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Description

From 2018 to 2019, I worked in Burlington Nuclear Laboratory at North Carolina State University as a member of a materials research team. A lot of the information related to what I was studying cannot be expanded upon, but the procedures followed were in relation to data collection and testing configuration: I was not to work in the analysis of said data. While there, my primary function was to assist the research group in their respective areas of study. This included:

• Burst Testing
• Tensile Testing
• Corrosion
• Materials Preparation

Materials preparation was my primary function. This included the etching, grinding, and polishing of alloy for observation under different microscopy scenarios. After completing one of the types of tests mentioned above, I was responsible for grinding the material to reasonable proportions on the three primary axes for stresses: hoop, radial, and axial. This allowed for a proper observation of grain boundaries under the microscope; and the steps for polishing required were based upon which microscopy process is necessary. For example, TEM and SEM require different steps and materials for polishing. Before sending this to a facility for observation, it was also necessary to etch the product using assigned chemical compositions following proper placement in a polymer that was ensured to not interfere with any observations that needed to be made.

Explanation