John Mauro, editor-in-chief of the Journal of the American Ceramic Society and professor of materials science and engineering at Pennsylvania State University, presents the editor's choice award to Corson Cramer. Credit: Brittney Hauke
A team of researchers from the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory has received the Editor’s Choice Award from the American Ceramics Society (ACerS) for a study on the effectiveness of using advanced ceramics and 3D printing to build high-temperature heat exchangers.
A heat exchanger moves heat from one place to another. In power plants, these devices transfer heat from burning fuel or a nuclear reaction to water, creating high-pressure steam. This steam drives a turbine which is connected to a generator that produces electricity. As these energy systems reach extreme temperatures, metal parts can weaken or break down.
The ORNL team found that ceramics can handle extreme heat and may outperform metals in high-temperature environments. The researchers also explored how 3D printing can be used to build ceramic parts in new shapes that improve performance and reduce costs. This innovative method could make heat exchangers more efficient, longer lasting and easier to produce.
Published in the International Journal of Ceramic Engineering & Science, the study provides a roadmap for engineers and manufacturers of heat exchangers to choose the best materials and production methods for a more secure energy future.
The study, titled “Material selection and manufacturing for high-temperature heat exchangers: Review of state-of-the-art development, opportunities, and challenges,” was led by ORNL’s Corson Cramer, a manufacturing research scientist in the Extreme Environment Materials Processing Group. Co-authors include ORNL researchers Edgar Lara-Curzio, Amy Elliott, Trevor Aguirre, Brian Fricke, Vivek Rao, Prashant Jain, and Kashif Nawaz. Additional support was provided by Bola Yoon, from Saint-Gobain Research North America.
UT-Battelle manages ORNL for DOE’s Office of Science, the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States. The Office of Science is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, please visit energy.gov/science.
