Gross alpha-activity estimation in simulated high level waste after actinides partitioning by solid state nuclear track detection

The estimation of low level alpha activity is difficult in waste samples containing large concentration of salts and beta–gamma activity. In the present study, the feasibility of gross alpha-activity measurement for simulated high level waste (SHLW) in solution medium by alpha-track registration technique has been attempted. The results showed that it is possible to use this technique for gross alpha-activity estimation of ~200 Bq/mL in solution medium with a precision and accuracy of ~30%. The importance of measuring 200 Bq/mL alpha activity in SHLW solutions is that this value corresponds to about 4,000 Bq/g activity in the solid medium which is the safe disposable limit. The advantage of this method over other methods is that it is not sensitive to beta–gamma emitters and salts and is very simple and inexpensive.     

Studies on the radiolytic stability of N,N,N′,N′-tetra-2-ethylhexyl diglycolamide in n-dodecane solution containing different phase modifiers

The radiolytic stability of a branched diglycolamide extractant, namely N,N,N′,N′-tetra-2-ethylhexyl diglycolamide (T2EHDGA) dissolved in n-dodecane containing several phase modifiers, viz. N,N-dihexyloctanamide (DHOA), tri-n-butyl phosphate (TBP), 1-decanol and iso-decanol has been investigated. The distribution ratio of Am(III) decreased with increased radiation dose studied up to 1000 kGy. Nevertheless, all the composition of extractants showed satisfactory results up to 500 kGy, beyond which the extractants degraded drastically. The stripping behaviour of Am(III) with 0.2 M HNO₃ was found to be unaffected even with the ligand solution irradiated up to 1000 kGy. Extraction of fission product and structural elements was also investigated using the irradiated solvents and was found to be not significantly affected with increasing absorbed dose with the exception of Mo which showed sharp rise in the distribution coefficient values. Loading of Nd in the organic phase decreased with the irradiated solvent due to degradation of the carrier. The effect of the absorbed dose on physical parameters such as density, viscosity and interfacial tension of the solvents has also been investigated.     

Alpha radiolytic degradation of <Emphasis Type="Italic">N,N</Emphasis>-dihexyl octanamide

The primary purpose of this study was to understand the alpha radiolytic degradation behavior of N,N-dihexyl octanamide (DHOA) vis a vis tributyl phosphate (TBP) solutions in n-dodecane under plutonium loading conditions. These studies were carried out as a function of dose on different Pu loaded samples (containing 0.002-10 g/L Pu) from 4 M HNO₃ medium. These Pu loaded solutions were evaluated for stripping behavior by contacting with 0.5 M NH₂OH at 0.5 M HNO₃ solutions. Organic phase analysis was carried out by gas chromatography (GC) and by visible spectrophotometry. These studies clearly indicated that Pu stripping becomes difficult with increased dose in the case of TBP system. On the other hand, no such problem was observed in DHOA system during stripping of plutonium, thereby indicating that DHOA is a promising candidate for the reprocessing of high burn up Pu rich spent fuels.     

Influence of the small substitution of Z=Ni, Cu, Cr, V for Fe on the magnetic, magnetocaloric, and magnetoelastic properties of LaFe11.4Si1.6

We have studied the magnetic, magnetocaloric, and magnetostriction properties of LaFe_11.4Si_1.6 and La(Fe_0.99Z_0.01)_11.4Si_1.6 (Z=Ni, Cu, Cr, V) compounds using magnetization and strain gauge techniques. It was found that substitution of 1% of the Fe by Z-elements results in an increase in the Curie temperature (T_C), and affects the magnetostriction and magnetocaloric properties of the parent compound, LaFe_11.4Si_1.6. A maximum shift in T_C of about 11 K, and significantly smaller hysteresis losses in the vicinity of T_C compared with those of the base compound, were found for Z=V. The maximum magnetovolume coupling constant was estimated to be n_dd≈2.7×10⁻³ (μ_B/Fe atom)⁻² for the parent compound. The changes in the volume magnetostriction, the magnetovolume coupling constant, and the magnetocaloric properties are strongly correlated with composition. The relative effects of the variation in cell parameters and electron concentration on the magnetostriction, T_C, and the magnetocaloric properties are discussed.     

Dynamics of uniform quantum gases, I: Density and current correlations

A unified approach valid for any wavenumber q, frequency ω, and temperature T is presented for uniform ideal quantum gases allowing for a comprehensive study of number density and particle-current density response functions. Exact analytical expressions are obtained for spectral functions in terms of polylogarithms. Also, particle-number and particle-current static susceptibilities are presented which, for fugacity less than unity, additionally involve Kummer functions. The q- and T-dependent transverse-current static susceptibility is used to show explicitly that current correlations are of long range in a Bose-condensed uniform ideal gas but for bosons at T>T_c and for Fermi and Boltzmann gases at all temperatures these correlations are of short range. Contact repulsive interactions for systems of neutral quantum particles are considered within the random phase approximation. The expressions for particle-number and transverse-current susceptibilities are utilized to discuss the existence or nonexistence of superfluidity in the systems under consideration.