Activities to foster training in nuclear and radiochemistry from IACS,IAEA-Vienna

Summary Given the mismatch between supply of and demand for nuclear scientists, education in nuclear and radiochemistry has become a serious concern. The Nuclear and Radiochemistry in Chemistry Education (NRIChEd) Curriculum Project was undertaken to reintroduce the topics normally covered in a one-semester radiochemistry course into the traditional courses of a four-year chemistry major: general chemistry, organic chemistry, quantitative and instrumental analysis, and physical chemistry. NRIChEd uses a three-pronged approach that incorporates radiochemistry topics when related topics in the basic courses are covered, presents special topics of general interest as a vehicle for teaching nuclear and radiochemistry alongside traditional chemistry, and incorporates the use of non-licensed amounts of radioactive substances in demonstrations and student laboratory experiments. This approach seeks not only to reestablish nuclear science in the chemistry curriculum, but to use it as a tool for elucidating fundamental and applied aspects of chemistry as well. Moreover, because of its relevance in many academic areas, nuclear science enriches the chemistry curriculum by encouraging interdisciplinary thinking and problem solving.     

What is nuclear chemistry's position in the freshman chemistry curriculum?

A survey of freshman chemistry textbooks from the 1920's to the 1990's was performed. The amount and point of presentation of the nuclear chemistry material in these texts is compared. A further comparison is made with the nuclear material presented in nonscience majors textbooks. Finally, arguments are given regarding how nuclear chemists can affect the presentation of nuclear chemistry in future freshman chemistry textbooks.     

Radiochemistry at the University of Missouri-Columbia: A joint venture with chemistry,nuclear engineering,molecular biology,biochemistry, and the Missouri University Research Reactor (MURR)

Summary The United States, the Department of Energy (DOE) and its National Laboratories, including the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), are facing a serious attrition of nuclear scientists and engineers and their capabilities through the effects of aging staff. Within the DOE laboratories, 75% of nuclear personnel will be eligible to retire by 2010. It is expected that there will be a significant loss of senior nuclear science and technology staff at PNNL within five years. PNNL's nuclear legacy is firmly rooted in the DOE Hanford site, the World War II Manhattan Project, and subsequent programs. Historically, PNNL was a laboratory where 70% of its activities were nuclear/radiological, and now just under 50% of its current business science and technology are nuclear and radiologically oriented. Programs in the areas of nuclear legacies, global security, nonproliferation, homeland security and national defense, radiobiology and nuclear energy still involve more than 1,000 of the 3,800 current laboratory staff, and these include more than 420 staff who are certified as nuclear/radiological scientists and engineers. This paper presents the current challenges faced by PNNL that require an emerging strategy to solve the nuclear staffing issues through the maintenance and replenishment of the human nuclear capital needed to support PNNL nuclear science and technology programs.     

Perspectives on teaching nuclear and radiochemistry at the Pennsylvania State University

I present some perspectives on teaching the subject of nuclear and radiochemistry in the form of a historical narrative. In addition, I briefly review a program, which we developed approximately seven years ago, to enchance learning in a specific course on the subject. This program involved developing illustrations, course notes, and video tutorials evaluating their effectiveness. After having used these aids extensively, I comment on their efficacy. Also, I briefly discuss the role of a nuclear science course in a nuclear engineering curriculum.     

Nuclear science and engineering education at a university research reactor

The role of an on-site irradiation facility in nuclear science and engineering education is examined. Using the example of a university research reactor, the use of such devices in laboratory instruction, public outreach programs, special instructional programs, research, etc. is discussed. Examples from the Oregon State University curriculum in nuclear chemistry, nuclear engineering and radiation health are given.     

Radioanalytical chemistry for nuclear forensics in China: Progress and future perspective

A relatively new branch of science - nuclear forensics, aiming at providing the nature, origin, history and possible trafficking route of seized nuclear materials/devices, has been established and rapidly developed over decades to screen illicit nuclear activities. This highly interdisciplinary science is built upon a foundation of analytical chemistry, radiochemistry, nuclear physics, material sciences, geology, and other scientific disciplines, within which radiochemical methodologies and radioanalytical techniques play a key role. The present review provides a brief overview about the crucial aspects of nuclear forensics, including basic content, procedure, concerned elements, common separation, analytical method, and so on. The state of the art and recent progresses of nuclear forensics by research communities in China are reviewed, while selected examples and practical applications are emphasized. The challenges associated with this new area and on-going developments are highlighted and discussed.     

Mechanical and chemical explanations in Du Clos' chemistry

Samuel Cottereau Du Clos (1598-1685) appears as the first French chemist to combine in chemistry (for him, the science of substances, the physics of qualities) demonstrations using the laws of motion with demonstrations using the qualities of chemical principles. In this way, he brought to bear two different and complementary orders of explanation. According to Du Clos, the mechanical considerations represent a first approach, a stage towards the knowledge of "the truth of things" (la vérité des choses) in natural philosophy. He set out his chemistry at the Académie royale des sciences de Paris, especially through his criticism of Boyle's Certain Physiological Essays in 1668-1669.     

Surprisingly low aqueous acidity at the alpha-positions of pyridiniums and pyrimidinium: the role of solvation

The p K(a)'s of the 6-CH groups of N-methyl-2-methoxypyridinium, N-methyl-4-methoxypyridinium, and 1-methyl-2,4-dimethoxypyrimidinium ions in aqueous solution were determined to be about 33. The p K(a) values were nearly identical to each other and surprisingly similar to those reported for the neutral pyridones and uracil. Further determination of the enthalpies and entropies of the H-D exchange reactions revealed the role of solvation.     

Horror, happenings and highlights in the history of vacuum physics

The origin of vacuum physics can be traced back to a statement of Aristotle that a vacuum cannot exist, which was questioned by Otto von Guericke. He tried to answer the question by experiment and was one of the most successful personalities to overcome medieval thought, and to pave the way to a new vistas for science and technology. His life and his famous demonstrations are described and a short account of the development of his apparatus and the impact on research in various countries is discussed. A list of old and newer reviews concludes the article.     

Mechanical and Chemical Explanations in Du Clos' Chemistry

Abstract

Samuel Cottereau Du Clos (1598–1685) appears as the first French chemist to combine in chemistry (for him, the science of substances, the physics of qualities) demonstrations using the laws of motion with demonstrations using the qualities of chemical principles. In this way, he brought to bear two different and complementary orders of explanation. According to Du Clos, the mechanical considerations represent a first approach, a stage towards the knowledge of “the truth of things” (la vérité des choses) in natural philosophy. He set out his chemistry at the Académie royale des sciences de Paris, especially through his criticism of Boyle's Certain Physiological Essays in 1668–1669.     

Man-made elements: Outlook for the year 2039

In the fifty years since the discovery of nuclear fission, the field of the study of the chemical and nuclear properties of the man-made elements has been transformed from a frontier science, with a small number of important experiments being performed under very difficult circumstances, to a mature science with encompasses many subfields, and whose techniques are widely used in science and industry. Today, experiments are being performed, on a routine basis, with technology far beyond that available fifty years ago. Here, we have looked fifty years into the future and tried to foresee the state of the field of the study of the man-made elements in the year 2039, on the 100th anniversary of the discovery of nuclear fission.     

Multimedia encyclopedia of nuclear science

We are developing a multimedia encyclopedia that provides a framework for students to leam nuclear science. A variety of media formats are used to present concepts, including text, static figures, animations, and video. Two special prsentation formats use dynamically produced simulations to expose students to nuclear science relationships. These media types provide greater interactivity and flexibility than simple animations. Students access information through tutorials, a dictionary of nuclear science terms, biographies of notable scientists, and a timeline of nuclear science history. The tutorial organization emphasizes the interrelationships among topics. We present an overview of the encyclopedia.     

Review of the role of nuclear analytical chemistry in the Canadian nuclear fuel waste management program

The Canadian Nuclear Fuel Waste Management Program involves both field and laboratory research, to assess the concept of disposal of nuclear fuel wastes at depths of up to 1000 m in plutonic rocks. This research program is multifaceted and requires data from a large number of disciplines, such as geology, geochemistry, hydrogeology, civil and mining engineering, chemistry, solid state science, environmental science, and meteorology. In many of these disciplines, nuclear analytical chemistry plays a major role. Examples of the application of nuclear analytical chemistry, including radiochemical separation and instrumental neutron activation analysis, will be discussed.Issued as AECL-8748.     

Incorporating nuclear chemistry as an education tool in the undergraduate chemistry curriculum: A description of the curriculum project

Although many areas of major national need depend critically on professionals trained in nuclear and radiochemistry, educational opportunities and student interest in this area have declined steadily for the last twenty years. One major contributing factor to the lack of student interest is that most students in science and chemistry courses are never introduced to these topics. This deficiency in science curricula, coupled with the negative public perception towards all things “nuclear”, has resulted in a serious shortage of individuals with a background in this area. We propose to address this problem by “educating the educators” — providing faculty from two- and four-year colleges and high school science teachers with the curriculum materials, training, and motivation to incorporate these topics on a continuing basis in their curricula. Two advantages of this approach are: (1) it will generate scientists with a basic understanding of this field and (2) as teachers incorporate nuclear topics, many students will have the opportunity to reflect on the role of science in a technological society.     

全新设计的现代高分子化学实验课程建设

理科院系高分子化学实验教学发展缓慢,急需紧跟学科发展的前沿、注入新鲜而实用的内容。全新设计建设的现代高分子化学实验覆盖众多传统实验课鲜有涉及、但在科研中极为重要的前沿理念与技术,旨在提高学生科研素养和对学科前沿的把握能力,其成功开发为理科院系针对创新型人才培养的高分子化学实验提出了全新思路。     

Simultaneous measurement of diffusion along multiple directions

This paper introduces the first NMR approach for simultaneously measuring the full diffusion tensor. Using magnetic field gradients of different directions to generate multiple modulations of nuclear spin magnetization, multiple echoes of different modulations are acquired in a single scan to simultaneously measure diffusion along different directions. The experimental demonstrations were conducted in both isotropic and anisotropic systems. Since the diffusion anisotropy holds structural and dynamical information, this approach may be useful for monitoring liquid crystals and electrolytes in metastable states and for studying fluidity in situ in porous networks and in vivo in biological systems.     

COMPATIBILITY IN POLYMER BLENDS OF POLY (VINYL ACETATE) AND POLY (METHYL METHACRYLATE)STUDIED BY NMR

Compatibility of poly (vinyl acetate) (PVAc) with poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) mixtures has been studied by using nuclear magnetic relaxation, differential scanning calorimeter and small-angle X-ray scattering techniques. The nuclear magnetic relaxation time T_1's were measured as a function of composition in blends of PMMA and PVAc prepared from chloroform solution. The results show that the system is miscible for casting from chloroform solution.     

Education in the nuclear sciences in Japanese universitites

Although there are 430 govemment and private universities in Japan, only a limited number of them have departments associated with nuclear science education. Moreover, mainly because of financial pressures, this association is often limited to government universities. Nuclear engineering departments are incorporated with only seven of the larger universities, and there are three institutes with nuclear reactors. In these facilities, education in reactor physics, radiation measurements, electromagnetic and material sciences, are conducted. In terms of radiation safety and radiological health physics, tem radioisotope centers and seven radiochemistry laboratories in universities play an important role. Virtually all of the financial support for nuclear education comes from the Japanese Govemment via the Ministry of Education, Science, and Culture. These are supplemented via private and corporate grants to various university faculty members. In addition to these universities, and private/corporate research institutes, The Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute teaches a short lecture course in nuclear science on a regular basis.     

Electronic laboratories for nuclear science education

We are developing electronic laboratories to help introduce students to nuclear science. An electronic laboratory is a collection of computer simulations of nuclear science experiments. Each program allows students to set experimental parameters, collect data, and analyze results. Experiments can easily be repeated because the computer can compress time. Electronic laboratories are useful for schools with existing nuclear science programs because they can prepare students for actual laboratory work. They are also useful for schools without specialized facilities, since they give students an empirical understanding of nuclear science but do not require specialized equipment. We present three electronic experiments.     

137Cs activity in surface water in the western North Pacific

Temporal and spatial variations of ¹³⁷Cs activity in surface waters in the western North Pacific are examined along the 165°E transect. ¹³⁷Cs in seawater of the western North Pacific has been introduced by global fallout originating from atmospheric nuclear weapons tests, which caused major fallout in the early 1960's. At this time ¹³⁷Cs activities in the surface waters in mid latitudes of the North Pacific were 10–20 Bq·m^-3. South of 30°N, ¹³⁷Cs activity decreased gradually towards the south. The surface ¹³⁷Cs activity was about 5 Bq·m^-3 in the Equatorial region. In the 1970's, the difference in ¹³⁷Cs activities in surface water between mid latitudes and the Equatorial region became smaller. The ¹³⁷Cs activity in surface water at 40°N – Equatorial region was almost constant at the level of 1.7–3.7 Bq·m^-3 in the late 1990's. In the Equatorial region, the ¹³⁷Cs activity in surface water showed no temporal change except for radioactive decay over these four decades. The surface ¹³⁷Cs level was 1.4–1.8 Bq·m^-3 in the north subarctic region around 50°N in the late 1990's. The lower ¹³⁷Cs activity may have been caused by deeper convection in this sea area and dilution by fresh water flux.