Lia Ryan

Engineering (robotics)

Hometown: Phoenix, Arizona, United States

Graduation date: Spring 2027

Additional details: Honors student

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FURI | Spring 2026

Synthesis of Porous LLZO: A Promising Candidate for Nuclear Fusion Applications

This project aims to design and develop critical tritium breeding material to enable efficient tritium supply within fusion reactors. Specifically, porous lithium lanthanum zirconium oxide (LLZO) ceramics will be investigated as a candidate material, leveraging their high lithium-ion mobility and structurally robust framework for enhanced tritium breeding performance. If porous LLZO demonstrates favorable behavior under neutron irradiation conditions, it could contribute to the development of more effective tritium breeding strategies in future fusion reactor designs, supporting ongoing efforts toward reliable and lower-emission energy systems.

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Featured project | Spring 2026

This project will impact the world by replacing the toxic waste producing nuclear fission reactors with nuclear fusion reactors that produce very little waste and can make much more energy with less input material.

Lia Ryan examines a small vial while faculty mentor Xin Xu stands behind her in a laboratory Lia Ryan works inside a glove box while faculty mentor Xin Xu observes in a lab Lia Ryan uses tweezers to handle a sample at a lab bench while faculty mentor Xin Xu looks on Lia Ryan works with lab equipment near a microscope