Additive Manufacturing of Nanostructured Uranium Dicarbide/Carbon Nanocomposits via Sol-Gel Technique

Uranium and other actinides play an unquestionable role in the development of novel radionuclides for diagnostics and targeted therapy, emerging as a frontrunner in the framework of nuclear physics and for the design and production of innovative radiopharmaceuticals. Moreover, uranyl cations UO2 2+ offer an immense variety of applications due to the unique photochemical properties and high photosensitivity of its complexes, giving rise to a sheer diversity of opportunities. The excited state of uranyl cation is indeed accessible under UV and visible light, therefore readily producing chemically reactive radical species UO2 2+* upon light irradiation. As these outstanding features come to the fore, we have developed an innovative synthesis protocol to explore the use of uranyl cations as a photoinitiator system for the development of photocurable sol-gel-based formulations, thus coupling the photochemical reactions of uranyl cations with photopolymerisation processes. Hence, the uranyl motifs allow to activate the acrylate functionalities of a photopolymer in a free-radical photopolymerisation process. Micro-architected components have been successfully fabricated via digital light processing technique upon photocleavage of the double carbon bonds and the 3D printed components were then converted into UC2/carbon nanocomposite upon carbothermal reduction. To the best of our knowledge, this uranyl-mediated additive manufacturing process constitutes the first application of the synergistic role of uranyl motifs as photoinitiator and uranium source in a photopolymer platform, therefore demonstrating for the first time the possibility to directly pattern uranium-based materials in complex-shaped structures.

ZANINI Alice;  CARTURAN Sara Maria;  CORRADETTI Stefano;  WALTER Olaf;  AMADOR CELDRAN Pedro;  BIASETTO Lisa;  MANZOLARO M.;  FRANCHIN Giorgia;  ELOIRDI Rachel; 

2024-06-21

Université de Lille, Ecole Centrale Lille, CNRS

JRC138295

https://jdalille2024.com/abstract-booklet/,    https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC138295,