Development of a dissolution method for analyzing the elemental composition of fuel debris using sodium peroxide fusion technique

Nakamura, Satoshi; Ishii, Sho*; Kato, Hitoshi*; Ban, Yasutoshi; Hiruta, Kenta; Yoshida, Takuya; Uehara, Hiroyuki; Obata, Hiroki; Kimura, Yasuhiko; Takano, Masahide

Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 62(1), p.56 - 64, 2025/01

https://doi.org/10.1080/00223131.2024.2381553

A dissolution method for analyzing the elemental composition of fuel debris using the sodium peroxide (NaO) fusion technique has been developed. Herein, two different types of simulated debris materials (such as solid solution of (Zr,RE)O and molten core-concrete interaction products (MCCI)) were taken. At various temperatures, these debris materials were subsequently fused with NaO in crucibles, which are made of different materials, such as Ni, AlO, Fe, and Zr. Then, the fused samples are dissolved in nitric acid. Furthermore, the effects of the experimental conditions on the elemental composition analysis were evaluated using inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES), which suggested the use of a Ni crucible at 923 K as an optimum testing condition. The optimum testing condition was then applied to the demonstration tests with Three Mile Island unit-2 (TMI-2) debris in a shielded concrete cell, thereby achieving complete dissolution of the debris. The elemental composition of TMI-2 debris revealed by the proposed dissolution method has good reproducibility and has an insignificant contradiction in the mass balance of the sample. Therefore, this newly developed reproducible dissolution method can be effectively utilized in practical applications by dissolving fuel debris and estimating its elemental composition.

Effects of magnetic ordering on the ground-state energy of plutonium dioxide; A Study using adiabatic connection fluctuation-dissipation theory

Nakamura, Hiroki; Machida, Masahiko

Proceedings of 31st International Conference on Nuclear Engineering (ICONE31) (Internet), 5 Pages, 2024/11

https://doi.org/10.1115/ICONE31-134660

Efficiency and safety improvements in nuclear fuel development demand a comprehensive understanding of the thermal properties of PuO. Because of difficulty of experiments at high temperatures, they have been supplemented by numerical simulations, such as density functional theory (DFT). While DFT struggles to replicate the nonmagnetic insulating ground state of PuO, DFT+U can reproduce nonmagnetic insulating state. However, the obtained state remains less stable than magnetic states and is not the ground state. Adiabatic connection fluctuation-dissipation theory (ACFDT) is expected to be a promising solution, addressing higher-order correlations and exact exchange energies. In this study, we evaluate the ground state energy using ACFDT and find that the nonmagnetic state can be the ground state. This result successfully reproduces the observed nonmagnetic ground state of PuO and has the potential to improve predictions of the thermal properties of nuclear fuel materials.

Document collection of the 41st Technical Special Committee on Fugen Decommissioning

Koda, Yuya; Matsuno, Hiroki; Matsushima, Akira; Kubota, Shintaro; Toda, Keisuke; Nakamura, Yasuyuki

JAEA-Review 2024-003, 38 Pages, 2024/06

JAEA-Review-2024-003.pdf:4.94MB

"Fugen Decommissioning Engineering Center", in planning and carrying out our decommissioning technical development, organizes "Technical special committee on Fugen decommissioning" which consists of the members well-informed, aiming to make good use of Fugen as a place for technological development which is opened domestic and international, as the central place in research and development base of Fukui prefecture, and to utilize the outcome in our decommissioning to the technical development effectively. This report consists of presentation paper are "The current status of Fugen decommissioning", "Regarding dismantling and decontamination of steam drums", "Knowledge of radiation management in dismantling contaminated equipment", "Achievements and considerations for identifying and separating contaminated parts of nonradioactive waste" and "Regarding technology development plans for nuclear reactor dismantling" which is presented in the 41st Technical Special Committee on Fugen Decommissioning.

Onset of collectivity for argon isotopes close to

Linh, B. D.*; Corsi, A.*; Gillibert, A.*; Obertelli, A.*; Doornenbal, P.*; Barbieri, C.*; Duguet, T.*; Gmez-Ramos, M.*; Holt, J. D.*; Hu, B. S.*; et al.

Physical Review C, 109(3), p.034312_1 - 034312_15, 2024/03

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.109.034312

no abstracts in English

Machine learning molecular dynamics reveals the structural origin of the first sharp diffraction peak in high-density silica glasses

Kobayashi, Keita; Okumura, Masahiko; Nakamura, Hiroki; Itakura, Mitsuhiro; Machida, Masahiko; Urata, Shingo*; Suzuya, Kentaro

Scientific Reports (Internet), 13, p.18721_1 - 18721_12, 2023/11

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-44732-0

The first sharp peak diffraction peak (FSDP) in the structure factor of amorphous materials is thought to reflect the medium-range order structure in amorphous materials, and the structural origin of the FSDP has been a subject of ongoing debate. In this study, we employed machine learning molecular dynamics (MLMD) with nearly first-principles calculation accuracy to investigate the structural origin of the FSDP in high-density silica glass. First, we successfully reproduced various experimental data of high-density silica glass using MLMD. Furthermore, we revealed that the development (or reduction) of the FSDP in high-density silica glass is characterized by the deformation behavior of ring structures in Si-O covalent bond networks under compression.

Superconducting spin reorientation in spin-triplet multiple superconducting phases of UTe

Kinjo, Katsuki*; Fujibayashi, Hiroki*; Matsumura, Hiroki*; Hori, Fumiya*; Kitagawa, Shunsaku*; Ishida, Kenji*; Tokunaga, Yo; Sakai, Hironori; Kambe, Shinsaku; Nakamura, Ai*; et al.

Science Advances (Internet), 9(30), p.2736_1 - 2736_6, 2023/07

https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adg2736

Low-temperature magnetic fluctuations investigated by Te-NMR on the uranium-based superconductor UTe

Fujibayashi, Hiroki*; Kinjo, Katsuki*; Nakamine, Genki*; Kitagawa, Shunsaku*; Ishida, Kenji*; Tokunaga, Yo; Sakai, Hironori; Kambe, Shinsaku; Nakamura, Ai*; Shimizu, Yusei*; et al.

Journal of the Physical Society of Japan, 92(5), p.053702_1 - 053702_5, 2023/05

https://doi.org/10.7566/JPSJ.92.053702

Change of superconducting character in UTe induced by magnetic field

Kinjo, Katsuki*; Fujibayashi, Hiroki*; Kitagawa, Shunsaku*; Ishida, Kenji*; Tokunaga, Yo; Sakai, Hironori; Kambe, Shinsaku; Nakamura, Ai*; Shimizu, Yusei*; Homma, Yoshiya*; et al.

Physical Review B, 107(6), p.L060502_1 - L060502_5, 2023/02

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.107.L060502

"Southwestern" boundary of the island of inversion; First study of low-lying bound excited states in V and V

Elekes, Z.*; Juhsz, M. M.*; Sohler, D.*; Sieja, K.*; Yoshida, Kazuki; Ogata, Kazuyuki*; Doornenbal, P.*; Obertelli, A.*; Achouri, N. L.*; Baba, Hidetada*; et al.

Physical Review C, 106(6), p.064321_1 - 064321_10, 2022/12

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.106.064321

The low-lying level structure of V and V was investigated for the first time. The neutron knockout reaction and inelastic proton scattering were applied for V while the neutron knock-out reaction provided the data for V. Four and five new transitions were determined for V and V, respectively. Based on the comparison to our shell-model calculations using the Lenzi-Nowacki-Poves-Sieja (LNPS) interaction, three of the observed rays for each isotope could be placed in the level scheme and assigned to the decay of the first 11/2 and 9/2 levels. The (,) excitation cross sections for V were analyzed by the coupled-channels formalism assuming quadrupole plus hexadecapole deformations. Due to the role of the hexadecapole deformation, V could not be unambiguously placed on the island of inversion.

Materials science and fuel technologies of uranium and plutonium mixed oxide

Kato, Masato; Machida, Masahiko; Hirooka, Shun; Nakamichi, Shinya; Ikusawa, Yoshihisa; Nakamura, Hiroki; Kobayashi, Keita; Ozawa, Takayuki; Maeda, Koji; Sasaki, Shinji; et al.

Materials Science and Fuel Technologies of Uranium and Plutonium mixed Oxide, 171 Pages, 2022/10

https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003298205

Innovative and advanced nuclear reactors using plutonium fuel has been developed in each country. In order to develop a new nuclear fuel, irradiation tests are indispensable, and it is necessary to demonstrate the performance and safety of nuclear fuels. If we can develop a technology that accurately simulates irradiation behavior as a technology that complements the irradiation test, the cost, time, and labor involved in nuclear fuel research and development will be greatly reduced. And safety and reliability can be significantly improved through simulation of nuclear fuel irradiation behavior. In order to evaluate the performance of nuclear fuel, it is necessary to know the physical and chemical properties of the fuel at high temperatures. And it is indispensable to develop a behavior model that describes various phenomena that occur during irradiation. In previous research and development, empirical methods with fitting parameters have been used in many parts of model development. However, empirical techniques can give very different results in areas where there is no data. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to construct a scientific descriptive model that can extrapolate the basic characteristics of fuel to the composition and temperature, and to develop an irradiation behavior analysis code to which the model is applied.