Engineering Seminar: Dr. Jake Amoroso
Engineering Materials to Endure for Millenia: An Applied Science Adventure
Dr. Jake Amoroso will present a lecture entitled "Engineering Materials to Endure for Millenia: An Applied Science Adventure" for the Engineering Seminar on Thursday, January 25 at 11:20am in Holmes Auditorium. The lecture is free and open to the public.
Presentation Abstract:
The United States has spent nearly a century developing the nation’s nuclear arsenal and nuclear energy infrastructure. The scale of these activities has, and will continue to result in radioactive waste that poses health, environmental, and proliferation hazards. These radioactive wastes are generally corrosive liquids containing fission products, actinide elements, precipitates, and nitrate, nitrite, hydroxide, carbonate, and phosphate ions. These wastes must be processed so that the radioactive and hazardous constituents are safely sequestered from the biosphere for thousands of years. Ultimately, the long-term performance (i.e., durability) is the single most important criteria in determining the waste form of choice, but the fundamental chemical and physical processes that manifest in materials under extreme environments (e.g., high radiation dose) and across time and length scales are not well understood. The compositional variability and complexity of waste inventories, combined with the demanding performance requirements for the waste form, prohibit a singular approach to nuclear waste processing and stabilization. Moreover, the inextricable connections between processing, properties, and performance in material systems requires a balanced approach to the materials science and engineering of waste form materials that will endure for years to come.
Biographical Information:
Dr. Jake Amoroso is a Fellow Engineer at the Savannah River National Laboratory (or SRNL) located in South Carolina. Dr. Amoroso received his B.S. in Glass Engineering Science and his Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering, both from Alfred University in New York State.
He has worked at SRNL for more than a decade developing waste treatment options for nuclear materials. Dr. Amoroso is a principal investigator and program manager for collaborative projects between the Savannah River National Laboratory and university, commercial, government, and international organizations. He maintains a diverse research portfolio of applied and basic research programs for the Department of Energy’s Offices of Nuclear Energy, Environmental Management, and Science. Dr. Amoroso’s research emphasizes controlling microstructure and phase assemblage in glass and ceramic materials to realize enhanced functionality for applications including waste immobilization, selective capture, and water decontamination strategies.
He has served as a Chief Scientific Investigator for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), is a past recipient of the Department of Energy’s Nuclear Energy Fuel Cycle R&D Excellence Award, and is a Fellow of the American Ceramic Society. Dr. Amoroso has co-authored more than 40 professional publications, 1 patent, and contributed more than 150 technical reports and presentations. He is also an adjunct assistant professor at Clemson University where he supports undergraduate and graduate students.
The United States has spent nearly a century developing the nation’s nuclear arsenal and nuclear energy infrastructure. The scale of these activities has, and will continue to result in radioactive waste that poses health, environmental, and proliferation hazards. These radioactive wastes are generally corrosive liquids containing fission products, actinide elements, precipitates, and nitrate, nitrite, hydroxide, carbonate, and phosphate ions. These wastes must be processed so that the radioactive and hazardous constituents are safely sequestered from the biosphere for thousands of years. Ultimately, the long-term performance (i.e., durability) is the single most important criteria in determining the waste form of choice, but the fundamental chemical and physical processes that manifest in materials under extreme environments (e.g., high radiation dose) and across time and length scales are not well understood. The compositional variability and complexity of waste inventories, combined with the demanding performance requirements for the waste form, prohibit a singular approach to nuclear waste processing and stabilization. Moreover, the inextricable connections between processing, properties, and performance in material systems requires a balanced approach to the materials science and engineering of waste form materials that will endure for years to come.
Biographical Information:
Dr. Jake Amoroso is a Fellow Engineer at the Savannah River National Laboratory (or SRNL) located in South Carolina. Dr. Amoroso received his B.S. in Glass Engineering Science and his Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering, both from Alfred University in New York State.
He has worked at SRNL for more than a decade developing waste treatment options for nuclear materials. Dr. Amoroso is a principal investigator and program manager for collaborative projects between the Savannah River National Laboratory and university, commercial, government, and international organizations. He maintains a diverse research portfolio of applied and basic research programs for the Department of Energy’s Offices of Nuclear Energy, Environmental Management, and Science. Dr. Amoroso’s research emphasizes controlling microstructure and phase assemblage in glass and ceramic materials to realize enhanced functionality for applications including waste immobilization, selective capture, and water decontamination strategies.
He has served as a Chief Scientific Investigator for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), is a past recipient of the Department of Energy’s Nuclear Energy Fuel Cycle R&D Excellence Award, and is a Fellow of the American Ceramic Society. Dr. Amoroso has co-authored more than 40 professional publications, 1 patent, and contributed more than 150 technical reports and presentations. He is also an adjunct assistant professor at Clemson University where he supports undergraduate and graduate students.