Sampling of radioactive materials remaining in JMTR Reactor Facility

Ouchi, Takuya; Nagata, Hiroshi; Shinoda, Yuya; Yoshida, Hayato; Inoue, Shuichi; Chinone, Marina; Abe, Kazuyuki; Ide, Hiroshi; Watahiki, Shunsuke

JAEA-Technology 2025-006, 25 Pages, 2025/10

JAEA-Technology-2025-006.pdf:1.59MB

In the future, radioactive waste which generated from nuclear research facilities in Japan Atomic Energy Agency are planning to be buried for the near surface disposal. It is necessary to establish the method to evaluate the radioactivity concentrations of the radioactive wastes. Therefore, at the Oarai Nuclear Engineering Institute, in order to contribute to the study of methods for evaluating radioactivity concentrations of the radioactive wastes from nuclear research facilities, samples were taken from radioactive waste that are expected to be buried in the future and radiochemical analysis is used to obtain data on the radioactivity concentration of each nuclide contained in the radioactive waste. This report presents the concept of selecting sample collection targets and summarizes the sampling of radioactive materials conducted at the JMTR reactor facility in fiscal years 2023 and 2024 to obtain data on radioactivity concentrations.

Speciation of cesium in a radiocesium-bearing microparticle emitted from Unit 1 during the Fukushima nuclear accident by XANES spectroscopy using transition edge sensor

Takahashi, Yoshio*; Miura, Hikaru*; Yamada, Shinya*; Sekizawa, Oki*; Nitta, Kiyofumi*; Hashimoto, Tadashi*; Yomogida, Takumi; Yamaguchi, Akiko; Okada, Shinji*; Itai, Takaaki*; et al.

Journal of Hazardous Materials, 495, p.139031_1 - 139031_19, 2025/09

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2025.139031

In this presentation, we analyzed the chemical state of cesium in radiocesium-bearing microparticles (CsMPs) released during the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident using high-resolution X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XANES) and micro X-ray fluorescence (-XRF). The results identified two forms of cesium: one dissolved in glass and the other enriched on the surfaces of internal voids. The latter is considered to have originally existed as a gas and became concentrated during the cooling and solidification of the molten glass. These findings are crucial for understanding the formation process of CsMPs during the accident, as well as for future decommissioning and safety assessments.

3D visualization in complicated flow channel using deep learning-based bubble detection

Uesawa, Shinichiro; Ono, Ayako; Yoshida, Hiroyuki

Gazo Rabo, p.1 - 5, 2025/08

This paper introduces a new measurement technique for visualizing the three-dimensional distribution of bubbles in a complex channel such as a nuclear reactor fuel assembly. Bubbly flow is important in many engineering fields, and especially in nuclear engineering, where bubble behavior significantly affects the performance and safety of nuclear reactors, and thus requires detailed understanding. Conventional rule-based image recognition has difficulty identifying bubbles overlapping in the line-of-sight direction, but in this study, deep learning (Mask R-CNN and Swin Transformer) is used to achieve highly accurate bubble detection with a small amount of training data. Furthermore, the tracking technique using ByteTrack made it possible to track many bubbles with complex motions, and by combining images taken from different viewpoints using two high-speed cameras and reconstructing the 3D shape of the bubbles using the ellipsoid approximation, 3D instantaneous local information such as bubble position, diameter, and velocity was obtained. To eliminate the effects of refraction and obstruction of vision by structures in the channel, a simulated fuel rod was made of a transparent material (PFA tube) with a refractive index similar to that of water, enabling distortion-free imaging and measurement even in channels with complex structures. This enabled 3D visualization of bubble behavior in complex channels, which had been difficult to achieve in the past. Since this technology enables highly accurate 3D visualization with a small number of cameras and a small amount of learning, it is expected to be applied to objects other than bubbles.

Neutronics/thermal-hydraulics coupling simulation using JAMPAN in a single BWR assembly

Kamiya, Tomohiro; Nagatake, Taku; Ono, Ayako; Tada, Kenichi; Kondo, Ryoichi; Nagaya, Yasunobu; Yoshida, Hiroyuki

Mechanical Engineering Journal (Internet), 12(4), p.24-00461_1 - 24-00461_9, 2025/08

https://doi.org/10.1299/mej.24-00461

JAEA has developed the JAEA Advanced Multi-Physics Analysis platform for Nuclear systems (JAMPAN) to realize high-fidelity neutronics/thermal-hydraulics coupling simulations. We performed a neutronics/thermal-hydraulics coupling simulation for a single BWR fuel assembly in order to confirm that the MVP/JUPITER coupling through JAMPAN is feasible. As a result, we confirmed that the void fraction and the corresponding change in the heat generation distribution are reasonable qualitatively.

Analysis and recurrence prevention measures on liquid waste transfer piping leakage incidents at the JMTR Facility

Araki, Daisuke; Ouchi, Takuya; Shinoda, Yuya; Yoshida, Hayato; Kawamata, Takanori; Watahiki, Shunsuke

Nihon Hozen Gakkai Dai-21-Kai Gakujutsu Koenkai Yoshishu, 5 Pages, 2025/07

This study was investigated a leakage incident of the liquid waste transfer piping installed to transport radioactive liquid waste from the JMTR (Japan Materials Testing Reactor) building to a storage tank. As a result, it was evaluated that the leakages were caused by the atmospheric stress corrosion cracking (ASCC) or the crevice corrosion under the installed environmental and operational conditions. Based on these findings, countermeasures were implemented following pipe replacement, and the knowledge is being applied to future decommissioning efforts.

Numerical investigation of the accuracy of a conductance-type wire-mesh sensor for a single spherical bubble and bubbly flow

Uesawa, Shinichiro; Ono, Ayako; Nagatake, Taku; Yamashita, Susumu; Yoshida, Hiroyuki

Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 62(5), p.432 - 456, 2025/05

https://doi.org/10.1080/00223131.2024.2447366

We performed electrostatic simulations of a wire-mesh sensor (WMS) for a single spherical bubble and bubbly flow to clarify the accuracy of the WMS. The electrostatic simulation for the single bubble showed the electric current density distribution and the electric current path from the excited transmitter to receivers for various bubble locations. It indicated systematic errors based on the nonuniform current density distribution around the WMS. The electrostatic simulation for the bubbly flow calculated by the computational fluid dynamics code, JAEA Utility Program for Interdisciplinary Thermal-hydraulics Engineering and Research (JUPITER), indicated that the WMS had difficulty in quantitatively measuring the intermediate values of the instantaneous void fraction between 0 and 1 because they cannot be estimated by previous transformation methods from the WMS signal to the void fraction, such as linear approximation or Maxwell's equation, and have a significant deviation of the void fraction of 0.2 for the WMS signal. However, the electrostatic simulation indicated that the time-averaged void fractions around the center of the flow channel can be estimated using linear approximation, and the time-averaged void fraction near the wall of the flow channel can be estimated using Maxwell's equation.

Local variation of Be deposition in Hokuriku, Japan

Yoshida, Keisuke; Kato, Shingo; Okuyama, Shinichi; Nakano, Masanao; Ishimori, Yuu; Uchida, Kengo*; Inoue, Mutsuo*

Hoken Butsuri (Internet), 60(1), p.40 - 47, 2025/04

https://doi.org/10.5453/jhps.60.40

Monthly Be depositions were examined at four sites in Hokuriku, Japan, from 1992 to 2021. The amounts of Be depositions in Hokuriku from October to March differed locally: Depositions at Kanazawa were high (4400 Bq/m), a site along the foot of the mountains. Be depositions in the plain of Fukui city, along Wakasa Bay, and along the coast of the Noto Peninsula (3300, 2800, and 2500 Bq/m, respectively) were equivalent to those of other areas along the coast of the Sea of Japan. The local variation in Be depositions in Hokuriku is predominantly ascribed to precipitation, topographic feature, and Be concentrations.

3D visualization in rod bundle flow channel using deep learning-based bubble detection

Uesawa, Shinichiro; Ono, Ayako; Yoshida, Hiroyuki

Konsoryu, 39(1), p.61 - 71, 2025/03

https://doi.org/10.3811/jjmf.2025.004

Bubble visualization using a high-speed video-camera has been used as a measurement technique of bubble diameters and velocities. However, the bubble detection was difficult under the condition of the high void fraction because the overlapping bubbles for the sight direction of the camera increased with the void fraction. Additionally, the visualization for a system with objects, such as rod bundle flow channels, becomes more difficult. In this study, we applied a deep learning-based bubble detection technique with Shifted Window Transformer to bubble images shoot from two directions to identify the bubble size, three-dimensional (3D) positions of bubbles, 3D bubble trajectories in the rod bundle flow channel. Furthermore, we used perfluoroalkoxy alkane tubes with almost the same reflection as water in the channel to visualize the bubbly flow in the whole of the flow channel. We confirmed that the detection technique can segment individual bubbles in overlapping bubbles and bubbles behind the rod. By using the detection results, we estimated the diameter and velocity of each bubble and cross-sectional void fraction.

Atomization mechanisms in the vortex-like flow of a wall-impinging jet in a shallow pool

Horiguchi, Naoki; Yoshida, Hiroyuki; Kaneko, Akiko*; Abe, Yutaka*

Physics of Fluids, 37(3), p.033333_1 - 033333_20, 2025/03

https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0253743

In a severe accident, as molten fuel is assumed to behave as a wall-impinging jet in a shallow coolant pool, atomize and accumulate as fuel debris, it is important to reveal the atomization mechanisms of the wall-impinging jet. This study aimed to reveal the atomization mechanisms in the vortex-like flow of a wall-impinging jet in a shallow pool of a liquid-liquid system, focusing on droplet formation as an elementary process of atomization. To quantitatively investigate these mechanisms, we applied quantification methods to three-dimensional interfacial data obtained by a previous experimental study using three-dimensional laser-induced fluorescence with index matching. Detailed observations of the spreading behavior of droplets and vortex-like flow, along with quantitative estimations, found out that the vortex-like flow is the dominant source of droplets on the atomization. Further investigations into the forces acting on the vortex-like flow found out the formation and collapse processes of the vortex-like flow. The accelerations of the normal forces acting on the vortex-like flow can be represented by superficial centrifugal acceleration and gravitational acceleration. Our next analysis focused on investigating droplet formation as the elementary process of atomization. The results showed two droplet formation patterns: liquid-film breaking patterns, wherein droplets directly form from the liquid film, and the surfing pattern, wherein droplets form from interfacial waves on the liquid film. Subsequently, the droplet data were grouped using dimensionless numbers and compared with theoretical lines describing the different droplet formation mechanisms. This comparison revealed the mechanisms of droplet formation within the vortex-like flow.

Study on the effect of radiation-resistant resin on water radiolysis

Ito, Tatsuya; Nagaishi, Ryuji; Kuwano, Ryo*; Godo, Masao*; Yoshida, Yoichi*

Radiation Physics and Chemistry, 226, p.112198_1 - 112198_5, 2025/01

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radphyschem.2024.112198

In recent years, the use of radiation-resistant resins of polyimide and polyether ether ketone becomes increasing as vessels for irradiation and unsealed radioisotope experiments. However, in our radiolysis experiments, the possibility of interaction between radiolysis products of water and the resin was found, suggesting concerns that the resin may affect reactions in water in radiation fields. To clarify the interaction, dichromate (CrO) reduction and hydrogen peroxide (HO) formation in -radiolysis of water were compared with and without the resin. The CrO reduction amount in aqueous solution with the resin became larger than that without the resin at the same dose, indicating the promotion of CrO reduction by the resin. On the other hand, the HO formation in pure water with and without an electron scavenger were almost independent of the presence of resin. These suggested the interaction between hydroxyl radical and the resin in contact with water in radiation fields.