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At least 181 records · Page 10
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2020

Materials Data on Mo(PO3)4 by Materials Project

Mo(PO3)4 crystallizes in the triclinic P-1 space group. The structure is two-dimensional and consists of one Mo(PO3)4 sheet oriented in the (-1, 0, 1) direction. Mo4+ is bonded in a distorted square co-planar geometry to four O2- atoms. There are a spread of Mo–O bond distances ranging from 1.47–2.10 Å. There are four inequivalent P5+ sites. In the first P5+ site, P5+ is bonded in a 2-coordinate geometry to five O2- atoms. There are a spread of P–O bond distances ranging from 1.09–2.38 Å. In the second P5+ site, P5+ is bonded in a 3-coordinate geometry to three O2- atoms. There are a spread of P–O bond distances ranging from 1.36–1.50 Å. In the third P5+ site, P5+ is bonded in a 2-coordinate geometry to four O2- atoms. There are a spread of P–O bond distances ranging from 1.26–2.02 Å. In the fourth P5+ site, P5+ is bonded in a 2-coordinate geometry to four O2- atoms. There are a spread of P–O bond distances ranging from 1.27–2.22 Å. There are twelve inequivalent O2- sites. In the first O2- site, O2- is bonded in a distorted bent 150 degrees geometry to one Mo4+ and one P5+ atom. In the second O2- site, O2- is bonded in a bent 120 degrees geometry to two P5+ atoms. In the third O2- site, O2- is bonded in a 2-coordinate geometry to one Mo4+ and one P5+ atom. In the fourth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a bent 120 degrees geometry to two P5+ atoms. In the fifth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a single-bond geometry to one P5+ atom. In the sixth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a single-bond geometry to one P5+ atom. In the seventh O2- site, O2- is bonded in a single-bond geometry to one P5+ atom. In the eighth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a single-bond geometry to one P5+ atom. In the ninth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a distorted bent 150 degrees geometry to one Mo4+ and one P5+ atom. In the tenth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a 3-coordinate geometry to three P5+ atoms. In the eleventh O2- site, O2- is bonded in a distorted bent 150 degrees geometry to one Mo4+ and one P5+ atom. In the twelfth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a single-bond geometry to one P5+ atom.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Materials Data on Mo(PO3)5 by Materials Project

Mo(PO3)5 crystallizes in the monoclinic P2_1/c space group. The structure is two-dimensional and consists of one Mo(PO3)5 sheet oriented in the (1, 0, 0) direction. Mo5+ is bonded to six O2- atoms to form MoO6 octahedra that share corners with six PO4 tetrahedra. There are a spread of Mo–O bond distances ranging from 1.99–2.11 Å. There are five inequivalent P5+ sites. In the first P5+ site, P5+ is bonded to four O2- atoms to form corner-sharing PO4 tetrahedra. There are a spread of P–O bond distances ranging from 1.51–1.62 Å. In the second P5+ site, P5+ is bonded to four O2- atoms to form PO4 tetrahedra that share corners with two equivalent MoO6 octahedra and corners with two PO4 tetrahedra. The corner-sharing octahedra tilt angles range from 44–45°. There are a spread of P–O bond distances ranging from 1.51–1.59 Å. In the third P5+ site, P5+ is bonded to four O2- atoms to form PO4 tetrahedra that share corners with two equivalent MoO6 octahedra and corners with two PO4 tetrahedra. The corner-sharing octahedral tilt angles are 45°. There are a spread of P–O bond distances ranging from 1.51–1.59 Å. In the fourth P5+ site, P5+ is bonded to four O2- atoms to form PO4 tetrahedra that share a cornercorner with one MoO6 octahedra and corners with two PO4 tetrahedra. The corner-sharing octahedral tilt angles are 36°. There are a spread of P–O bond distances ranging from 1.46–1.67 Å. In the fifth P5+ site, P5+ is bonded to four O2- atoms to form PO4 tetrahedra that share a cornercorner with one MoO6 octahedra and corners with two PO4 tetrahedra. The corner-sharing octahedral tilt angles are 37°. There are a spread of P–O bond distances ranging from 1.46–1.66 Å. There are fifteen inequivalent O2- sites. In the first O2- site, O2- is bonded in a single-bond geometry to one P5+ atom. In the second O2- site, O2- is bonded in a distorted bent 120 degrees geometry to two P5+ atoms. In the third O2- site, O2- is bonded in a bent 150 degrees geometry to one Mo5+ and one P5+ atom. In the fourth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a distorted bent 150 degrees geometry to one Mo5+ and one P5+ atom. In the fifth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a single-bond geometry to one P5+ atom. In the sixth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a distorted bent 120 degrees geometry to two P5+ atoms. In the seventh O2- site, O2- is bonded in a bent 150 degrees geometry to two P5+ atoms. In the eighth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a bent 150 degrees geometry to two P5+ atoms. In the ninth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a 2-coordinate geometry to one Mo5+ and one P5+ atom. In the tenth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a bent 120 degrees geometry to two P5+ atoms. In the eleventh O2- site, O2- is bonded in a 2-coordinate geometry to one Mo5+ and one P5+ atom. In the twelfth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a 2-coordinate geometry to one Mo5+ and one P5+ atom. In the thirteenth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a bent 150 degrees geometry to one Mo5+ and one P5+ atom. In the fourteenth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a single-bond geometry to one P5+ atom. In the fifteenth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a single-bond geometry to one P5+ atom.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Materials Data on Mo(PO4)2 by Materials Project

MoO2(PO3)2 crystallizes in the monoclinic P2_1/c space group. The structure is three-dimensional. there are three inequivalent Mo6+ sites. In the first Mo6+ site, Mo6+ is bonded to six O2- atoms to form distorted MoO6 octahedra that share corners with five PO4 tetrahedra. There are a spread of Mo–O bond distances ranging from 1.69–2.22 Å. In the second Mo6+ site, Mo6+ is bonded to six O2- atoms to form distorted MoO6 octahedra that share corners with five PO4 tetrahedra. There are a spread of Mo–O bond distances ranging from 1.69–2.30 Å. In the third Mo6+ site, Mo6+ is bonded to six O2- atoms to form distorted MoO6 octahedra that share corners with five PO4 tetrahedra. There are a spread of Mo–O bond distances ranging from 1.70–2.23 Å. There are six inequivalent P5+ sites. In the first P5+ site, P5+ is bonded to four O2- atoms to form PO4 tetrahedra that share corners with two equivalent MoO6 octahedra and a cornercorner with one PO4 tetrahedra. The corner-sharing octahedra tilt angles range from 20–36°. There are a spread of P–O bond distances ranging from 1.46–1.65 Å. In the second P5+ site, P5+ is bonded to four O2- atoms to form PO4 tetrahedra that share corners with three MoO6 octahedra and a cornercorner with one PO4 tetrahedra. The corner-sharing octahedra tilt angles range from 12–45°. There are a spread of P–O bond distances ranging from 1.50–1.60 Å. In the third P5+ site, P5+ is bonded to four O2- atoms to form PO4 tetrahedra that share corners with three MoO6 octahedra and a cornercorner with one PO4 tetrahedra. The corner-sharing octahedra tilt angles range from 6–45°. There are a spread of P–O bond distances ranging from 1.49–1.60 Å. In the fourth P5+ site, P5+ is bonded to four O2- atoms to form PO4 tetrahedra that share corners with two MoO6 octahedra and a cornercorner with one PO4 tetrahedra. The corner-sharing octahedra tilt angles range from 22–37°. There are a spread of P–O bond distances ranging from 1.46–1.65 Å. In the fifth P5+ site, P5+ is bonded to four O2- atoms to form PO4 tetrahedra that share corners with three MoO6 octahedra and a cornercorner with one PO4 tetrahedra. The corner-sharing octahedra tilt angles range from 21–41°. There are a spread of P–O bond distances ranging from 1.49–1.60 Å. In the sixth P5+ site, P5+ is bonded to four O2- atoms to form PO4 tetrahedra that share corners with two MoO6 octahedra and a cornercorner with one PO4 tetrahedra. The corner-sharing octahedra tilt angles range from 35–36°. There are a spread of P–O bond distances ranging from 1.46–1.64 Å. There are twenty-four inequivalent O2- sites. In the first O2- site, O2- is bonded in a bent 150 degrees geometry to one Mo6+ and one P5+ atom. In the second O2- site, O2- is bonded in a bent 150 degrees geometry to one Mo6+ and one P5+ atom. In the third O2- site, O2- is bonded in a bent 120 degrees geometry to two P5+ atoms. In the fourth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a bent 150 degrees geometry to one Mo6+ and one P5+ atom. In the fifth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a single-bond geometry to one Mo6+ atom. In the sixth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a bent 120 degrees geometry to two P5+ atoms. In the seventh O2- site, O2- is bonded in a distorted bent 150 degrees geometry to one Mo6+ and one P5+ atom. In the eighth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a single-bond geometry to one Mo6+ atom. In the ninth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a distorted single-bond geometry to one Mo6+ and one P5+ atom. In the tenth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a bent 150 degrees geometry to one Mo6+ and one P5+ atom. In the eleventh O2- site, O2- is bonded in a single-bond geometry to one P5+ atom. In the twelfth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a distorted bent 150 degrees geometry to one Mo6+ and one P5+ atom. In the thirteenth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a single-bond geometry to one P5+ atom. In the fourteenth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a bent 150 degrees geometry to one Mo6+ and one P5+ atom. In the fifteenth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a distorted bent 150 degrees geometry to one Mo6+ and one P5+ atom. In the sixteenth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a bent 150 degrees geometry to one Mo6+ and one P5+ atom. In the seventeenth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a linear geometry to one Mo6+ and one P5+ atom. In the eighteenth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a bent 120 degrees geometry to two P5+ atoms. In the nineteenth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a distorted bent 150 degrees geometry to one Mo6+ and one P5+ atom. In the twentieth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a bent 150 degrees geometry to one Mo6+ and one P5+ atom. In the twenty-first O2- site, O2- is bonded in a single-bond geometry to one P5+ atom. In the twenty-second O2- site, O2- is bonded in a single-bond geometry to one Mo6+ atom. In the twenty-third O2- site, O2- is bonded in a distorted linear geometry to one Mo6+ and one P5+ atom. In the twenty-fourth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a distorted single-bond geometry to one Mo6+ and one P5+ atom.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Enhanced oxidation resistance of (Mo 95 W 5 ) 85 Ta 10 (TiZr) 5 refractory multi-principal element alloy up to 1300°C

Refractory-metal-based alloys are a potential replacement of current nickel-based superalloys due to their excellent mechanical strength at extremely high temperatures. However, severe oxidation in a high-temperature working environment limits their application. To address this challenge, a two-step coating process (including a Mo precoat and a Si-B pack cementation) was applied to an innovative refractory multi-principal element alloy (RMPEA) (Mo 95 W 5 ) 85 Ta 10 (TiZr) 5 . The coating is composed of an aluminoborosilica glass layer on top of a RMPEA-Si-B multilayered structure. Here, the coating effectively protects the RMPEA from oxidation in high-temperature environments, as demonstrated by phase-stable operation at 10–20% higher temperatures over state-of-the-art systems without any forced-cooling system. Following an isothermal exposure at 1300 °C, the weight change of the coated sample follows a paralinear kinetics with a minor weight loss of 4.2 mg/cm 2 after 50 h. Thermal cycling tests between 1300 °C and room temperature in air resulted in the total weight gain of only 2.6 mg/cm 2 after 450 cycles. The coating shows an excellent adherence to the substrate with a boride layer acting as a barrier that maintains the coating integrity. This two-step Mo-Si-B coating method can be adapted to provide environmental resistance to a wide range of RMPEA.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Analysis of phase stability and chemical segregation in the Mo-V alloys using a generalized embedded atom method potential

A new interatomic potential for the Mo-V system is introduced to facilitate the study of phase stability and mechanical properties at lower temperatures. This potential is based on a generalization of the embedded atom method and includes contributions from embedding energy, explicit two- and three-body interactions and nonlocal many-body interaction terms. The parameters of the potential are optimized by using data from ab initio density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The potential is rigorously validated across a range of physical properties, such as elastic constants, equation of states, phonon dispersion curves, point defect properties and melting temperatures for different compositions. Even though our potential is trained on a small dataset, its accuracy is comparable to available machine learning potentials for Mo and V. Furthermore, our results show that an ordered B2 phase is stable at low temperatures in alloys containing 50% V, but the solid solution phase is stable above 800 K. However, such long-range ordering is not observed in V-rich or Mo-rich alloys. In addition, our results show that V segregates to dislocation cores and grain boundaries.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Temperature Effects on Interdiffusion of Al and U-Mo under Irradiation

A high-energy Xe ion irradiation experiment was conducted to investigate the temperature dependence of interdiffusion in bilayer Al-UMo samples under irradiation. The amount of interdiffusion achieved at a fixed dose with the increase of temperature showed a clear transition at 175 degrees C (with an estimated error in the range of ± 10 degrees C) from temperature-independent to temperature-dependent behavior. The activation energy derived from the curve of interdiffusion quantity vs. irradiation temperature is 0.77 ± 0.16 eV. This information has been utilized to understand the temperature effect on the interdiffusion process that occurred at the interfaces of U-Mo particles and the Al matrix in U-Mo/Al dispersion fuels, whose magnitude significantly impacts the fuel's performance. Although this temperature effect was deemed important, it cannot be examined directly using in-pile irradiation data, as fuel temperatures cannot be measured in reactor irradiation and are highly correlated with fission rate and thermal conductivity evolution. To connect the knowledge accumulated from ion irradiation with in-pile irradiation data, simulation of a full-sized U-Mo/Al dispersion fuel plate irradiated in the FUTURE test in the BR2 reactor was performed with the Dispersion Analysis Research Tool (DART), a dispersion fuel performance code. DART is equipped with an interaction or interdiffusion layer (IL) growth correlation formulated to describe the temperature dependence of ion mixing results. The agreement between calculated and measured fuel meat constituent volume fractions and swelling data demonstrated that the temperature effect on in-pile Al-UMo interdiffusion is well captured with the correlation. In this case, the fitted activation energy is 0.70 eV. Considering the uncertainties associated with the ion irradiation data, the activation energy obtained from in-pile data fitting is in accord with that from ion irradiation results.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Possible impacts of Mo chemical banding and second phase impurities on the irradiation behavior of monolithic U-10Mo fuels

This study investigated the microstructural behavior of both full-size and mini-size monolithic U-10Mo fuel plates irradiated to high burnup with a focus on the evolution of the second phase impurities in monolithic U-Mo using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), and wavelength dispersive spectroscopy (WDS). Key indicators of possible mechanical and thermal compromise include cracks, large fission gas porosity, and interconnection of fission gas pores. For the fission densities evaluated in this work (3.5 × 10 21 fissions/cm 3 -5.1 × 10 21 fissions/cm 3 ), fine porosity can develop along the UC phase boundary; however, the size of the fission gas pores is no more than those observed in the U-Mo fuel phase. Further, other inclusions such as Si-rich second-phase impurities found in the as-fabricated microstructure were difficult to resolve post-irradiation because they can become overshadowed by porosity development in the fuel phase. Additionally, the presence of a Fe-rich sublayer formed in the Zr diffusion layer during fabrication remained enriched in the Zr layer in the irradiated U-10Mo microstructures near the U-Mo/Zr interface; however, based on the burnup assessed in this study the identified impurities did not appear to contribute to notable microstructural degradation.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Contributions to the mechanistic understanding of the microstructural evolution in irradiated U-Mo dispersion fuel

Here, advanced microstructural characterization techniques, such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and scanning transmission electron microscopy - energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (STEM-EDS), were used to interpret the fuel microstructure evolution and fission products behavior in U-Mo dispersion fuel irradiated in the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) as part of the European Mini-Plate Irradiation Experiment (EMPIrE) test. The larger as-fabricated fuel grain size achieved by heat-treating the U-Mo powder resulted in slower high burnup structure (HBS) development and reduced fission gas porosity. Slower HBS kinetics was observed at the fuel kernels’ periphery, which contained smaller and less fission gas bubbles at all fission densities (FDs) investigated and was attributed to a locally reduced damage density and fission products concentration, as corroborated with Monte Carlo simulations. The non-refined grains at the fuel kernel periphery hosted a perfectly ordered fission Gas Bubble Superlattice (GBS) up to 6.3 × 10 21 fissions/cm 3 . Nano-scale STEM-EDS analysis presented in this study provided useful information on the GBS characteristic morphology and evolution in U-Mo fuel. The concentration of fission gas in the GBS progressively increased with FD, pointing to an evolution of the nanobubble pressure status with irradiation. A possible connection between the GBS collapse and HBS onset is proposed for which there exists a threshold in the misorientation of the refined sub-grains above which the GBS stability during irradiation is no longer preserved, resulting in the GBS collapse.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Advanced neutron absorber Ni-Cr-Mo-Gd alloys seawater corrosion mechanism and susceptibility study

Previous studies demonstrated the corrosion susceptibility of advanced neutron absorber (ANA) Ni-Cr-Mo-Gd in a seawater environment but remained inconclusive. In this paper, scanning electron microscopy was employed to identify the corrosion phase in Ni-Cr-Mo-Gd, and computational thermodynamic simulation was used to study phase corrosion potentials. Results showed that the Ni 5 Gd second phase, distributed along FCC grain boundaries in Ni-Cr-Mo-Gd, has lower corrosion potential than the substrate. Furthermore, heat treatment and alloy chemistry adjustment would not ameliorate the ANA corrosion susceptibility. Finally, isolating the Ni 5 Gd from the corrosion medium through advanced manufacturing is a viable way to improve the ANA corrosion resistance.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Annealing influence on the microstructure of irradiated U-Mo monolithic fuel foils

In this study we compared the microstructure evolution of U-Mo fuel foils produced with and without heat treatment at low burn-up via advanced post-irradiation examination. The aim of this study is to observe after irradiation the ways in which the fabrication processes have influenced fuel behavior at early-stage irradiation, as for very low burn up microstructural studies are lacking. In this work it was observed that the larger grain size detected in the heat-treated samples before irradiation led to decreased grain refinement after irradiation. Grain refinement was associated with the presence of small nano-size bubbles and precipitates. This phenomenon is hypothesized to influence early fuel swelling during reactor irradiation. Grain refinement was also observed to increase in regions where γ-U decomposition was present. Thus, it was enhanced in the samples fabricated without heat treatment. The heat treatment also increased the thickness of the U-Mo/Zr interface, namely of the UZr 2 layer. However, the influence of this layer on fuel performance needs further investigation. On one side, it may contribute to better mechanical bonding; on the other, it may influence swelling and blistering in the interaction layer as porosity increases when this layer is increased. This was observed especially in the presence of increased area containing low Mo concentration, and thus containing a higher fraction of the α-U phase, which is highly susceptible to irradiation induced swelling. Strong evidence of reverse transformation under irradiation (α-U + γ'-U2Mo → bcc γ-U) was observed in these samples. While the precipitates (carbides and oxide) seem to be unaffected by the irradiation at these low burnups. However, further analyses are necessary at higher burn-up to assess the exact impact different heat treatments have on fuel performance.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Development of an accelerator-based neutron source to prototype Mo-99 production, Part II: A liquid LBE loop under a high vacuum

To provide US domestic supply of Mo-99 without using high-enriched uranium (HEU), a subcritical uranium target assembly (UTA) is irradiated by an accelerator-based neutron source to create Mo-99 through fission. Part I of this work discusses the design of a liquid lead–bismuth eutectic (LBE) windowless target for an accelerator-based neutron source development. Part II discusses how to couple this windowless target to an accelerator operating at an ultra-high vacuum and the subcritical UTA cooled by water at room temperature. Due to the windowless design of the target, the liquid LBE flow shares an ultra-high vacuum (<1.3 × 10 -7 Pa or 10 -9 Torr) space with the accelerator. As a result of this shared vacuum space, the LBE system must operate at a high vacuum (10 -3 ~10 -6 Pa or 10 -5 ~10 -8 Torr). A magnetic rotary motion feedthrough unit utilizes magnetic fluid to allow rotation of the pump while maintaining a high vacuum environment. Prior to testing the LBE system under vacuum, a pump curve measurement is performed to estimate flowrate in the system. This measurement also generates data on orifice loss coefficients, which are compared to correlations in literature. The second experiment investigates vacuum level in the LBE system during operation. High vacuum is maintained (10 -3 ~10 -5 Pa or 10 -5 ~10 -7 Torr) during system operation, and a residual gas analyzer (RGA) scan shows that partial pressures of residual gases in the LBE system lower over the duration of LBE system operations. The third experiment investigates the gravity driven liquid LBE flowing out of the target chamber in the return line, which is partially full. If the liquid LBE is not drained quickly enough, flooding in the target chamber could occur. The coefficient n in the Manning equation is found to be around 0.008 s/m 1/3 . The last experiment performed is a demonstration that a vacuum jacket could provide sufficient thermal insulation to allow coupling between 300 °C LBE loop and a water tank at room temperature. In conclusion, the results from these experiments have influenced the development of the neutron source for the future commercial scale Mo-99 production system.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2025

FAST Irradiations, Postirradiation Examinations, and Modeling of U-Mo for Light Water Reactor Applications

Many next generation light water reactor (LWR) concepts, such as mobile small modular reactors, are seeking to use smaller core dimensions than conventional reactor types. Smaller reactor cores require an increase in fissile material to maintain reactivity. For non-proliferation purposes, enrichment increases are limited to less than 20% (high assay low enriched uranium, [HALEU]) and so higher uranium density fuels than UO 2 must be considered. To this end, uranium-molybdenum alloys were tested using the Fission Accelerated Steady-state Test (FAST) approach. The experiment test matrix is focused on identifying the temperature transition between low swelling and high fission gas retention to break away swelling and low fission gas retention. This paper documents the results of irradiation tests and post-irradiation examinations (PIE) including neutron radiography, rodlet profilometry, fission gas collection analysis, and optical metallography. The results of these tests showed that unconstrained U-Mo fuels (solid, Na-bonded rodlets) have a swelling threshold between 400-450°C with minimal fission gas release below this point. Higher temperature solid fuel showed microstructural zoning with small pore networks while lower temperature solid fuels have a uniform microstructure with large pore networks. U-Annular Mo fuels where swelling had some self-constraint imposed upon it, were shown to have much reduced swelling compared to their solid counterparts as well as very low fission gas release for irradiation temperatures up to 500°C. These initial results show that the use of U-Mo in constrained fuel geometries could be used as a high uranium density HALEU fuel for LWRs.

11 - NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2025

The Effect of Metal Promoters in an Mo-Supported HZSM-5 Catalyst for Microwave-Assisted Methane Dehydroaromatization to Aromatics

Microwave (MW)-assisted methane dehydroaromatization (MDHA) using an Mo-supported HZSM-5 catalyst (Mo/HZ5) can convert methane into value-added aromatic products in modular microwave reactor systems, enabling producers to generate revenue from an otherwise wasted resource. Modifying the local environments of active Mo species with metal promoters potentially regulates the reaction/deactivation pathways and improves the heating properties of the Mo/HZ5 under microwaves. Herein, metal promoters (M), including monovalent K+ and bivalent Co2+ and Ni2+, were incorporated to form M-Mo/HZ5 and their MDHA performance was investigated.

metal promoters↗
DOE OSTI2021

Carbon Free and Noble Metal Free Ni 2 Mo 6 S 8 Electrocatalyst for Selective Electrosynthesis of H 2 O 2

Electrocatalytic two-electron reduction of oxygen is a promising method for producing sustainable H 2 O 2 but lacks low-cost and selective electrocatalysts. Here, the Chevrel phase chalcogenide Ni 2 Mo 6 S 8 is presented as a novel active motif for reducing oxygen to H 2 O 2 in an aqueous electrolyte. Although it has a low surface area, the Ni 2 Mo 6 S 8 catalyst exhibits exceptional activity for H 2 O 2 synthesis with >90% H 2 O 2 molar selectivity across a wide potential range. Chemical titration verified successful generation of H 2 O 2 and confirmed rates as high as 90 mmol H 2 O 2 g cat –1 h –1 . The outstanding activities are attributed to the ligand and ensemble effects of Ni that promote H 2 O dissociation and proton-coupled reduction of O 2 to HOO*, and the spatial effect of the Chevrel phase structure that isolates Ni active sites to inhibit O—O cleavage. The synergy of these effects delivers fast and selective production of H 2 O 2 with high turn-over frequencies of ≈30 s –1 . Additionally, the Ni 2 Mo 6 S 8 catalyst has a stable crystal structure that is resistive for oxidation and delivers good catalyst stability for continuous H 2 O 2 production. The described Ni-Mo6S8 active motif can unlock new opportunities for designing Earth-abundant electrocatalysts to tune oxygen reduction for practical H 2 O 2 production.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Critical Roles of Chalcogenide Anion on Strengthening Stability of Ni 2 Mo 6 Te 8 for Almost Exclusive Electrocatalysts Nitrate to Ammonia Conversion

Electrochemical hydrogenation of nitrate to ammonia using renewable electricity is a promising route for sustainability but lacks catalysts that can deliver balanced selectivity, activity, and durability. For this work, a new family of noble metal-free and high-performing Chevrel phase Ni 2 Mo 6 T 8 (T = S, Se, and Te) catalysts that have similar structural and textural properties and differ presumably only in chalcogenide anion is systematically studied. The side-by-side comparisons allow the uncovering of the critical roles of chalcogenide anions in impacting kinetic activities and long-term durability. The incorporation of anions with larger size and smaller electronegativity from sulfide to selenide and telluride invokes stronger inhibition of the otherwise competing hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and steers the hydrogenation toward the selective formation of ammonia, thus improving both Faradic selectivity and the turnover frequency to high levels of 99.4% and 21.5 s –1 , respectively, on the Ni 2 Mo 6 Te 8 catalyst. More significantly, the bulkier anion in the Ni 2 Mo 6 T 8 catalyst kinetically inhibited the intercalation of electrolyte cations, a major degradation mechanism in the catalyst family examined here and delivered several times improved durability. Therefore, this study introduces novel active motifs for selective nitrate reduction and provides insights into the catalyst degradation mechanism and practical ways to improve durability.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2022

Insight into the Fast-Rechargeability of a Novel Mo 1.5 W 1.5 Nb 14 O 44 Anode Material for High-Performance Lithium-Ion Batteries

Wadsley–Roth phased niobates are promising anode materials for lithium-ion batteries, while their inherently low electrical conductivity still limits their rate-capability. Herein, a novel doped Mo 1.5 W 1.5 Nb 14 O 44 (MWNO) material is facilely prepared via an ionothermal-synthesis-assisted doping strategy. The detailed crystal structure of MWNO is characterized by neutron powder diffraction and aberration corrected scanning transmission electron microscope, unveiling the full occupation of Mo 6+ -dopant at the t1 tetrahedral site. In half-cells, MWNO exhibits enhanced fast-rechargeability. In this work, the origin of the improved performance is investigated by ultraviolet–visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, density functional theory (DFT) computation, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, revealing that bandgap narrowing improves the electrical conductivity of MWNO. Furthermore, operando X-ray diffraction elucidates that MWNO exhibits a typical solid-solution phase conversion-based lithium-ion insertion/extraction mechanism with reversible structural evolution during the electrochemical reaction. The boosted lithium-ion diffusivity of MWNO, due to the Mo 6+ /W 6+ doping effect, is confirmed by a galvanostatic intermittent titration technique and DFT. With the simultaneously enhanced electrical conductivity and lithium-ion diffusivity, MWNO successfully demonstrates its fast-rechargeability and practicality in the LiNi 0.5 Mn 1.5 O 4 -coupled full-cells. Therefore, this work illustrates the potential of ionothermal synthesis in energy storage materials and provides a mechanistic understanding of the doping effect on improving material's electrochemical performance.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Characterization of a Mo-Nitrogenase Variant Containing a Citrate-Substituted Cofactor

Nitrogenase converts N 2 to NH 3 , and CO to hydrocarbons, at its cofactor site. In this work, we report a biochemical and spectroscopic characterization of a Mo-nitrogenase variant expressed in an Azotobacter vinelandii strain containing a deletion of nifV, the gene encoding the homocitrate synthase. Designated NifDK Cit , the catalytic component of this Mo-nitrogenase variant contains a citrate-substituted cofactor analogue. Activity analysis of NifDK Cit reveals a shift of CO reduction from H 2 evolution toward hydrocarbon formation and an opposite shift of N 2 reduction from NH 3 formation toward H 2 evolution. Consistent with a shift in the Mo K-edge energy of NifDK Cit relative to that of its wild-type counterpart, EPR analysis demonstrates a broadening of the line-shape and a decrease in the intensity of the cofactor-originated S=3/2 signal, suggesting a change in the spin properties of the cofactor upon citrate substitution. These observations point to a crucial role of homocitrate in substrate reduction by nitrogenase and the possibility to tune product profiles of nitrogenase reactions via organic ligand substitution.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2024

Amorphous K–Co–Mo–S x Chalcogel: A Synergy of Surface Sorption and Ion-Exchange

Chalcogel represents a unique class of meso- to macroporous nanomaterials that offer applications in energy and environmental pursuits. We report the synthesis of an ion-exchangeable amorphous chalcogel using a nominal composition of K 2 CoMo 2 S 10 (KCMS) at room temperature is reported. Synchrotron X-ray pair distribution function (PDF), X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES), and extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) reveal a plausible local structure of KCMS gel consisting of Mo 5+ 2 and Mo 4+ 3 clusters in the vicinity of di/polysulfides which are covalently linked by Co 2+ ions. The ionically bound K + ions remain in the percolating pores of the Co–Mo–S covalent network. XANES of Co K-edge shows multiple electronic transitions, including quadrupole (1s→3d), shakedown (1s→4p + MLCT), and dipole allowed 1s→4p transitions. Remarkably, despite a lack of regular channels as in some crystalline solids, the amorphous KCMS gel shows ion-exchange properties with UO 2 2+ ions. Additionally, it also presents surface sorption via [S∙∙∙∙UO 2 2+ ] covalent interactions. Overall, this study underscores the synthesis of quaternary chalcogels incorporating alkali metals and their potential to advance separation science for cations and oxo-cationic species by integrating a synergy of surface sorption and ion-exchange.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗