PhD Student Berenice Bulteel
My project focuses on the processing of tungsten carbide ceramics as shielding materials for commercial fusion. The idea is to replicate the brick-and-mortar microstructure that can be found naturally in nacre materials to improve the performance of WC under irradiation. Replicating the platelet like microstructure of nacre could also potentially remove the need for an additional binding phase (usually made of cobalt which gets activated and acts as a gamma ray source) via the introduction of complex energy dissipation mechanisms. To do so, molten salt synthesis is used as it promotes platelet growth and unwanted oxidation during the reaction stage. Raw powders of tungsten oxide and a carbon source are placed in a high temperature furnace for a set dwell time. Different candidates can be used as a carbon source such as graphite or carbon black. The main innovation of this project lies in using glucose as a cheap, environmentally and manufacturing friendly carbon source instead.