Quantitative importance of subsoil nitrogen cycling processes in Andosols and Cambisols under temperate forests

Nakayama, Masataka; Abe, Yukiko; Atarashi-Andoh, Mariko; Tange, Takeshi*; Sawada, Haruo*; Liang, N.*; Koarashi, Jun

Applied Soil Ecology, 201, p.105485_1 - 105485_12, 2024/09

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsoil.2024.105485

Nitrogen often limits plant growth in forest ecosystems. Plants, including trees, change vertical root distribution when nutrient competition is strong within surface soil layer and take up nitrogen even from subsurface soil layers in addition to the surface soil. However, there is still limited knowledge about nitrogen cycles within deeper soil layers. In this study, we investigated the vertical profiles (0-60 cm) of the net nitrogen mineralization and nitrification rates at four Japanese forest sites with two different soil types (Andosols and Cambisols). The partial least square path modeling (PLS-PM) was used to determine factors affecting nitrogen-cycling processes. The net nitrogen mineralization and nitrification rates per unit soil weight were considerably higher in surface soil layer than in deeper soil layers in Andosols but not in Cambisols. PLS-PM analysis showed that microbial biomass and soil organic matter quantities were the main factors influencing the net nitrogen mineralization and nitrification rates, indicating that a similar mechanism creating the spatial variations of nitrogen-cycling processes in surface soil layer predominantly regulates the processes in subsoil layers. Moreover, it was estimated that the net nitrogen mineralization rate could be comparable at all soil types and depths when the rate was expressed per unit soil volume. Therefore, our results suggest that subsoil layers are a quantitatively important nitrogen source for plant nutrients in Andosols and Cambisols, supporting high forest productivity.

Development of a formulation to predict molten core spreading in an LWR severe accident

Sahboun, N. F.; Matsumoto, Toshinori; Iwasawa, Yuzuru; Wang, Z.; Sugiyama, Tomoyuki

Annals of Nuclear Energy, 195, p.110145_1 - 110145_12, 2024/01

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anucene.2023.110145

First report of geo- and thermochronological results from the Cordillera Central, Luzon, Philippines

Nakajima, Toru; Sueoka, Shigeru; Nagata, Mitsuhiro; Kohn, B. P.*; Ramos, N. T.*; Tsutsumi, Hiroyuki*; Tagami, Takahiro*

Earth, Planets and Space (Internet), 75(1), p.176_1 - 176_11, 2023/12

https://doi.org/10.1186/s40623-023-01927-z

Geo- and thermochronological methods were applied to dioritic rocks from the Cordillera Central, Luzon, Philippines, to understand their emplacement and exhumation history in the island arc mountains. Zircon U-Pb ages range from 32.54 0.70 to 6.11 0.15 (2SE) Ma, indicating that dioritic magmas intruded the middle and upper crust intermittently during Tertiary magmatism. Zircon fission-track (ZFT) pooled ages range from 35.63 2.17 to 6.91 0.36 (2SE) Ma, and are generally comparable with the U-Pb ages at each locality. These results suggest that the diorites cooled rapidly below 250-350 degree, (i.e. through the partial annealing zone of the ZFT system), following their intrusion. On the other hand, the zircon and apatite (U-Th-Sm)/He (ZHe and AHe) weighted mean ages, ranging from 11.71 0.36 to 8.82 0.26 and 9.21 0.52 to 0.98 0.088 (2SE) Ma respectively, indicate a decrease in cooling rates at a lower temperature range, especially through the partial retention zone of the AHe system. This observation suggests that the ZFT ages reflect initial cooling of the dioritic magma, whereas the AHe ages reflect the cooling history associated with regional exhumation following the initial cooling phase. Spatial distribution of the AHe ages suggest that rapid exhumation of the Cordillera Central during the Quaternary resulted from the block-like uplift of the entire mountain range.

Extraction of Mo hot atoms made by a neutron capture method from -MoO to water

Quach, N. M.*; Ngo, M. C.*; Yang, Y.*; Nguyen, T. B.*; Nguyen, V. T.*; Fujita, Yoshitaka; Do, T. M. D.*; Nakayama, Tadachika*; Suzuki, Tatsuya*; Suematsu, Hisayuki*

Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry, 332(10), p.4057 - 4064, 2023/10

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-023-09125-7

Technetium-99m (Tc) is the most widely used medical radioisotope in the world and is produced from molybdenum-99 (Mo). Production of Mo via the neutron capture method draws attention as an alternative to fission-derived Mo due to non-proliferation issues, but the specific radioactivity of Mo is extremely low. In this work, a porous -MoO wire was prepared as an irradiation target in order to improve the specific activity by extracting Mo. Porous -MoO wire is synthesized from Mo metal wire by a two-step heating procedure. The hot atom effect of Mo was confirmed by activity and isotope measurements of the porous -MoO wire after neutron irradiation and the water used for extraction. In term of the extraction effectiveness, the effectiveness of Mo extraction in the porous -MoO wire was comparable to that of commercial -MoO powder.

Key role of temperature on delamination in solid-state additive manufacturing via supersonic impact

Wang, Q.*; Ma, N.*; Huang, W.*; Shi, J.*; Luo, X.-T.*; Tomitaka, Sora*; Morooka, Satoshi; Watanabe, Makoto*

Materials Research Letters (Internet), 11(9), p.742 - 748, 2023/09

https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1080/21663831.2023.2227221

Intruder configurations in Ne at the transition into the island of inversion; Detailed structure study of Ne

Wang, H.*; Yasuda, Masahiro*; Kondo, Yosuke*; Nakamura, Takashi*; Tostevin, J. A.*; Ogata, Kazuyuki*; Otsuka, Takaharu*; Poves, A.*; Shimizu, Noritaka*; Yoshida, Kazuki; et al.

Physics Letters B, 843, p.138038_1 - 138038_9, 2023/08

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physletb.2023.138038

Detailed -ray spectroscopy of the exotic neon isotope Ne has been performed using the one-neutron removal reaction from Ne. Based on an analysis of parallel momentum distributions, a level scheme with spin-parity assignments has been constructed for Ne and the negative-parity states are identified for the first time. The measured partial cross sections and momentum distributions reveal a significant intruder p-wave strength providing evidence of the breakdown of the N = 20 and N = 28 shell gaps. Only a weak, possible f-wave strength was observed to bound final states. Large-scale shell-model calculations with different effective interactions do not reproduce the large p-wave and small f-wave strength observed experimentally, indicating an ongoing challenge for a complete theoretical description of the transition into the island of inversion along the Ne isotopic chain.

Surface analyses of CsOH chemisorbed on concrete and aggregate at around 200C

Luu, V. N.; Nakajima, Kunihisa

Proceedings of 30th International Conference on Nuclear Engineering (ICONE30) (Internet), 9 Pages, 2023/05

https://doi.org/10.1299/jsmeicone.2023.30.1940

Cohesive/Adhesive strengths of CsOH-chemisorbed SS304 surfaces

Li, N.*; Sun, Y.*; Nakajima, Kunihisa; Kurosaki, Ken*

Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 11 Pages, 2023/00

https://doi.org/10.1080/00223131.2023.2231447

During the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant (1F) accident, an overwhelming amount of the cesium remaining in the pressure vessel could have been deposited onto 304 stainless steel (SS304) steam separators and dryers, both with large surface areas. During 1F's decommissioning, the deposited cesium is a safety hazard as it can generate radioactive dust. However, the cohesive and adhesive strengths of CsOH-chemisorbed oxide scales are yet to be defined. In this study, we investigated how CsOH-chemisorption affects the cohesive and adhesive strengths between oxide scales and SS304 substrates with a scratch tester. The scratch test results revealed that the cohesive strengths of the oxide scales decreased after CsOH-chemisorption, while adhesive failure could not be reached.

Study on eutectic melting behavior of control rod materials in core disruptive accidents of sodium-cooled fast reactors, 1; Project overview and progress until 2020

Yamano, Hidemasa; Takai, Toshihide; Emura, Yuki; Fukuyama, Hiroyuki*; Higashi, Hideo*; Nishi, Tsuyoshi*; Ota, Hiromichi*; Morita, Koji*; Nakamura, Kinya*; Fukai, Hirofumi*; et al.

Proceedings of 13th International Topical Meeting on Nuclear Reactor Thermal-Hydraulics, Operation and Safety (NUTHOS-13) (Internet), 12 Pages, 2022/09

This paper describes the project overview and progress of experimental and analytical studies conducted until 2020. Specific results in this paper are the measurement of the eutectic reaction rates and the validation of physical model describing the eutectic reaction in the analysis code through the numerical analysis of the BC-SS eutectic reaction rate experiments in which a BC pellet was placed in a SS crucible.

Fine structure in the decay of the 8 isomer in U

Zhang, M. M.*; Tian, Y. L.*; Wang, Y. S.*; Zhang, Z. Y.*; Gan, Z. G.*; Yang, H. B.*; Huang, M. H.*; Ma, L.*; Yang, C. L.*; Wang, J. G.*; et al.

Physical Review C, 106(2), p.024305_1 - 024305_6, 2022/08

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.106.024305