposed to a high-radiation environment such as the inside of a nuclear reactor vessel can gradually degrade and weaken. But to determine exactly how much damage these materials suffer generally requires removing a sample and testing it in specialized facilities, a process that can take weeks.
An analytical method developed by researchers in the Department of Chemistry at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and applied by members of MIT’s Mesoscale Nuclear Materials Laboratory could change that, potentially allowing for continuous monitoring of these materials without the need to remove them from their radiation environment. This could greatly speed up the testing process and reduce the preventive replacement of materials that are in fact safe and usable.Image credit: Courtesy of the researchers
