Dose assessment of bremsstrahlung induced by beta-emitting radioisotopes of uranium-238 series and lead in human tissues

In the natural uranium-238 decay series, pure beta isotopes such as ²³⁴Th, ²³⁴Pa, ²¹⁴Pb, ²¹⁴Bi, ²¹⁰Pb and ²¹⁰Bi are released. The few lead isotopes such as ²¹¹Pb, ²¹²Pb, ²¹³Pb and ²¹⁵Pb are good beta emitters. In certain nuclear reactions of reactor these isotopes are released. These beta isotopes have maximum beta energies, which induce the bremsstrahlung radiation. The bremsstrahlung component of these beta isotopes has been traditionally ignored in dosimetry calculations. The shapes of bremsstrahlung spectra are a basic ingredient in the understanding and quantification of beta-ray dosimetry. The bremsstrahlung spectra produced by these high-energy isotopes such as ²³⁴Th, ²³⁴Pa, ²¹⁴Pb, ²¹⁴Bi, ²¹⁰Pb, ²¹⁰Bi, ²¹¹Pb, ²¹²Pb, ²¹³Pb and ²¹⁵Pb in bone, muscle and teeth are studied, and the computed spectral distributions are presented. The spectral shapes are primarily responsible for variations in the shapes of depth–dose distributions. They are intended to provide a quick and convenient reference for spectral shapes and to give an indication of the wide variation in these shapes. The evaluated beta bremsstrahlung dose as a function distance for the studied nuclides is also presented. The efficiency, intensity and dose rate of bremsstrahlung induced by beta isotopes of natural uranium-238 decay series and beta-emitting lead isotopes in human tissues such as brain, breast, heart, kidney, liver, muscle, pancreas and bone have also been studied in the present investigation. The values of bremsstrahlung dosimetric parameters are low for pancreas, but they are high for bone. For all studied tissues these parameters are high for ²³⁴Pa, but low for ²¹⁰Pb.     

Sorption kinetics of aqueous benzene for attached bacteria on sorbents

In this study we investigated the effect of bacteria attached onto the surfaces of two sorbents e.g., activated carbon and alginate bead, on the sorption kinetics of aqueous benzene. Kinetic sorption experiments were performed to obtain time-dependent data of aqueous concentration subjected to sorption at an initial concentration. The kinetic sorption data were fitted with two-site sorption model that consists of fast (equilibrium type) sorption site and limited slow (nonequilibrium or kinetic type) sorption site. Experimental results showed that both fast sorption and biodegradation was associated with removal of benzene for alginate bead, but only fast sorption for activated carbon for either case of bacterial treatment. Much lower sorption for attached case of carbon can be explained by the fact that bacteria inhibited sorption of aqueous benzene by filling them in the cavities of carbon surface. Modeling study revealed that sorption process for activated carbon followed two-site kinetic with unlimited slow sorption but the one for bead was described by two-site kinetic with limited slow sorption model since a significant amount of aqueous benzene was present in aqueous phase due to lower sorbing capacity.     

Muon capture rates in233U,234U,235U,236U,238U,and237Np

The time spectra for muon induced fission of²³³U,²³⁴U,²³⁵U,²³⁶U,²³⁸U, and²³⁷Np were measured simultaneously, detecting both fragments in coincidence in a fast multi parallel plate avalanche detector. The observed mean lifetimes τ are 68.9 ± 0.3 ns, 70.6 ± 0.2 ns, 72.2 ±0.2 ns, 74.3 ± 0.3 ns, 77.0 ±0.4 ns, and 69.8 ±0.2 ns for the above isotopes, respectively. No second time component, tentatively ascribed to a possible fission isomer, was observed. The deduced total capture rates are compared with theoretical predictions.     

Cross sections for 209Bi, 232Th, 235U, 238U, and 237Np fission induced by intermediate-energy protons and deuterons

The cross sections for ²⁰⁹Bi, ²³²Th, ²³⁵U, ²³⁸U, and ²³⁷Np fission induced by protons of energy in the range 1.0–3.7 GeV and by deuterons of energy 1.0 GeV were measured. The results are compared with data from other experiments, with available estimates, and with the predictions of theoretical models.     

Mössbauer effect study of the glacial to post-glacial transition in the sediment of Georgie Lake

X-ray diffraction and Mössbauer techniques have been utilized to study the late-glacial and post-glacial sediments of a core obtained from Georgie Lake, northeastern Vancouver Island. The Mössbauer data clearly shows there is a substantive drop in the Fe²⁺/Fe³⁺ ratio at the transition from glacial to post-glacial sediments.     

Study on the formation of the composite system of 238U+238U

Strongly damped reactions of 238U+238U, at Ecm = 680-1880 MeV have been studied based on the improved quantum molecular dynamics model. We find that at a certain energy region the entrance channel potential is weakly repulsive and the dissipation is very strong after touching configuration, these two effects make the time delay of re-separation for colliding system. The single particle potential well of the transiently formed composite system has Coulomb barrier about 15-20 MeV high at the surface, which makes the excited unbound protons being still embedded in the potential well and moving in a common mono-single particle potential for a period of time and thus restrains from quick decay of the composite system.     

Cross sections for nuclear reactions in collisions of238U+238U and238U +197Au near and below the coulomb barrier

Cross sections for nuclear reactions at beam energies near and below the spherical Coulomb barrier V _c were measured in the very heavy collision systems²³⁸U +²³⁸U and²³⁸U +¹⁹⁷Au. The most probable reaction channel with mass transfer is the one-neutron transfer. Its excitation function is understood in terms of Rutherford trajectories together with the quantal process of neutron tunnelling over large distances. In addition, the exchange of up to 15 nucleons is observed down to 0.90 V _c . The excitation functions for the multi-nucleon transfer products have much steeper slopes than that for one-neutron transfer, and are steeper for²³⁸U +¹⁹⁷Au than for²³⁸U +²³⁸U, suggesting that nuclear contact is established in the associated collisions. The angular distribution for one selected multi-nucleon transfer product,²²⁷Th, shows that its formation occurs in more central collisions within contact times shorter than about 10^?21 s. There is no evidence for very longlived di-nuclear systems in the these reactions.     

Electrofission of238U and232Th

Absolute electrofission cross sections for²³⁸U and²³²Th in the energy regionE _e =7 ?65 MeV and fission fragment angular distributions forE _e =7–30 MeV have been measured. The angular distributions show strong anisotropies for low energies. The relative dipole and quadrupole contributions as a function of excitation energy are discussed in terms of the low lying fission transition states above the fission barriers. The cross sections show significant deviations from the results of some earlier measurements, in particular in the energy region above the giant dipole resonance. From the difficulties of absolute electrofission cross section measurements and the ambiguities in their interpretation it is concluded that by this time the quantitative analysis of electrofission cross sections with respect to the contributions of the giant quadrupole resonances to the fission decay channel should be regarded as rather tentative.     

Transmutation of 129I, 237Np, 238Pu, 239Pu, and 241Am using neutrons produced in target-blanket system ‘Energy plus Transmutation’ by relativistic protons

Target-blanket facility ‘Energy + Transmutation’ was irradiated by proton beam extracted from the Nuclotron Accelerator in Laboratory of High Energies of Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in Dubna, Russia. Neutrons generated by the spallation reactions of 0.7, 1.0, 1.5 and 2 GeV protons and lead target interact with subcritical uranium blanket. In the neutron field outside the blanket, radioactive iodine, neptunium, plutonium and americium samples were irradiated and transmutation reaction yields (residual nuclei production yields) have been determined using γ-spectroscopy. Neutron field's energy distribution has also been studied using a set of threshold detectors. Results of transmutation studies of ¹²⁹I, ²³⁷Np, ²³⁸Pu, ²³⁹Pu and ²⁴¹Am are presented.      

Fission of237Np+n through a double humped fission barrier

The subthreshold fission cross section of neutron induced fission of²³⁷Np has been measured between 20 and 60 eV with the CBNM time-of-flight spectrometer. The resonances in this energy range have been analysed with a single level shape fitting computer program. The result is interpreted in the frame of Strutinsky's theory of nuclear deformation.     

CSR能区UU碰撞侧向流蒙特卡罗模拟与研究

应用ART模型研究了E_b=520MeV/u的UU碰撞. 探讨了在两种极端方位UU碰撞下, 核子和π在反应平面内的横向流的时间演化以及对碰撞中心度的依赖关系. 研究表明, 流在高密区域发展并且在膨胀相稳定, 因而它是高密区域反应动力学的一个敏感探针. 对头头和体体UU碰撞, 末态π相对于核子的横向流分别在大约b=9fm和b=2fm处存在明显的正向到负向的改变. π的这种行为是重子共振态和旁观者的遮蔽效应(再散射和再吸收)共同作用的结果.     

Towards a better understanding of deep subthreshold photofission of238U

Deep subthreshold photofission data of²³⁸U are analysed. Spectroscopic properties of highly deformed states from experiments in the literature are introduced into a model calculation based on the doorway state formalism which is extended to fission at energies as low as the isomeric level. It is shown that starting from the results of a detailed analysis of the photofission measurements near the top of the fission barrier it is possible to describe the process in the energy range covered by the intermediate well in the double-humped deformation potential. In particular, the so-called “shelf effect” in the low energy photofission is reproduced in terms of delayed isomeric fission through a few undamped vibrational states localised in the pairing gap region above the isomer.     

Sorption and Diffusion of Supercritical Carbon Dioxide in a Biodegradable Polymer

A gravimetric method was used to study the sorption and diffusion of supercritical carbon dioxide in a temperature range from 40°C to 80°C and a pressure range from 8.0 to 18.0 MPa in a biodegradable polymer, namely poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PBAT). The PBAT presented Fickian behavior and Fick's diffusion model was applied to determine the amount of carbon dioxide present in the samples after a predetermined exposure time as well as the diffusion coefficients. The variations of diffusion coefficients of CO₂ for the sorption under supercritical conditions and desorption at ambient conditions as well as equilibrium sorption amounts of CO₂ with variations of pressure and temperature were determined and compared.     

Study on the formation of the composite system of 238U+238U

Strongly damped reactions of ²³⁸U+²³⁸U, at E_cm= 680—1880 MeV have been studied based on the improved quantum molecular dynamics model. We find that at a certain energy region the entrance channel potential is weakly repulsive and the dissipation is very strong after touching configuration, these two effects make the time delay of re-separation for colliding system. The single particle potential well of the transiently formed composite system has Coulomb barrier about 15—20 MeV high at the surface, which makes the excited unbound protons being still embedded in the potential well and moving in a common mono-single particle potential for a period of time and thus restrains from quick decay of the composite system.     

Nuclear resonance scattering studies on238U using a dense series of γ-ray photons

Using the¹⁸¹Ta(n, γ) and¹⁴¹Pr(n, γ) reactions to provide a dense series of intenseγ-rays, photoexcitation of the²³⁸U nucleus has been studied in the 4–7 MeV range. It is shown that most of the effective cross sections are in line with an average strength function as given by the GDR Lorentzian line superimposed by Porter-Thomas fluctuations. Resonances of nonstatistical strength are found close to 5.2 MeV.     

Water condensation kinetics on a hydrophobic surface

Employing thermal desorption spectroscopy, we show that the effective probability of water condensation at low water vapor pressure on an octane film is much below unity at 100-120 K. This unusual finding is related to a small binding energy of H2O monomers on octane (approximately equal to 0.08 eV), requiring the formation of critical water clusters for condensation to occur. This results in strong temperature and impingement-rate dependencies of the water condensation rate and a nonlinear uptake as a function of dose time. All these features are rationalized quantitatively by a kinetic model of water condensation.     

Sorption of actinides on magnetite and goethite under reducing conditions

The present study investigated the sorption of ²³⁷Np, ²³⁹Pu and ²⁴¹Am onto magnetite and goethite as a typical iron corrosion product under reducing conditions as a function of solution pH, both in the presence and absence of CO₂ at 25°C. The sorption experiments were carried out for each actinide independently and for the simultaneous presence of the three actinides. Alpha-spectrometry of the liquid phase was performed to determine the equilibrium concentrations of the actinides after the sorption period. The sorption was strongly pH dependent. The sorption of ²³⁷Np onto iron minerals was enhanced by the presence of CO₂ to some extent. In other cases, the presence of CO₂ did not affect or prevented the actinides from sorption. There seems to be no simple tendency in the observed data under the conditions examined, probably due to the effects of aqueous and surface complexation reactions with carbonate ions.     

A subnanosecond and a nanosecond fission isomer in 238Pu

A subnanosecond fission isomer has been found in ²³⁸Pu by means of a new fission-inflight technique. An isomer with a longer half-life reported previously in the same nucleus has been detected simultaneously. The half-lives are 0.5 ± 0.2 ns and 5 ± 2 ns respectively. Excitation functions show that the two isomers are separated by 1.3 ± 0.3 MeV, the short-lived isomer having the lowest excitation energy. It is assigned as the ground state while the 5 ns state is interpreted as a quasiparticle state in the second potential well. The difference of 1.3 MeV in excitation energy defines within the uncertainty the neutron energy gap at the isomeric deformation.