Stable photoelectrochemical reactions at solid/solid interfaces toward solar energy conversion and storage

Watanabe, Kenta*; Horisawa, Yuhei*; Yoshimoto, Masataka*; Tamura, Kazuhisa; Suzuki, Kota*; Kanno, Ryoji*; Hirayama, Masaaki*

Nano Letters, 24(6), p.1916 - 1922, 2024/02

https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.nanolett.3c03982

Electrochemistry has extended from reactions at solid/liquid interfaces to those at solid/solid interfaces. In this study, we achieve the stable photoelectrochemical reaction at the semiconductor-electrode/solid-electrolyte interface in Nb-doped anatase-TiO (a-TiO:Nb)/LiPO (LPO)/Li all-solid-state cell. The oxidative currents of a-TiO:Nb/LPO/Li increase upon light irradiation when a-TiO:Nb is located at a potential that is more positive than its flat-band potential. The photoelectrochemical reaction at the semiconductor/solid-electrolyte interface is driven by the same principle as that at semiconductor/liquid-electrolyte interfaces. Thus, we extend photoelectrochemistry to all-solid-state systems composed of solid/solid interfaces.

Experiences in dismantlement of gloveboxes for wet recovery and other use that are contaminated with nuclear fuel materials

Kitamura, Akihiro; Hirano, Hiroshi*; Yoshida, Masato; Takeuchi, Kentaro

Hoken Butsuri (Internet), 58(2), p.76 - 90, 2023/08

https://doi.org/10.5453/jhps.58.76

The alpha contaminated gloveboxes have been dismantled for over 20 years in Plutonium Fuel Fabrication Facility. The so called wet recovery equipment gloveboxes, which recover plutonium and uranium from scrap fuel by dissolving and extracting processes, were chosen as the priority gloveboxes to be dismantled. These gloveboxes and other gloveboxes in the same room were size reduced and removed up until 2022. Also, non-radioactive ancillary facility and non-radioactive giant glovebox were removed from 2007 to 2010 for ease of glovebox dismantling activities that follows and for making waste storage spaces. Several incidents were occurred and recidivism prevention measures were implemented on each occasion. In this report, glovebox dismantling activities we conducted in the past 20 years are reviewed and lessons we have learned are summarized.

Measurement of the longitudinal bunch-shape distribution for a high-intensity negative hydrogen ion beam in the low-energy region

Kitamura, Ryo; Futatsukawa, Kenta*; Hayashi, Naoki; Hirano, Koichiro; Kondo, Yasuhiro; Kosaka, Satoshi*; Miyao, Tomoaki*; Morishita, Takatoshi; Nemoto, Yasuo*; Oguri, Hidetomo

Physical Review Accelerators and Beams (Internet), 26(3), p.032802_1 - 032802_12, 2023/03

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevAccelBeams.26.032802

A bunch-shape monitor (BSM) is a useful device for performing longitudinal beam tuning using the pointwise longitudinal phase distribution measured at selected points in the beam transportation. To measure the longitudinal phase distribution of a low-energy negative hydrogen (H) ion beam, highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) was adopted for the secondary-electron-emission target to mitigate the thermal damage due to the high-intensity beam loading. The HOPG target enabled the measurement of the longitudinal phase distribution at the center of a 3-MeV H ion beam with a high peak current of about 50 mA. The longitudinal bunch width was measured using HOPG-BSM at the test stand, which was consistent with the beam simulation. The correlation measurement between the beam transverse and longitudinal planes was demonstrated using HOPG-BSM. The longitudinal Twiss and emittance measurement with the longitudinal Q-scan method was conducted using HOPG-BSM.

Testing mosses exposed in bags as biointerceptors of airborne radiocaesium after the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Station accident

Di Palma, A.; Adamo, P.*; Dohi, Terumi; Fujiwara, Kenso; Hagiwara, Hiroki; Kitamura, Akihiro; Sakoda, Akihiro; Sato, Kazuhiko; Iijima, Kazuki

Chemosphere, 308, Part 1, p.136179_1 - 136179_13, 2022/12

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.136179

The present study shows the use of mosses transplanted in bags, called as moss bags, as biosensors of airborne radioactive dusts in the environment of the evacuated zone of Fukushima. A standardized protocol was applied and three moss species were used. Background sites of Okayama Prefecture were used for comparison. In the Fukushima area, the moss bags were able to accumulate radiocaesium in all exposure sites and periods, with Sphagnum palustre moss acting as the most performant moss. The radiocaesium activity concentrations dectected in mosses were in strong agreement with the Cs deposition levels and decontamination status of each exposure site. The accumulation of soil-derived radiocaesium by moss bags was supported by autoradiography and electron microscopy analyses. The linear dependency of Cs accumulation with the exposure time allowed a radiocaesium quantitative assessment.

X ray spectroscopy on atoms (J-PARC E03, E07 and future)

Yamamoto, Takeshi; Fujita, Manami; Gogami, Toshiyuki*; Harada, Takeshi*; Hayakawa, Shuhei*; Hosomi, Kenji; Ichikawa, Yudai; Ishikawa, Yuji*; Kamata, K.*; Kanauchi, H.*; et al.

EPJ Web of Conferences, 271, p.03001_1 - 03001_5, 2022/11

https://doi.org/10.1051/epjconf/202227103001

Beam physics design of a 30-MW beam transport to the target for an accelerator-driven subcritical system

Yee-Rendon, B.; Meigo, Shinichiro; Kondo, Yasuhiro; Tamura, Jun; Nakano, Keita; Maekawa, Fujio; Iwamoto, Hiroki; Sugawara, Takanori; Nishihara, Kenji

Journal of Instrumentation (Internet), 17(10), p.P10005_1 - P10005_21, 2022/10

https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-0221/17/10/P10005

To reduce the hazard of minor actinides in nuclear waste, JAEA proposed an accelerator-driven subcritical system (JAEA-ADS). The JAEA-ADS drives a subcritical reactor 800-MWth by 30-MW proton linac delivering the beam to the spallation neutron target inside the reactor. The beam transport to the target (BTT) is required for high-beam power stability and low peak density to ensure the integrity of the beam window. Additionally, the design should have compatible with the reactor design for the maintenance and replacement of the fuel and the beam window. A robust-compact BTT design was developed through massive multiparticle simulations. The beam optics was optimized to guarantee beam window feasibility requirements by providing a low peak density of less than 0.3 A/mm. Beam stability was evaluated and improved by simultaneously applying the linac's input beam and element errors. The input beam errors to the reactor were based on the beam degradation obtained by implementing fast fault compensation in the linac. Those results show that the BTT fulfills the requirements for JAEA-ADS.

Design and actual performance of J-PARC 3 GeV rapid cycling synchrotron for high-intensity operation

Yamamoto, Kazami; Kinsho, Michikazu; Hayashi, Naoki; Saha, P. K.; Tamura, Fumihiko; Yamamoto, Masanobu; Tani, Norio; Takayanagi, Tomohiro; Kamiya, Junichiro; Shobuda, Yoshihiro; et al.

Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 59(9), p.1174 - 1205, 2022/09

https://doi.org/10.1080/00223131.2022.2038301

In the Japan Proton Accelerator Research Complex, the purpose of the 3 GeV rapid cycling synchrotron (RCS) is to accelerate a 1 MW, high-intensity proton beam. To achieve beam operation at a repetition rate of 25 Hz at high intensities, the RCS was elaborately designed. After starting the RCS operation, we carefully verified the validity of its design and made certain improvements to establish a reliable operation at higher power as possible. Consequently, we demonstrated beam operation at a high power, namely, 1 MW. We then summarized the design, actual performance, and improvements of the RCS to achieve a 1 MW beam.

Measurement of differential cross sections for elastic scattering in the momentum range 0.44-0.80 GeV/c

Nanamura, Takuya; Fujita, Manami; Hasegawa, Shoichi; Ichikawa, Masaya; Ichikawa, Yudai; Imai, Kenichi*; Naruki, Megumi; Sato, Susumu; Sako, Hiroyuki; Tamura, Hirokazu; et al.

Progress of Theoretical and Experimental Physics (Internet), 2022(9), p.093D01_1 - 093D01_35, 2022/09

https://doi.org/10.1093/ptep/ptac101

Magnetic phase diagram of helimagnetic Ba(FeSc)O (0 x 0.2) hexagonal ferrite

Maruyama, Kenichi*; Tanaka, Seiya*; Kiyanagi, Ryoji; Nakao, Akiko*; Moriyama, Kentaro*; Ishikawa, Yoshihisa*; Amako, Yasushi*; Iiyama, Taku*; Futamura, Ryusuke*; Utsumi, Shigenori*; et al.

Journal of Alloys and Compounds, 892, p.162125_1 - 162125_8, 2022/02

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jallcom.2021.162125

Rapid analysis of Sr in cattle bone and tooth samples by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry

Koarai, Kazuma; Matsueda, Makoto; Aoki, Jo; Yanagisawa, Kayo*; Terashima, Motoki; Fujiwara, Kenso; Kino, Yasushi*; Oka, Toshitaka; Takahashi, Atsushi*; Suzuki, Toshihiko*; et al.

Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry, 36(8), p.1678 - 1682, 2021/08

https://doi.org/10.1039/D1JA00086A

Rapid analysis of Sr in bone and tooth samples of cattle were achieved by an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) coupled with mass shift and solid phase extraction techniques. Limit of detection (LOD) in the ICP-MS measurement of 0.1 g samples was lower than that of the radioactivity measurement. Analytical time of the ICP-MS method was reduced from 20 days to 11 hours, compared with the radiometric method. Therefore, the ICP-MS method can be rapid and useful procedure of Sr in small bone and tooth samples derived from terrestrial animals.