Thorium Foil - Material Information

Thorium (Th) is a dense, silvery metal belonging to the actinide series, recognized for its unique combination of high melting point, corrosion resistance, and potential as a nuclear fuel. Naturally weakly radioactive, thorium exhibits physical and thermophysical characteristics that make it a promising material in advanced energy systems and high-temperature structural applications.

Material Overview

Thorium has a face-centered cubic (FCC) crystal structure at room temperature and a melting point of 1750 °C. Its density (11.7 g/cm³) and thermal conductivity (~26 W·m⁻¹·K⁻¹) make it suitable for high-temperature and heat-transfer applications. Kývala and Legut (2020) demonstrated that spin–orbit coupling plays a critical role in its lattice dynamics and that both electronic and phonon contributions significantly affect its thermal conductivity. The 5f-electron states in thorium are largely itinerant, contributing to strong metallic bonding and relatively low electrical resistivity. Thorium-based alloys, such as Th–U systems, exhibit improved hardness and thermal stability; Das et al. (2016) reported that Th–52 wt.% U alloys achieve a hardness twice that of pure thorium with similar thermal conductivity (25.6 W·m⁻¹·K⁻¹) and a thermal expansion coefficient comparable to uranium-based fuels. These properties make thorium foils highly suitable for both thermal and nuclear engineering research.

Applications and Advantages

Thorium foil’s stability and corrosion resistance make it ideal for vacuum deposition targets, thermionic emitters, and high-temperature reaction vessels. In nuclear technology, thorium serves as a fertile material that can breed fissile uranium-233 in thermal reactors. Recent computational studies on thorium monoxide (ThO) have further highlighted its excellent mechanical strength and high Debye temperature, suggesting suitability for next-generation fuel cladding materials (Liu et al., 2023). Reinforced thoria (ThO?) composites also display enhanced oxidation resistance and moderate thermal expansion, making them valuable for high-temperature ceramics (Baskin et al., 1960). Combined, these properties underscore thorium’s role in future energy systems where performance, durability, and stability are paramount.

Goodfellow Availability

Goodfellow provides high-purity thorium foil for advanced research and industrial applications, including nuclear materials development and thermal component testing. Custom dimensions and purity grades are available upon request. Explore thorium and other actinide materials through the Goodfellow product finder.

References

• Das, S., Kaity, S., Kumar, R., Banerjee, J., Roy, S. B., Chaudhari, G. P., & Daniel, B. S. S. (2016). Characterization of microstructural, mechanical, and thermophysical properties of Th–52U alloy. Journal of Nuclear Materials, 479, 129–136. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnucmat.2016.08.021
• Kývala, L., & Legut, D. (2020). Lattice dynamics and thermal properties of thorium metal and thorium monocarbide. Physical Review B, 101(7), 075117. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.101.075117
• Liu, H., Ma, S., Li, H., Zhou, R., & Gao, T. (2023). Structural and electronic phase transitions of thorium monoxide from first-principles calculations. Physica B: Condensed Matter, 657, 415451. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physb.2023.415451
• Baskin, Y., Harada, Y., & Handwerk, J. H. (1960). Some physical properties of thoria reinforced by metal fibers. Journal of the American Ceramic Society, 43(9), 482–488. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1151-2916.1960.tb13702.x