Completed works

[a] The demand for nuclear power plants continues to increase. [b] A new generation of nuclear power technology, such as small modular reactors (SMRs), is under development. [c] The safe storage and management of nuclear waste remain critical challenges. [d] Boron is one of the most effective elements for neutron shielding. [e] Conventional cement and geopolymer systems cannot effectively incorporate boron, as it significantly delays their setting time. However, the geocement developed in this study can incorporate boron at high levels without such drawbacks. [f] A series of radiation shielding tests was performed. [g] The developed material exhibited shielding performance against both gamma rays and neutron rays. [h] Chemical analyses confirmed that boron is chemically incorporated into the geocement matrix, influencing its performance. SEM–EDS analysis further verified that boron is uniformly distributed throughout the geocement. 

[a] Nanoindentation is a powerful technique for investigating the indentation modulus corresponding to nanoscale regions of a material surface. [b] At the microscale, different phases on the geopolymer surface exhibit distinct indentation modulus values, with crystalline phases generally showing higher modulus. [c] The observed trend in indentation modulus correlated well with compressive strength data, confirming the reliability of the nanoindentation tests. [d] A Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM) algorithm combined with AI was employed to cluster the indentation modulus data, enabling successful deconvolution of the geopolymer phases. [e] Integrating nanoindentation results with pore structure analysis and CT scans, we proposed a conceptual model describing how geopolymer phases evolve with varying Si/Al molar ratios.