Records of the riverine discharge of I in riverbank sediment after the Fukushima accident

Nakanishi, Takahiro; Sakuma, Kazuyuki; Oyama, Takuya; Hagiwara, Hiroki; Suzuki, Takashi

Environmental Pollution, 355, p.124213_1 - 124213_7, 2024/08

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2024.124213

This study investigated the transport behavior of I by riverbank surveys conducted from 2013 to 2015 in a watershed where the I/Cs activity ratio is low in the mountainous area and high in the plain as of 2011. Until 2015, the I/Cs activity ratio of the levee crown in the studied watershed was similar to that of the surrounding area in 2011. However, the I/Cs ratios of the surface riverbank sediments were all low, indicating that radionuclides transported from the mountainous area were deposited on the riverbank in the plain. The vertical distribution of the I/Cs ratio in the riverbank sediments indicated that some I and Cs deposited during the accident remained in the lower layers, but most were eroded immediately after the accident. Based on the I/Cs ratios of sediments deposited on the riverbank, which remained constant until 2015 after the accident, the amount of I discharged to the ocean was determined from the previously evaluated Cs discharge. It was calculated that 1.810 Bq and 1.210 Bq of I were discharged with sediment from the studied watershed and the contaminated river watersheds (Abukuma River and Fukushima coastal rivers, including the study river), respectively. The results of this study indicate that the continuous I discharge from the river contribute little to their amount in the seafloor sediments along the Fukushima coast.

Establishment of characterization method for small fuel debris using the world's first isotope micro imaging apparatus (Contract Research); FY2021 Nuclear Energy Science & Technology and Human Resource Development Project

Collaborative Laboratories for Advanced Decommissioning Science; Kogakuin University*

JAEA-Review 2024-005, 79 Pages, 2024/06

JAEA-Review-2024-005.pdf:5.72MB

The Collaborative Laboratories for Advanced Decommissioning Science (CLADS), Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA), had been conducting the Nuclear Energy Science & Technology and Human Resource Development Project (hereafter referred to "the Project") in FY2021. The Project aims to contribute to solving problems in the nuclear energy field represented by the decommissioning of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, Inc. (TEPCO). For this purpose, intelligence was collected from all over the world, and basic research and human resource development were promoted by closely integrating/collaborating knowledge and experiences in various fields beyond the barrier of conventional organizations and research fields. The sponsor of the Project was moved from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology to JAEA since the newly adopted proposals in FY2018. On this occasion, JAEA constructed a new research system where JAEA-academia collaboration is reinforced and medium-to-long term research/development and human resource development contributing to the decommissioning are stably and consecutively implemented. Among the adopted proposals in FY2021, this report summarizes the research results of the "Establishment of characterization method for small fuel debris using the world's first isotope micro imaging apparatus" conducted in FY2021. The present study aims to obtain, for the first time in the world, the important data necessary for clarifying the retrieval of small amounts of fuel debris, and to evaluate and examine them. SEM-EDS and TEM-EDS cannot be used for isotopic identification and analysis of Pu and B. On the other hand, bulk analysis such as ICP-MS lacks the information in a micro region.

MAAP code analysis for the in-vessel phase of Fukushima-Daiichi Nuclear Power Station Unit 1 and comparison of the results among Units 1 to 3

Sato, Ikken; Yoshikawa, Shinji; Yamashita, Takuya; Shimomura, Kenta; Cibula, M.*; Mizokami, Shinya*

Nuclear Engineering and Design, 422, p.113088_1 - 113088_24, 2024/06

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nucengdes.2024.113088

Development of environmental mitigation technology with novel water purification agents (Contract research); FY2022 Nuclear Energy Science & Technology and Human Resource Development Project

Collaborative Laboratories for Advanced Decommissioning Science; Shinshu University*

JAEA-Review 2023-053, 87 Pages, 2024/05

JAEA-Review-2023-053.pdf:4.67MB

The Collaborative Laboratories for Advanced Decommissioning Science (CLADS), Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA), had been conducting the Nuclear Energy Science & Technology and Human Resource Development Project (hereafter referred to "the Project") in FY2022. The Project aims to contribute to solving problems in the nuclear energy field represented by the decommissioning of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, Inc. (TEPCO). For this purpose, intelligence was collected from all over the world, and basic research and human resource development were promoted by closely integrating/collaborating knowledge and experiences in various fields beyond the barrier of conventional organizations and research fields. The sponsor of the Project was moved from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology to JAEA since the newly adopted proposals in FY2018. On this occasion, JAEA constructed a new research system where JAEA-academia collaboration is reinforced and medium-to-long term research/development and human resource development contributing to the decommissioning are stably and consecutively implemented. Among the adopted proposals in FY2020, this report summarizes the research results of the "Development of environmental mitigation technology with novel water purification agents" conducted from FY2020 to FY2022. The present study aims to develop a reusable adsorbent for strontium ions with high adsorption property to contribute to the improvement of the treatment process of radioactive contaminated water generated by the Great East Japan Earthquake. As a result, reusable adsorbent materials showing excellent Sr adsorption performances were developed. The current adsorbent materials for strontium are extremely expensive and single use, so the storage and disposal of massive generation of waste have become a major problem.

Improvement of aerosol time-of-flight mass spectrometer for on-line measurement of tiny particles containing alpha emitters (Contract research); FY2022 Nuclear Energy Science & Technology and Human Resource Development Project

Collaborative Laboratories for Advanced Decommissioning Science; Osaka University*

JAEA-Review 2023-040, 104 Pages, 2024/05

JAEA-Review-2023-040.pdf:5.01MB

The Collaborative Laboratories for Advanced Decommissioning Science (CLADS), Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA), had been conducting the Nuclear Energy Science & Technology and Human Resource Development Project (hereafter referred to "the Project") in FY2022. The Project aims to contribute to solving problems in the nuclear energy field represented by the decommissioning of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (1F), Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, Inc. (TEPCO). For this purpose, intelligence was collected from all over the world, and basic research and human resource development were promoted by closely integrating/collaborating knowledge and experiences in various fields beyond the barrier of conventional organizations and research fields. The sponsor of the Project was moved from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology to JAEA since the newly adopted proposals in FY2018. On this occasion, JAEA constructed a new research system where JAEA-academia collaboration is reinforced and medium-to-long term research/development and human resource development contributing to the decommissioning are stably and consecutively implemented. Among the adopted proposals in FY2021, this report summarizes the research results of the "Improvement of aerosol time-of-flight mass spectrometer for on-line measurement of tiny particles containing alpha emitters" conducted in FY2022. The present study aims to improve Aerosol Time-Of-Flight Mass Spectrometer (ATOFMS) in order to monitor tiny particles containing alpha emitters such as U and Pu generated in removing debris from the reactors of 1F. In FY2022, we newly fabricated a prototype of the improved ATOFMS and measured collection and detection efficiencies of the particle detection unit and carried out mass measurement using the TOF part.

"Invisible" radioactive cesium atoms revealed; Pollucite inclusion in cesium-rich microparticles (CsMPs) from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant

Miyazaki, Kanako*; Takehara, Masato*; Minomo, Kenta*; Horie, Kenji*; Takehara, Mami*; Yamasaki, Shinya*; Saito, Takumi*; Onuki, Toshihiko*; Takano, Masahide; Shiotsu, Hiroyuki; et al.

Journal of Hazardous Materials, 470(15), p.134104_1 - 134104_11, 2024/05

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2024.134104

First demonstration of a single-end readout position-sensitive optical fiber radiation sensor inside the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station based on wavelength-resolving analysis

Terasaka, Yuta; Sato, Yuki; Uritani, Akira*

Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research A, 1062, p.169227_1 - 169227_6, 2024/05

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nima.2024.169227

Optimizing calibration factors of plastic scintillation fibers for improved accuracy of radiocesium concentration measurements in bottom sediments of agricultural ponds

Katengeza, E. W.*; Sanada, Yukihisa; Ochi, Kotaro; Iimoto, Takeshi*

Cogent Engineering (Internet), 11(1), p.2340203_1 - 2340203_9, 2024/04

https://doi.org/10.1080/23311916.2024.2340203

The uncertainty of radioactivity measurements can be influenced by the vertical distribution of the target radionuclide in the sediments. This study used 2015-2019 field measurement data from 47 ponds to evaluate the depth dependence of calibration factors of plastic scintillation fiber (PSF) and its influence on measurement uncertainty. By changing the depth of focus from 10 cm to 15-20 cm when calculating the conversion factor, the normalized mean square error of the radiocesium concentration estimated by the PSF with respect to the radiocesium concentration in core sediments sampled at the same location was found to be smaller.

Comparative study of radiation mapping technologies for nuclear disaster assessment

Ochi, Kotaro; Barker, E.*; Nakama, Shigeo; Gleizes, M.*; Manach, E.*; Vincent, F.*; Sanada, Yukihisa

Journal of Disaster Research, 19(2), p.429 - 445, 2024/04

https://doi.org/10.20965/jdr.2024.p0429

There are no clear criteria for standardizing mapping techniques for ambient dose equivalent rate (air dose rate) distributions in different countries. Thus, in this study, manborne, carborne, and airborne radiation surveys were conducted jointly by the Japan Atomic Energy Agency and the French Institute for Radiological Protection and Nuclear Safety in the vicinity of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station to confirm the effectiveness of each organization's monitoring methods. For example, in the manborne survey, the discrepancy between the air dose rates measured by the two institutions was observed depending on whether or not the contribution from radionuclides with different gamma-ray energies was considered when converting the count rates obtained by the detectors to air dose rates. As in this study, comparing mapping techniques among various countries and providing feedback to each other should help to improve the accuracy of zoning scenarios after nuclear accidents.

Background radiation monitoring via manned helicopter and development of technology for radiation monitoring via unmanned airplane for application of nuclear emergency response technique in the fiscal year 2022 (Contract research)

Futemma, Akira; Sanada, Yukihisa; Sasaki, Miyuki; Kawasaki, Yoshiharu*; Iwai, Takeyuki*; Hiraga, Shogo*; Haginoya, Masashi*; Matsunaga, Yuki*; Akutsu, Yuichiro*; Arai, Yoshinori*; et al.

JAEA-Technology 2023-026, 161 Pages, 2024/03

JAEA-Technology-2023-026.pdf:14.66MB

By the accident at Tokyo Electric Power Company's (TEPCO's) Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (FDNPS), caused by tsunami triggered by the 2011 off the Pacific coast of Tohoku Earthquake, a large amount of radioactive material was released into the surrounding environment. After the accident, Airborne Radiation Monitoring (ARM) via manned helicopter has been utilized as a method to quickly and extensively measure radiation distribution surrounding FDNPS. In order to utilize ARM and to promptly provide the results during a nuclear emergency, information on background radiation levels, topographical features, and controlled airspace surrounding nationwide nuclear facilities have been prepared in advance. In the fiscal year 2022, we conducted ARM around the Mihama Nuclear Power Station of Kansai Electric Power Company (KEPCO), the Tsuruga Power Station of Japan Atomic Power Company (JAPC), and the Ikata Power Station of Shikoku Electric Power Company (YONDEN), and prepared information on background radiation doses and controlled airspace. In addition, we have developed an aerial radiation detection system via unmanned airplane, which is expected to be an alternative to ARM, during a nuclear emergency. This report summarizes the results and technical issues identified.