• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.4
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• pp.1495-1506
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• 2023

For the safe disposal of high-level radioactive waste using Engineered Barrier Systems (EBS), bentonite buffer is used by its high swelling capability and low hydraulic conductivity. When the bentonite buffer is contacted to heated pore water containing ions by radioactive decay, chemical alterations of minerals such as illitization reaction occur. Illitization of bentonite indicates the alteration of expandable smectite into non-expandable illite, which threatens the stability and integrity of EBS. This study intends to provide a thorough review on the information underlying in the illitization of bentonite, by covering basic clay mineralogy, smectite expansion, mechanisms and observation of illitization, and illitization in EBS. Since understanding of smectite illitization is crucial for securing the safety and integrity of nuclear waste disposal systems using bentonite buffer, this thorough review study is expected to provide essential and concise information for the preventive EBS design.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.672-679
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• 2022

Microbial lipases are used widely in the synthesis of various compounds due to their substrate specificity and position specificity. 4-Ethyl malate (4-EM) made from diethyl malate (DEM) is an important starting material used to make argon fluoride (ArF) photoresist. We tested several microbial lipases and found that Photobacterium lipolyticum M37 lipase position-specifically hydrolyzed DEM to produce 4-EM. We purified the reaction product through silica gel chromatography and confirmed that it was 4-EM through nuclear magnetic resonance analysis. To mass-produce 4-EM, DEM hydrolysis reaction was performed using an enzyme reactor system that could automatically control the temperature and pH. Effects of temperature and pH on the reaction process were investigated. As a result, 50℃ and pH 4.0 were confirmed as optimal reaction conditions, meaning that M37 was specifically an acid lipase. When the substrate concentration was increased to 6% corresponding to 0.32 M, the reaction yield reached almost 100%. When the substrate concentration was further increased to 12%, the reaction yield was 81%. This enzyme reactor system and position-specific M37 lipase can be used to mass-produce 4-EM, which is required to synthesize ArF photoresist.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.52 no.4
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• pp.819-826
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• 2020

The method of the Laplace transform has been used to obtain an analytical solution of the three-dimensional steady state advection diffusion equation for the airborne radionuclide release from any nuclear installation such as the power reactor in an area source. The present treatment takes into account the removal of the pollutants through the nuclear reaction. We assume that the pollutants are emitted as a constant rate from the area source. This physical consideration is achieved by assuming that the vertical eddy diffusivity coefficient should be a constant. The prevailing wind speed is a constant in 𝑥- direction and a linear function of the vertical height z. The present model calculations are compared with the other models and the available data of the atmospheric dispersion experiments that were carried out in the nuclear power plant of Angra dos Reis (Brazil). The results show that the present treatment performs well as the analytical dispersion model and there is a good agreement between the values computed by our model and the observed data.

• Journal of Surface Science and Engineering
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.121-128
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• 2006

A set of Quartz Crystal Microbalances (QCM's) was used to observe the film removal characteristics of three different $CO_2-nitric$ acid microemulsions. QCM's electroplated with nickel or copper were used as specimens. F-AOT, NP-4 and the newly synthesized Proline Surfactant-1 were used as surfactants to create microemulsions. While the F-AOT microemulsion yielded a relatively low removal rate, that of the Proline Surfactant-1 completely removed the Cu metal film within a short period of time. The NP-4 microemulsion removed the metal surface. However, removal rate measurements per QCM were not possible due to the instability of the microemulsion when Cu ions were present in the nitric solution. The reaction kinetics and metal removal capabilities of microemulsions formed by the different surfactants are explained along with the characteristics of reverse micelles.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.37 no.6
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• pp.537-556
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• 2005

A primary-pipe rupture accident is one of the design-basis accidents of a High-Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor (HTGR). When the primary-pipe rupture accident occurs, air is expected to enter the reactor core from the breach and oxidize in-core graphite structures. This paper describes an experiment and analysis of the air ingress phenomena and the method fur the prevention of air ingress into the reactor during the primary-pipe rupture accident. The numerical results are in good agreement with the experimental ones regarding the density of the gas mixture, the concentration of each gas species produced by the graphite oxidation reaction and the onset time of the natural circulation of air. A hydrogen production system connected to the High-Temperature Engineering Test Reactor (HTTR) Is being designed to be able to produce hydrogen by themo-chemical iodine-Sulfur process, using a nuclear heat of 10 MW supplied by the HTTR. The HTTR hydrogen production system is first connected to a nuclear reactor in the world; hence a permeation test of hydrogen isotopes through heat exchanger is carried out to obtain detailed data for safety review and development of analytical codes. This paper also describes an overview of the hydrogen permeation test and permeability of hydrogen and deuterium of Hastelloy XR.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.49 no.5
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• pp.1006-1009
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• 2017

We discuss the problems of scattering in this framework, and show that the applied method is very useful in the investigation of the effect of the resonance in the observed scattering cross sections. In this study, not only the scattering cross sections but also the decomposition of the scattering cross sections was computed for the ${\alpha}-{\alpha}$ system. To obtain the decomposition of scattering cross sections into resonance and residual continuum terms, the complex scaled orthogonality condition model and the extended completeness relation are used. Applying the present method to the ${\alpha}-{\alpha}$ and ${\alpha}-n$ systems, we obtained good reproduction of the observed phase shifts and cross sections. The decomposition into resonance and continuum terms makes clear that resonance contributions are dominant but continuum terms and their interference are not negligible. To understand the behavior of observed phase shifts and the shape of the cross sections, both resonance and continuum terms are calculated.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.49 no.5
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• pp.996-1005
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• 2017

In this paper, nuclear data for cross sections of the $^{64}Zn(n,2n)^{63}Zn$, $^{64}Zn(n,3n)^{62}Zn$, $^{64}Zn(n,p)^{64}Cu$, $^{66}Zn(n,2n)^{65}Zn$, $^{66}Zn(n,p)^{66}Cu$, $^{67}Zn(n,p)^{67}Cu$, $^{68}Zn(n,p)^{68}Cu$, and $^{68}Zn(n,{\alpha})^{65}Ni$ reactions were studied for neutron energies up to 40 MeV. In the nuclear model calculations, TALYS 1.6, ALICE/ASH, and EMPIRE 3.2 codes were used. Furthermore, the nuclear data for the (n,2n) and (n,p) reaction channels were also calculated using various cross-section systematics at energies around 14-15 MeV. The code calculations were analyzed and obtained using the different level densities in the exciton model and the geometry-dependent hybrid model. The results obtained from the excitation function calculations are discussed and compared with literature experimental data, ENDF/B-VII.1, and the TENDL-2015 evaluated data.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.51 no.2
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• pp.337-344
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• 2019

The TRIGA fuel of the Philippine Research Reactor-1 (PRR-1) will be used in a subcritical reactor assembly (SRA) to strengthen and advance nuclear science and engineering expertise in the Philippines. SRA offers a versatile and safe training and research facility since it can produce neutrons through nuclear fission reaction without achieving criticality. In this work, we used a geometrically detailed model of the PRR-1 TRIGA fuel to design a subcritical reactor assembly and calculate physical parameters of different fuel configurations. Based on extensive neutron transport simulations an SRA configuration is proposed, comprising 44 TRIGA fuel rods arranged in a $7{\times}7$ square lattice. This configuration is found to have a maximum $k_{eff}$ value of $0.95001{\pm}0.00009$ at 4 cm pitch. The SRA is characterized by calculating the 3-dimensional neutron flux distribution and neutron spectrum. The effective delayed neutron fraction and mean neutron generation time of the system are calculated to be $748pcm{\pm}7pcm$ and $41{\mu}s$, respectively. Results obtained from this work will be the basis of the core design for the subcritical reactor facility that will be established in the Philippines.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.9
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• pp.3352-3358
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• 2023

Nuclear medicine seems to be a decent choice of medicine in the recent decade. The radioactive isotopes ⁵¹Cr, ⁸⁹Sr, ⁹⁹Tc, ¹³¹I, ¹³³Xe, ¹³⁷Cs and ¹⁵³Sm are extremely essential in nuclear medicine. The excitation functions of the ⁵⁴Fe (n, α) ⁵¹Cr, ⁹²Zr (n, α) ⁸⁹Sr, ¹⁰²Rh (n, α) ⁹⁹Tc, 134Cs (n, α) ¹³¹I, ¹³⁶Ba (n, α) ¹³³Xe, ¹⁴⁰La (n, α) ¹³⁷Cs and ¹⁵⁶Gd (n, α) ¹⁵³Sm reactions were calculated in this study using the EMPIRE 3.2.3 and TALYS 1.95 nuclear codes. Additionally, the cross sections at 14-15 MeV were calculated using empirical formulae and the experimental data. The computer codes were compared to the experimental data and Empirical formulas as well as the evaluated data (TENDL 2021, JENDL 3.3, JENDL 5, JEFF 3.3, EAF 2010, CENDL 3.1, CENDL 3.2, ROSFOND 2010, FENDL 3.2 b, and BROND 3.1).

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.1
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• pp.304-309
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• 2023

In the last decade, nuclear medicine appears to be a good choice of medicine. ⁵⁸Co, ⁹⁹Mo, ⁹⁹Tc, ⁹⁹Re, ¹³³Xe and ¹⁸⁶Re are very important radionuclides for nuclear medicine. In this study, the excitation functions of ⁵⁸Ni (n, p) ⁵⁸Co, ⁹⁹Tc (n, p) ⁹⁹Mo, ⁹⁹Ru (n, p) ⁹⁹Tc, ¹³¹Xe (n, p) ¹³¹I, ¹³³Cs (n, p) ¹³³Xe and ¹⁸⁶Os (n, p) ¹⁸⁶Re nuclear reactions were calculated at neutron energies between 1 and 20 MeV using TALYS 1.95 and EMPIRE 3.2 nuclear codes. Furthermore, the cross sections were calculated with the empirical formula derived in our past study at 14-15 MeV. The obtained results were compared with the measured values in EXFOR library, and with the evaluated data of (JENDL-4.0/HE, JEFF-3.3, TENDL-2019, ENDF/B-VIII.0, IRDFF-II, JENDL/ImPACT-18). The results are in good agreement with those of the evaluated data libraries and experimental results and indicates that these radioisotopes can be produced by smaller cyclotrons.