Why it matters to materials
Nuclear's material demands are unusual: small tonnages of extraordinary specification. Zirconium alloy tubing with hafnium removed, boron and gadolinium for neutron control, and steels qualified to survive decades of radiation damage.
What it is made of
All materials →| Material | What it does here | Importance |
|---|---|---|
| Boron critical | Neutron absorber in control and coolant chemistry | Defining |
| Hafnium critical | Control rods | Defining |
| Uranium | The fuel | Defining |
| Zirconium critical | Fuel-rod cladding | Defining |
| Chromium critical | Corrosion resistance in reactor steels | Important |
| Copper critical | Generator and switchyard | Important |
| Fluorspar critical | Fluorine for uranium hexafluoride | Important |
| Gadolinium critical | Burnable neutron poison in fuel | Important |
| Nickel critical | Alloys for steam generators | Important |
| Silver critical | Control-rod alloy in some PWR designs | Present |
Boron
An element that makes glass resist thermal shock, fibreglass strong, and — with iron and neodymium — the strongest…
Hafnium
Zirconium's chemical shadow — always found with it, almost impossible to separate from it, and the opposite of it in…
Uranium
A heavy, faintly radioactive metal whose nucleus can be split, releasing about two million times more energy per…
Zirconium
A metal that barely absorbs neutrons, which is why nuclear fuel rods are wrapped in it, and whose sand form is a…
Chromium
The element that makes stainless steel stainless — at about eleven percent chromium, steel grows an invisible film…
Copper
The reddish metal that carries electricity better than anything except silver, and which humans have been smelting…
