Thermal and structural properties of low-fluence irradiated graphite

The release of Wigner energy from graphite irradiated by fast neutrons at a TRIGA Mark II research reactor has been studied by differential scanning calorimetry and simultaneous differential scanning calorimetry / synchrotron powder X-ray diffraction between 25 and 725 °C at a heating rate of 10 °C min⁻¹. The graphite, having been subject to a fast-neutron fluence from 5.67 × 10²⁰ to 1.13 × 10²² n m⁻² at a fast-neutron flux (E > 0.1 MeV) of 7.88 × 10¹⁶ n m⁻² s⁻¹ and at temperatures not exceeding 100 °C, exhibits Wigner energies ranging from 1.2 to 21.8 J g⁻¹ and a Wigner energy accumulation rate of 1.9 × 10⁻²¹ J g⁻¹ n⁻¹ m². The differential-scanning-calorimeter curves exhibit, in addition to the well known peak at ∼200 °C, a pronounced fine structure consisting of additional peaks at ∼150, ∼230, and ∼280 °C. These peaks correspond to activation energies of 1.31, 1.47, 1.57, and 1.72 eV, respectively. Crystal structure of the samples is intact. The dependence of the c lattice parameter on temperature between 25 and 725 °C as determined by Rietveld refinement leads to the expected microscopic thermal expansion coefficient along the c axis of ∼26 × 10⁻⁶ °C⁻¹. At 200 °C, coinciding with the maximum in the differential-scanning-calorimeter curves, no measurable changes in the rate of thermal expansion have been detected - unlike its decrease previously seen in more highly irradiated graphite.     

Neutron flux determination in irradiation sites of an Am–Be neutron source at NNRI

Neutron flux measurements and flux distribution parameters for two irradiation sites of an Am–Be neutron source irradiator were measured by using gold (Au), zirconium (Zr) and aluminum (Al) foils. thermal neutron flux Φ_th = 1.46 × 10⁴ n cm⁻² s⁻¹ ± 0.01 × 10², epithermal neutron flux Φ_epi = 7.23 × 10² n cm⁻² s⁻¹ ± 0.001, fast neutron flux Φ_f = 1.26 × 10² n cm⁻² s⁻¹ ± 0.020, thermal-to-epithermal flux ratio f = 20.5 ± 0.36 and epithermal neutron shaping factor α = −0.239 ± 0.003 were found for irradiation Site-1; while the thermal neutron flux Φ_th = 4.45 × 10³ n cm⁻² s⁻¹ ± 0.06, the epithermal neutron Φ_epi = 1.50 × 10² n cm⁻² s¹ ± 0.003, the fast neutron flux Φ_f = 1.17 × 10 n cm⁻² s⁻¹ ± 0.011, thermal-to-epithermal flux ratio f = 29.6 ± 0.94, and epithermal neutron shaping factor α = 0.134 ± 0.001 were found for irradiation Site-2. It was concluded that the Am–Be neutron source can be used for neutron activation analysis (NAA). The Am–Be source can be used for neutron activation analysis thereby reducing the burden on GHARR-1 and increasing the research output of the nation.     

Neutron energy spectrum flux profile of Ghana’s miniature neutron source reactor core

The total neutron flux spectrum of the compact core of Ghana’s miniature neutron source reactor was understudied using the Monte Carlo method. To create small energy groups, 20,484 energy grids were used for the three neutron energy regions: thermal, slowing down and fast. The moderator, the inner irradiation channels, the annulus beryllium reflector and the outer irradiation channels were the region monitored. The thermal neutrons recorded their highest flux in the inner irradiation channel with a peak flux of (1.2068 ± 0.0008) × 10¹² n/cm² s, followed by the outer irradiation channel with a peak flux of (7.9166 ± 0.0055) × 10¹¹ n/cm² s. The beryllium reflector recorded the lowest flux in the thermal region with a peak flux of (2.3288 ± 0.0004) × 10¹¹ n/cm² s. The peak values of the thermal energy range occurred in the energy range (1.8939–3.7880) × 10⁻⁰⁸ MeV. The inner channel again recorded the highest flux of (1.8745 ± 0.0306) × 10⁰⁹ n/cm² s at the lower energy end of the slowing down region between 8.2491 × 10⁻⁰¹ MeV and 8.2680 × 10⁻⁰¹ MeV, but was over taken by the moderator as the neutron energies increased to 2.0465 MeV. The outer irradiation channel recorded the lowest flux in this region. In the fast region, the core, where the moderator is found, the highest flux was recorded as expected, at a peak flux of (2.9110 ± 0.0198) × 10⁰⁸ n/cm² s at 6.961 MeV. The inner channel recorded the second highest while the outer channel and annulus beryllium recorded very low flux in this region. The flux values in this region reduce asymptotically to 20 MeV.     

Experimental verification of thermal decomposition of lead polonide

The chemical form of polonium in lead–bismuth eutectic (LBE) is an important issue, considering the problem of polonium contamination in nuclear systems that use LBE as a coolant and/or an irradiation target. It has been thought that polonium exists as lead polonide in LBE. Polonium forms compounds with several metals, some of which decompose at high temperatures. Thermal decomposition of lead polonide was not confirmed experimentally, but the temperature of decomposition was foreseen to be around 600 °C. In this paper, the thermal decomposition of lead polonide and its decomposition temperature were confirmed using neutron-irradiated LBE. Neutron-irradiated LBE ingots containing polonium-210 were heated at temperatures of 550 ± 10 °C or 630 ± 10 °C in a vacuum. Polonium, lead and bismuth evaporated from the LBE ingots, and were deposited onto the surface of type 316 stainless steel (316SS) plates at various controlled temperatures between 220 ± 20 °C and 450 ± 20 °C. After heating, the number of alpha particles emitted from polonium-210 deposited on 316SS plates was measured. The experimental results showed a clear difference in the alpha particle count rate, which indicated that lead polonide decomposed at a temperature between 550 ± 10 °C and 630 ± 10 °C.     

Comparison of the effects of cadmium-shielded and boron carbide-shielded irradiation channel of the Ghana Research Reactor-1

The MCNP model for the Ghana Research Reactor-1 (GHARR-1) was redesigned to incorporate cadmium-shielded irradiation channel as well as boron carbide-shielded channel in one of the outer irradiation channels. Further investigations were made after initial work in the cadmium-shielded channel to consider the boron carbide-shielded channel and both results were compared to determine the best material for the shielded channel. Before arriving at the final design of only one shielded outer irradiation channel extensive investigations were made into several other possible designs; as all the other designs that were considered did not give desirable results of neutronic performance. The concept of redesigning a new MCNP model which has a shielded channel is to equip GHARR-1 with the means of performing efficient epithermal neutron activation analysis. The use of epithermal neutron activation analysis can be very useful in many experiments and projects (e.g. it can be used to determine uranium and thorium in sediment samples). After the simulation, a comparison of the results from the boron carbide-shielded channel model for the GHARR-1 and the epicadmium-shielded channel was made. The inner irradiation channels of the two designs recorded peak values of approximately 1.18 × 10¹² ± 0.0036 n/cm² s, 1.32 × 10¹² ± 0.0036 n/cm² s and 2.71 × 10¹¹ ± 0.0071 n/cm² s for the thermal, epithermal and fast neutron flux, respectively. Likewise the outer irradiation channels of the two designs recorded peak values of approximately 7.36 × 10¹¹ ± 0.0042 n/cm² s, 2.53 × 10¹¹ ± 0.0074 n/cm² s and 4.73 × 10¹⁰ ± 0.0162 n/cm² s for the thermal, epithermal and fast neutron flux, respectively. The epicadmium design recorded a peak thermal flux of 7.08 × 10¹¹ ± 0.0033 n/cm² s and an epithermal flux of 2.09 × 10¹¹ ± 0.006 n/cm² s in the irradiation channel where the shield was installed. Also, the boron carbide design recorded no peak thermal flux but an epithermal flux of 1.18 × 10¹¹ ± 0.0079 n/cm² s in the irradiation channel where the shield was installed. The final multiplication factor (k_eff) of the boron carbide-shielded channel model for the GHARR-1 was recorded as 1.00282 ± 0.0007 while that of the epicadmium designed model was recorded as 1.00332 ± 0.0007. Also, a final prompt neutron lifetime of 1.5237 × 10⁻⁴ ± 0.0008 s was recorded for the cadmium designed model while a value of 1.5245 × 10⁻⁴ ± 0.0008 s was recorded for the boron carbide-shielded design of the GHARR-1.     

Formation of InAs nanocrystals in Si by high-fluence ion implantation

We have studied the formation of InAs precipitates with dimensions of several nanometers in silicon by means of As (245 keV, 5 × 10¹⁶ cm⁻²) and In (350 keV, 4.5 × 10¹⁶ cm⁻²) implantation at 500 °C and subsequent annealing at 900 °C for 45 min. RBS, SIMS, TEM/TED, RS and PL techniques were used to characterize the implanted layers. The surface density of the precipitates has been found to be about 1.2 × 10¹¹ cm⁻². Most of the crystallites are from 3 nm to 6 nm large. A band at 1.3 μm has been registered in the low-temperature PL spectra of (As + In) implanted and annealed silicon crystals. The PL band position follows the quantum confinement model for InAs.     

Determination of the leaching rate of Cs from the immobilized low-level radioactive sources in the cement and cement mixed with dolomite grains and with natural pozzolan powder

The leaching rate of ¹³⁴Cs from the immobilized low-level radioactive source in the Portland cement was found to be 4.481 × 10⁻⁴ g/cm² per day. Mixing this cement with dolomite grains and natural pozzolan powder increased and reduced significantly the leaching rate to 7.373 × 10⁻⁴ g/cm² and 3.495 × 10⁻⁴ g/cm² per day for 1 wt% mixing, and to 12.340 × 10⁻⁴ g/cm² and 3.215 × 10⁻⁵ g/cm² per day for 3 wt% mixing, respectively. This increase and reduction of the leaching rate is due to dedolomitization reactions between dolomite grains and cement alkalis, and pozzolanic reaction between pozzolan powder and calcium hydroxide, respectively. It was also found that the application of a latex paint reduced these leaching rates by about 8.8 and 8.2% for cement mixed with dolomite and with pozzolan, respectively. The obtained results help to improve the concrete properties used for the storage and disposal of the low-level radioactive wastes.     

Study of silver diffusion in silicon carbide

Diffusion of silver in 6H-SiC and polycrystalline CVD-SiC was investigated using α-particle channeling spectroscopy and electron microscopy. Fluences of 2 × 10¹⁶ cm⁻² of ¹⁰⁹Ag⁺ were implanted with an energy of 360 keV at room temperature, at 350 °C and 600 °C, producing an atomic density of approximately 2% at the projected range of about 110 nm. The broadening of the implantation profile and the loss of silver through the front surface during vacuum annealing at temperatures up to 1600 °C was determined. Fairly strong silver diffusion was observed after an initial 10 h annealing period at 1300 °C in both polycrystalline and single crystalline SiC, which is mainly due to implant induced radiation damage. After further annealing at this temperature no additional diffusion took place in the 6H-SiC samples, while it was considerably reduced in the CVD-SiC. The latter was obviously due to grain boundary diffusion and could be described by the Fick diffusion equation. Isochronal annealing of CVD-SiC up to 1400 °C exhibited an Arrhenius type temperature dependence, from which a frequency factor D_o ∼ 4 × 10⁻¹² m² s⁻¹ and an activation energy E_a ∼ 4 × 10⁻¹⁹ J could be extracted. Annealing of 6H-SiC above 1400 °C shifted the silver profile without any broadening towards the surface, where most of the silver was released at 1600 °C. Electron microscopy revealed that this process was accompanied by significant re-structuring of the surface region. An upper limit of D < 10⁻²¹ m² s⁻¹ was estimated for 6H-SiC at 1300 °C.     

Dynamic observations of heavy-ion damage in Fe and Fe-Cr alloys

We give an overview and summary of recent in-situ heavy-ion irradiation experiments on Fe and Fe-Cr alloys carried out on the Argonne IVEM Facility at irradiation temperatures up to 500 °C. Several new and unexpected observations were made. At low doses the contrast of new irradiation-induced dislocation loops sometimes developed over time intervals as long as 0.2 s, many orders of magnitude longer than expected for a process of cascade collapse. In addition at temperatures ?300 °C, “hopping” of 1/2<1 1 1> loops was induced by the ion or electron beams, especially in UHP Fe. At high doses complex microstructures developed in all materials, involving the formation of large interstitial loops. At 300 °C and RT these loops had Burgers vectors of type b = 1/2<1 1 1> and large shear components. At 500 °C only edge loops with b = <1 0 0> were produced.     

CHF and dryout point in vertical narrow annuli

Experimental study associated with CHF and dryout point in narrow annuli is conducted with 1.5 mm and 1.0 mm gap, respectively. Distilled water is used as work fluid. The parameters examined were: pressure from 2.0 MPa to 4.0 MPa; mass flux from 26.0 kg/(m² s) to 69.0 kg/(m² s); heat flux from 10 kW/m² to 70 kW/m²; exit equilibrium mass quality from 0.52 to 1.08.It is found that CHF monotonously increases with mass flux in internally heated annuli and bilaterally heated annuli. However, the observed trends are not similar to that in externally heated annuli. The CHF is not affected significantly by mass flux.Critical qualities of dryout point (X_DO) decreases with mass flux and increases with inlet qualities. Under the same conditions X_DO in outer tube are always larger than that in inner tube. According to experimental data, a criterion for the appearance of dryout point for bilaterally heated has been presented.The comparison with the correlations [КУТАТЕЛАДЗЕ, C.C., 1979. Тедплоэнергетика, No. 6] and experimental data indicates that the existing correlations applied to tube cannot predict X_DO in narrow annuli well. Based on experimental data, a new correlation is developed.     

Thermal stability of nano-structured ferritic alloy

The excellent tensile and creep strength and the potential for managing radiation damage make nano-structured ferritic alloys (NFAs) promising candidates for high-temperature applications in spallation proton, advanced fission and fusion neutron environments. The thermal stability of NFAs is critical for such applications, hence, this has been investigated in a series of aging experiments on MA957 at 900 °C, 950 °C and 1000 °C for times up to 3000 h. Optical and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) studies showed the fine scale grain and dislocation structures are stable up to 1000 °C. TEM and small angle neutron scattering (SANS) showed that the nm-scale solute cluster-oxide features (NFs), that are a primary source of the high strength of NFAs, were stable at 900 °C and coarsened only slightly at 950 °C and 1000 °C. Porosity that developed during high-temperature aging was minimal at 900 °C and modest at 950 °C, but was much larger after 1000 °C. Microhardness was basically unchanged after the 900 °C aging, and decreased only slightly (?3%) after aging at 950 °C and 1000 °C.     

The change in the hardness of LCAC, TZM, and ODS molybdenum in the post-irradiated and annealed conditions

Hardness measurements were performed on wrought Low Carbon Arc Cast (LCAC), TZM, and Oxide Dispersion Strengthened (ODS) molybdenum in the post-irradiated and post-irradiated + annealed condition to determine the recovery kinetics. Irradiations performed in the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) at nominally 300 °C and 600 °C to neutron fluence levels that range from 10.5 to 246 × 10²⁴ n/m² (E > 0.1 MeV) resulted in relatively large increases in hardness (77-109%), while small increases in hardness (<18%) were observed for irradiations at 870-1100 °C. The hardness recovery for ODS and LCAC irradiated at 300 °C and 600 °C were shown to be complete at 980 °C and ≈ 1100-1250 °C, respectively. Isothermal annealing at 700 °C was used to determine the activation energy for recovery of LCAC and ODS (3.70-4.88 eV ± 0.28-0.77 eV), which is comparable to values reported in the literature for molybdenum vacancy self-diffusion. This suggests that recovery of LCAC and ODS is controlled by the solid-state diffusion of vacancies in the bulk, and that the finer grain size and particle size ODS does not affect this mechanism. TZM exhibited slower recovery kinetics, which can be explained by the solute atoms (titanium and zirconium) inhibiting vacancy diffusion.     

Measurement of neutron flux distribution in the irradiation channel in the Ghana Research Reactor-1 using Monte Carlo method

The Monte Carlo method was used to determine the neutron fluxes in the irradiation channels of the Ghana Research Reactor-1. The MCNP5 code was used for this purpose to simulate the radial and axial distribution of the neutron fluxes within all the 10 irradiation channels. After the MCNP simulation, it was observed that axially, the fluxes rise to a peak before falling and then finally leveling out. It was also observed that the fluxes were higher in the center of the irradiation channels; the fluxes got higher as it moved toward the center of the core. The multiplication factor (k_eff) was observed as 1.000397 ± 0.0007. Radially, the thermal, epithermal and fast neutron flux in the inner irradiation channel range from 1.15 × 10¹² n/cm².s ± 0.1018 × 10¹¹ − 1.19 × 10¹² n/cm².s ± 0.1172 × 10¹¹, 1.21 × 10¹² n/cm².s ± 0.1014 × 10¹¹ − 1.36 × 10¹² n/cm².s ± 0.1038 × 10¹¹ and 2.47 × 10¹¹ n/cm².s ± 0.1120 × 10¹⁰ − 2.97 × 10¹¹ n/cm².s ± 0.1255 × 10¹⁰ respectively. For the outer channel, the flux range from 7.14 × 10¹¹ n/cm².s ± 0.1381 × 10¹⁰ − 7.38 × 10¹¹ n/cm².s ± 0.208 × 10¹⁰ for thermal, 1.94 × 10¹¹ n/cm².s ± 0.1014 × 10¹⁰ − 2.51 × 10¹¹ n/cm².s ± 0.1281 × 10¹⁰ for epithermal and 3.69 × 10¹⁰ n/cm².s ± 0.8912 × 10⁸ − 5.14 × 10¹⁰ n/cm².s ± 0.1009 × 10⁹ for fast. The results have shown that there are flux variations within the irradiation channels both axially and radially.     

Effect of swift heavy ion irradiation on structural, optical and electrical properties of Cd2SnO4 thin films

Transparent conducting cadmium stannate thin films were prepared by spray pyrolysis method on Corning substrate at a temperature of 525 °C. The prepared films are irradiated using 120 MeV swift Ag⁹⁺ ions for the fluence in the range 1 × 10¹² to 1 × 10¹³ ions cm⁻² and the structural, optical and electrical properties were studied. The intensity of the film decreases with increasing ion fluence and amorphization takes place at higher fluence (1 × 10¹³ ions cm⁻²). The transmittance of the films decreases with increasing ion fluence and also the band gap value decreases with increasing ion fluence. The resistivity of the film increased from 2.66 × 10⁻³ Ω cm (pristine) to 5.57 × 10⁻³ Ω cm for the film irradiated with 1 × 10¹³ ions cm⁻². The mobility of the film decreased from 31 to 12 cm²/V s for the film irradiated with the fluence of 1 × 10¹³ ions cm⁻².     

Investigation of the lifetime of a high-current beam in an ultraminiature storage ring

The lifetime of an electron beam in an ultraminiature storage ring is calculated by two different methods. The working parameters of the ring are as follows: electron energy E = 45 MeV, radius of curvature of the beam orbit R ₀ = 1.947 cm, average beam current I _beam  = 20 mA, number of bunches K _b  = 1, rms bunch length σ _L  = 0.3 mm, transverse rms dimensions σ _X  = σ _Z  = 0.1 mm. It is established that for magnetic field drop-off exponent n = 0.01 the lifetime of the beam as calculated according to the Touschek effect is 15 times longer than the value obtained using an empirical relation that describes the longest beam lifetime achieved in operating storage rings. Translated from Atomnaya énergiya, Vol. 106, No. 1, pp. 52–56, January, 2009.     

Concentrations of U and Th in foodstuffs and radiation dose to a rural Moroccan population

Uranium (²³⁸U) and thorium (²³²Th) contents were measured in different foods widely consumed by the rural Moroccan population by using two different types of solid state nuclear track detectors (SSNTDs). The method utilized is based on determining the probabilities for α-particles emitted by the uranium and thorium series inside the studied materials to reach and be registered on the CR-39 and LR-115 type II SSNTDs and counting the resulting track densities. Total daily intakes of ²³⁸U and ²³²Th for a typical food basket were estimated to be 1.27 Bq d⁻¹ and 0.95 Bq d⁻¹, 1.55 Bq d⁻¹ and 1.18 Bq d⁻¹ and 2.01 Bq d⁻¹ and 1.52 Bq d⁻¹ for the 7-12 y, 12-17 y and adults age groups, respectively. Annual committed equivalent doses were evaluated in the human body compartments of members of the Moroccan rural population due to ²³⁸U and ²³²Th from the ingestion of the studied food materials by using the ICRP ingestion dose coefficients. Annual committed effective dose due to ²³⁸U and ²³²Th intakes were found to be 3.16 × 10⁻⁵ Sv and 10.10 × 10⁻⁵ Sv, 3.81 × 10⁻⁵ Sv and 10.80 ×  10⁻⁵ Sv and 3.32 × 10⁻⁵ Sv and 12.80 × 10⁻⁵ Sv for the 7-12 y, 12-17 y and adults age groups, respectively.     

Maximum scintillation yields in NaI(Tl) and CsI(Tl) crystals estimated from the scintillation model for liquid rare gases

The maximum scintillation yields in NaI(Tl) and CsI(Tl) crystals were estimated theoretically by applying the scintillation model for liquid rare gases to crystal scintillators. Average energies required to produce one scintillation photon in the maximum scintillation yield, W_so, were estimated to be 10.6 ± 0.3 or 11.6 ± 0.3 eV for NaI(Tl) and 11.6 ± 0.3 or 12.5 ± 0.3 eV for CsI(Tl). The new experiment on scintillation yields gives W_so of 10.8 ± 2.0 eV for NaI(Tl) and 11.3 ± 2.1 or 9.3 ± 1.7 eV for CsI(Tl). The values show good agreement with the theoretical estimations. These results demonstrate that the scintillation model in liquid rare gases is applicable to inorganic scintillators such as NaI(Tl) and CsI(Tl) crystals.     

The interdiffusion and solid-state reaction of low-energy copper ions implanted in silicon

At room temperature, single-crystal silicon was implanted with Cu⁺ ions at an energy of 80 keV using two doses of 5 × 10¹⁵ and 1 × 10¹⁷ Cu⁺ cm⁻². The samples were heat treated by conventional thermal annealing at different temperatures: 200 °C, 230 °C, 350 °C, 450 °C and 500 °C. The interdiffusion and solid-state reactions between the as-implanted samples and the as-annealed samples were investigated by means of Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). After annealing at 230 °C, the XRD results of the samples (subject to two different doses) showed formation of Cu₃Si. According to RBS, the interdiffusion between Cu and Si atoms after annealing was very insignificant. The reason may be that the formation of Cu₃Si after annealing at 230 °C suppressed further interdiffusion between Si and Cu atoms.     

Thermal conductivities of hypostoichiometric (U, Pu, Am)O2−x oxide

The thermal conductivities of (U_0.68Pu_0.30Am_0.02)O_2.00−x solid solutions (x = 0.00-0.08) were studied at temperatures from 900 to 1773 K. The thermal conductivities were obtained from the thermal diffusivities measured by the laser flash method. The thermal conductivities obtained experimentally up to about 1400 K could be expressed by a classical phonon transport model, λ = (A + BT)⁻¹, A(x) = 3.31 × x + 9.92 × 10⁻³ (mK/W) and B(x) = (−6.68 × x + 2.46) × 10⁻⁴ (m/W). The experimental A values showed a good agreement with theoretical predictions, but the experimental B values showed not so good agreement with the theoretical ones in the low O/M ratio region. From the comparison of A and B values obtained in this study with the ones of (U,Pu)O_2−x obtained by Duriez et al. [C. Duriez, J.P. Alessandri, T. Gervais, Y. Philipponneau, J. Nucl. Mater. 277 (2000) 143], the addition of Am into (U, Pu)O_2−x gave no significant effect on the O/M dependency of A and B values.