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Single Phase Medium Entropy U-Based Alloys: Thermodynamics, Synthesis, and Mechanical Behavior

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Abstract

High and medium entropy alloys (HEAs and MEAs) exhibit superior resistance to irradiation damage: there is thus great incentive to study uranium-based HEAs and MEAs. These materials could potentially be suitable candidates for use as nuclear fuels where severe irradiation regimes prevail. In the present study, the ability to predict single phase regions in the quaternary system, Mo–Nb–U–Zr, using thermodynamic calculations was demonstrated and proven experimentally. Similarly to other known bcc HEAs systems, the bcc phase in the present MEA system was shown to exhibit high yield strength but also brittleness. It was also shown that a single phase in the MEA system, Mo–Nb–U–Zr, could be obtained only for compositions containing no more than 10 at% of Mo.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Mr. Ofer Omasi and Mr. Shahar Ochaion of the Materials Department at NRCN for their valuable technical assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Materials Department, NRC-Negev, Beersheba, Israel

    Michael Aizenshtein, Eli Brosh, Shai Silhov, Shlomo Levi, Ziv Ungarish & Eyal Grinberg

  2. Materials Engineering Department, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beersheba, Israel

    Shmuel Hayun

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  1. Michael Aizenshtein
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Correspondence to Michael Aizenshtein.

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Aizenshtein, M., Brosh, E., Silhov, S. et al. Single Phase Medium Entropy U-Based Alloys: Thermodynamics, Synthesis, and Mechanical Behavior. Met. Mater. Int. 29, 3655–3663 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12540-023-01469-9

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