In our contemporary world, the question of viable, climate friendly energy sources is one that a lot of research is dedicated to. MSE’s own Eric Vogel, Hightower Professor in MSE, and Executive Director Institute for Materials (IMat), as a part of a project for the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL), is working towards making fusion energy a viable commercial option with a $107 million plan funded by the U.S. Department of Energy.

This connection with SRNL is a longstanding one. “I have had PhD students funded by SRNL for almost 10 years on novel layered nanomaterials such as graphene and hexagonal carbides and nitrides (MAX phase materials) for ultrathin permeation barriers,” Vogel said. 

Currently, he is a part of the SRNL collaborative Fuel Cycle group, a part of the Fusion Innovation Research Engine collaboration, or FC-FIRE as it is called. This group focuses on the fusion reactor fuel cycle, seeking to solve problems and streamline the fuel cycle for the larger SRNL project. “Depending on operating parameters, tritium retained in blanket structural materials may be a significant portion of total plant inventory. Therefore, strategies to minimize tritium retention in blanket structural materials will be critical to closing the fusion fuel cycle,” Vogel said. 

Georgia Tech’s, and Vogel’s, role in this equation is working on developing novel MAX phase carbide coatings that will both be stable under neutron irradiation and will also have good hydrogen permeation properties. Currently, these materials haven’t been employed in complex structures and expedited to maintain processing temperatures necessary for the alloys of interest. Therefore, Vogel aims “to close this gap as one small part of fast-tracking the feasibility of commercial fusion energy.”

This collaboration represents a large, diverse group of collaborators, highlighting not just the importance of the work but also the connections that this research fosters. Joined by collaborators at SRNL, Clemson University, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Idaho National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratory, General Atomics, University of South Carolina, University of Rochester – Laboratory for Laser Energetics, University of Tennessee – Knoxville, University of Wisconsin – Madison, Columbia University, and University of Massachusetts – Lowell, Vogel represents Georgia Tech on a national and potentially global stage as they continue this research. 

FC-FIRE is continuing a line of inquiry that saw major breakthroughs in 2022 when Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s National Ignition Facility reported they had achieved ignition. Fusion is the force behind the sun’s energy as well as the light of other similar stars. For 70 years, this has been seen as a potential source of energy for our world, and with this research, they hope to move us closer to that becoming a reality. 

The support from the DOE stems from their Fusion Energy Sciences (FES) program. FES aims to harness the power of stars and fusion, in order to benefit humanity. This power source represents a boon for our contemporary world, offering a zero carbon emitting energy source which only produces modest radiation and is fueled by lithium and seawater, plentiful resources. We look forward to seeing where this project takes our energy futures. For more information about fusion and the research going into it, look at the Fusion Energy Sciences website.