Evaluation of the flow rate of leachate from near surface waste disposal facilities of radioactive wastes from research, industrial and medical facilities based on the latest knowledge

Kitatani, Hikari; Ozone, Kenji; Nakata, Hisakazu

JAEA-Technology 2025-011, 57 Pages, 2025/12

JAEA-Technology-2025-011.pdf:5.32MB

Japan Atomic Energy Agency is responsible for near-surface disposal of research-related low-level radioactive waste and is considering two types of facilities: trench and concrete-pit. In safety assessment of such facilities, dose evaluation requires data on infiltration water. Evaluating infiltration involves uncertainties due to waste conditions and disposal environment. Therefore, in this report, a reference model was established based on the conceptual design conditions of near-surface disposal facilities, and leachate from the facilities was estimated by groundwater flow analysis, using applications by prior operators as reference and reflecting the latest knowledge for safety assessment. This allowed evaluation of how the hydraulic conductivity of each facility layer and surrounding soil affects leachate. Specifically, the 2D FEM groundwater flow code MIG2DF was used: trench facilities were evaluated assuming cover degradation, and concrete-pit facilities assuming salt effects in waste packages. Results showed that in trench facilities, deterioration of clay hydraulic conductivity increased inflow to the waste layer, especially when drainage layer conductivity decreased, as horizontal flow paths failed and infiltration into clay was promoted. In concrete-pit facilities, clay fracturing increased local flow and water through the waste layer. These results quantitatively demonstrate how changes in hydraulic conductivity of each layer affect leachate, providing useful insights for scenario development in safety assessment and for facility management.

Revisiting Be nuclear magnetic resonance in UBe; Itinerant-localized duality and possible Fermi surface reconstruction at high magnetic field

Matsuki, Rintaro*; Minami, Shoko*; Kotegawa, Hisashi*; Harima, Hisatomo*; Haga, Yoshinori; Yamamoto, Etsuji; Onuki, Yoshichika*; To, Hideki*

Journal of the Physical Society of Japan, 94(12), p.124702_1 - 124702_8, 2025/11

https://doi.org/10.7566/JPSJ.94.124702

Fully gapped pairing state in spin-triplet superconductor UTe

Suetsugu, Shota*; Sakai, Hironori; Opletal, P.; Tokiwa, Yoshifumi; Haga, Yoshinori; 12 of others*

Science Advances (Internet), 10(6), p.eadk3772_1 - eadk3772_6, 2024/02

https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adk3772

Quasi-2D Fermi surface in the anomalous superconductor UTe

Eaton, A. G.*; Weinberger, T. I.*; Popiel, N. J. M.*; Wu, Z.*; Hickey, A. J.*; Cabala, A.*; Pospil, J.*; Prokleka, J.*; Haidamak, T.*; Bastien, G.*; et al.

Nature Communications (Internet), 15, p.223_1 - 223_10, 2024/01

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-44110-4

Chiral superconductivity in UTe probed by anisotropic low-energy excitations

Ishihara, Kota*; Roppongi, Masaki*; Kobayashi, Masayuki*; Imamura, Kumpei*; Mizukami, Yuta*; Sakai, Hironori; Opletal, P.; Tokiwa, Yoshifumi; Haga, Yoshinori; Hashimoto, Kenichiro*; et al.

Nature Communications (Internet), 14, p.2966_1 - 2966_7, 2023/05

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-38688-y

The superconducting symmetry of the heavy fermion uranium-based superconductor UTe is investigated using low temperature penetration depth measurements. The anisotropic low-energy quasiparticle excitations indicates multiple superconducting components in a chiral complex form. The most consistent is a chiral non-unitary state.

Oxygen potential, oxygen diffusion, and defect equilibria in UO

Watanabe, Masashi; Kato, Masato

Frontiers in Nuclear Engineering (Internet), 1, p.1082324_1 - 1082324_9, 2023/01

https://doi.org/10.3389/fnuen.2022.1082324

Since the oxygen potential and the oxygen coefficient of UO have a significant impact on fuel performance, many experimental data have been obtained. However, experimental data of the oxygen potential and the oxygen diffusion coefficient in the high temperature region above 1673 K are very limited. In the present study, we aimed to obtain these data and analyze them by defect chemistry. The oxygen potentials and the oxygen chemical diffusion coefficient of UO were measured by the gas equilibrium method in the near stoichiometric region at temperatures ranging from 1673 to 1873 K. A data set of oxygen potentials was made together with literature data and analyzed by defect chemistry. The oxygen potential of UO was determined as a function of O/U ratio and temperature, and an equation representing the relationship was derived. The oxygen chemical diffusion coefficient values obtained in this study were reasonably close to the literature values. The oxygen partial pressure dependence of the oxygen chemical diffusion coefficients was predicted from the evaluated results of the oxygen potential data, but no clear dependence was observed.

Characteristic Fermi surface properties in -electron systems

Onuki, Yoshichika*; Settai, Rikio*; Haga, Yoshinori; Takeuchi, Tetsuya*; Hedo, Masato*; Nakama, Takao*

Quantum Science; The Frontier of Physics and Chemistry, p.21 - 63, 2022/10

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4421-5_2

Measurements of thermal conductivity for near stoichiometric (UPuAm)O (z = 0.05, 0.10, and 0.15)

Yokoyama, Keisuke; Watanabe, Masashi; Tokoro, Daishiro*; Sugimoto, Masatoshi*; Morimoto, Kyoichi; Kato, Masato; Hino, Tetsushi*

Nuclear Materials and Energy (Internet), 31, p.101156_1 - 101156_7, 2022/06

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nme.2022.101156

In current nuclear fuel cycle systems, to reduce the amount of high-level radioactive waste, minor actinides (MAs) bearing MOX fuel is one option for burning MAs using fast reactor. However, the effects of Am content in fuel on thermal conductivity are unclear because there are no experimental data on thermal conductivity of high Am bearing MOX fuel. In this study, The thermal conductivities of near stoichiometric (UPuAm)O solid solutions(z = 0.05, 0.10, and 0.15) have been measured between room temperature (RT) and 1473 K. The thermal conductivities decreased with increasing Am content and satisfied the classical phonon transport model ((A+BT)) up to about 1473 K. A values increased linearly with increasing Am content because the change in ionic radius affects the conduction of the phonon due to the solid solution in U and Am. B values were independent of Am content.

Experimental analysis on dynamics of liquid molecules adjacent to particles in nanofluids

Hashimoto, Shunsuke*; Nakajima, Kenji; Kikuchi, Tatsuya*; Kamazawa, Kazuya*; Shibata, Kaoru; Yamada, Takeshi*

Journal of Molecular Liquids, 342, p.117580_1 - 117580_8, 2021/11

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molliq.2021.117580

Quasi-elastic neutron scattering (QENS) and pulsed-field-gradient nuclear magnetic resonance (PFGNMR) analyses of a nanofluid composed of silicon dioxide (SiO) nanoparticles and a base fluid of ethylene glycol aqueous solution were performed. The aim was to elucidate the mechanism increase in the thermal conductivity of the nanofluid above its theoretical value. The obtained experimental results indicate that SiO particles may decrease the self-diffusion coefficient of the liquid molecules in the ethylene glycol aqueous solution because of their highly restricted motion around these nanoparticles. At a constant temperature, the thermal conductivity increases as the self-diffusion coefficient of the liquid molecules decreases in the SiO nanofluids.

Mechanical and thermal properties of Zr-B and Fe-B alloys

Sun, Y.*; Abe, Yuta; Muta, Hiroaki*; Oishi, Yuji*

Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 57(8), p.917 - 925, 2020/08

https://doi.org/10.1080/00223131.2020.1736201