PANDORA Project for the study of photonuclear reactions below

Tamii, Atsushi*; Pellegri, L.*; Sderstrm, P.-A.*; Allard, D.*; Goriely, S.*; Inakura, Tsunenori*; Khan, E.*; Kido, Eiji*; Kimura, Masaaki*; Litvinova, E.*; et al.

European Physical Journal A, 59(9), p.208_1 - 208_21, 2023/09

https://doi.org/10.1140/epja/s10050-023-01081-w

no abstracts in English

Review of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station debris endstate location in OECD/NEA preparatory study on analysis of fuel debris (PreADES) project

Nakayoshi, Akira; Rempe, J. L.*; Barrachin, M.*; Bottomley, D.; Jacquemain, D.*; Journeau, C.*; Krasnov, V.; Lind, T.*; Lee, R.*; Marksberry, D.*; et al.

Nuclear Engineering and Design, 369, p.110857_1 - 110857_15, 2020/12

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nucengdes.2020.110857

Much is still not known about the end-state of core materials in each of the units at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (Daiichi) that were operating on March 11, 2011. The Nuclear Energy Agency of the Organization for Economic Development has launched the Preparatory Study on Analysis of Fuel Debris (PreADES) project as a first step to reduce some of these uncertainties. As part of the PreADES Task 1, relevant information was reviewed to confirm the accuracy of graphical depictions of the debris endstates at the damaged Daiichi units, which provides a basis for suggesting future debris examinations. Two activities have been completed within the PreADES Task 1. First, relevant knowledge from severe accidents at the Three Mile Island Unit 2 and the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Unit 4 was reviewed, along with results from prototypic tests and hot cell examinations, to glean insights that may inform future decommissioning activities at Daiichi. Second, the current debris endstate diagrams for the damaged reactors at Daiichi were reviewed to confirm that they incorporate relevant knowledge from plant observations and from severe accident code analyses of the BSAF (Benchmark Study of the Accident at Daiichi Nuclear Power Station) 1 and 2 projects. This paper highlights Task 1 insights, which have the potential to not only inform future Decontamination and Decommissioning activities at Daiichi, but also provide important perspectives for severe accident analyses and management, particularly regarding the long term management of a damaged nuclear site following a severe accident.

The Joint evaluated fission and fusion nuclear data library, JEFF-3.3

Plompen, A. J. M.*; Cabellos, O.*; De Saint Jean, C.*; Fleming, M.*; Algora, A.*; Angelone, M.*; Archier, P.*; Bauge, E.*; Bersillon, O.*; Blokhin, A.*; et al.

European Physical Journal A, 56(7), p.181_1 - 181_108, 2020/07

https://doi.org/10.1140/epja/s10050-020-00141-9

The Joint Evaluated Fission and Fusion nuclear data library 3.3 is described. New evaluations for neutron-induced interactions with the major actinides U, U and Pu, on Am and Na, Ni, Cr, Cu, Zr, Cd, Hf, W, Au, Pb and Bi are presented. It includes new fission yileds, prompt fission neutron spectra and average number of neutrons per fission. In addition, new data for radioactive decay, thermal neutron scattering, gamma-ray emission, neutron activation, delayed neutrons and displacement damage are presented. JEFF-3.3 was complemented by files from the TENDL project. The libraries for photon, proton, deuteron, triton, helion and alpha-particle induced reactions are from TENDL-2017. The demands for uncertainty quantification in modeling led to many new covariance data. A comparison between results from model calculations using the JEFF-3.3 library and those from benchmark experiments for criticality, delayed neutron yields, shielding and decay heat, reveals that JEFF-3.3 is excellent for a wide range of nuclear technology applications, in particular nuclear energy.

Ultralow thermal conductivity from transverse acoustic phonon suppression in distorted crystalline -MgAgSb

Li, X.*; Liu, P.-F.*; Zhao, E.*; Zhang, Z.*; Guide, T.*; Le, M. D.*; Avdeev, M.*; Ikeda, Kazutaka*; Otomo, Toshiya*; Kofu, Maiko; et al.

Nature Communications (Internet), 11, p.942_1 - 942_9, 2020/02

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-14772-5

In high-performance thermoelectric materials, there are two main low thermal conductivity mechanisms: the phonon anharmonic and phonon scattering resulting from the dynamic disorder, which have been successfully revealed by inelastic neutron scattering. Using neutron scattering and ab initio calculations, we report here a mechanism of static local structure distortion combined with phonon-anharmonic-induced ultralow lattice thermal conductivity in -MgAgSb. Since the transverse acoustic phonons are almost fully scattered by the intrinsic distorted rocksalt sublattice in this compound, the heat is mainly transported by the longitudinal acoustic phonons. The ultralow thermal conductivity in -MgAgSb is attributed to its atomic dynamics being altered by the structure distortion, which presents a possible microscopic route to enhance the performance of similar thermoelectric materials.

-decay properties of Fr

Ghys, L.*; Andreyev, A. N.; Huyse, M.*; Van Duppen, P.*; Antalic, S.*; Barzakh, A.*; Capponi, L.*; Cocolios, T. E.*; Cubiss, J.*; Derkx, X.*; et al.

Physical Review C, 100(5), p.054310_1 - 054310_13, 2019/11

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.100.054310

Main findings, remaining uncertainties and lessons learned from the OECD/NEA BSAF Project

Pellegrini, M.*; Herranz, L.*; Sonnenkalb, M.*; Lind, T.*; Maruyama, Yu; Gauntt, R.*; Bixler, N.*; Morreale, A.*; Dolganov, K.*; Sevon, T.*; et al.

Proceedings of 18th International Topical Meeting on Nuclear Reactor Thermal Hydraulics (NURETH-18) (USB Flash Drive), p.1147 - 1162, 2019/08

Fine structure in the decay of At

Cubiss, J. G.*; Andreyev, A. N.; Barzakh, A. E.*; Andel, B.*; Antalic, S.*; Cocolios, T. E.*; Day Goodacre, T.*; Fedorov, D. V.*; Fedosseev, V. N.*; Ferrer, R.*; et al.

Physical Review C, 99(6), p.064317_1 - 064317_6, 2019/06

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.99.064317

An decay of At was studied at the CERN-ISOLDE facility using a laser-ionization technique. Coincidence - data were collected for the first time and a more precise half-life value of T = 1.27(6) s was measured. A new -decay scheme was deduced based on the fine-structure of the decay. The results lead to a preferred spin and parity assignment of J = (3) for the ground state of At; however, J = (2) cannot be fully excluded.

Shape coexistence in Hg

Mller-Gatermann, C.*; Dewald, A.*; Fransen, C.*; Auranen, K.*; Badran, H.*; Beckers, M.*; Blazhev, A.*; Braunroth, T.*; Cullen, D. M.*; Fruet, G.*; et al.

Physical Review C, 99(5), p.054325_1 - 054325_7, 2019/05

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.99.054325

no abstracts in English

Hydrogen-based metabolism as an ancestral trait in lineages sibling to the Cyanobacteria

Matheus Carnevali, P. B.*; Schulz, F.*; Castelle, C. J.*; Kantor, R. S.*; Shih, P.*; Sharon, I.*; Santini, J.*; Olm, M. R.*; Amano, Yuki; Thomas, B. C.*; et al.

Nature Communications (Internet), 10, p.463_1 - 463_15, 2019/01

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-018-08246-y

CIELO collaboration summary results; International evaluations of neutron reactions on uranium, plutonium, iron, oxygen and hydrogen

Chadwick, M. B.*; Capote, R.*; Trkov, A.*; Herman, M. W.*; Brown, D. A.*; Hale, G. M.*; Kahler, A. C.*; Talou, P.*; Plompen, A. J.*; Schillebeeckx, P.*; et al.

Nuclear Data Sheets, 148, p.189 - 213, 2018/02

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nds.2018.02.003

The CIELO collaboration has studied neutron cross sections on nuclides that significantly impact criticality in nuclear facilities - U, U, Pu, Fe, O and H - with the aim of improving the accuracy of the data and resolving previous discrepancies in our understanding. This multi-laboratory pilot project, coordinated via the OECD/NEA Working Party on Evaluation Cooperation (WPEC) Subgroup 40 with support also from the IAEA, has motivated experimental and theoretical work and led to suites of new evaluated libraries that accurately reflect measured data and also perform well in integral simulations of criticality. This report summarizes our results and outlines plans for the next phase of this collaboration.