Effect of coaxial HPGe detector structure on -ray beam measurements

Omer, M.; Shizuma, Toshiyuki*; Koizumi, Mitsuo; Taira, Yoshitaka*; Zen, H.*; Ogaki, Hideaki*; Hajima, Ryoichi*

Radiation Physics and Chemistry, 240, p.113467_1 - 113467_8, 2026/03

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radphyschem.2025.113467

Practical approach of airborne gamma-ray spectrometry using UAVs for evaluating ground-level dose rates

Ji, Y.-Y.*; Ji, W.*; Kim, K.*; Kim, M. J.*; Ochi, Kotaro; Morishita, Yuki; Sanada, Yukihisa

Radiation Physics and Chemistry, 244, p.113781_1 - 113781_12, 2026/02

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radphyschem.2026.113781

UAV-based airborne gamma-ray spectrometry enables rapid radiation mapping, but accurate estimation of ground-level ambient dose rates is difficult because of altitude attenuation, detector field-of-view effects, heterogeneous contamination, and terrain variability. We developed a practical method combining hovering-flight calibration and ground-based validation near the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Altitude correction factors were derived using a dual-exponential model and compared with tripod and backpack measurements. Results showed that heterogeneous contamination and terrain introduce systematic biases if correction factors are derived under non-uniform conditions, while calibration at uniform sites improves agreement. The proposed approach demonstrates that UAV airborne surveys can reliably estimate spatial dose-rate distributions when site-dependent corrections are applied.

Challenge for screening of nuclear fuel debris by innovative spectral imaging and its verification by LIBS mapping (Contract research); FY2023 Nuclear Energy Science & Technology and Human Resource Development Project

Collaborative Laboratories for Advanced Decommissioning Science; The University of Osaka*

JAEA-Review 2025-040, 111 Pages, 2025/12

JAEA-Review-2025-040.pdf:22.28MB

The Collaborative Laboratories for Advanced Decommissioning Science (CLADS), Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA), had been conducting the Nuclear Energy Science & Technology and Human Resource Development Project (hereafter referred to "the Project") in FY2023. The Project aims to contribute to solving problems in the nuclear energy field represented by the decommissioning of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, Inc. (TEPCO). For this purpose, intelligence was collected from all over the world, and basic research and human resource development were promoted by closely integrating/collaborating knowledge and experiences in various fields beyond the barrier of conventional organizations and research fields. The sponsor of the Project was moved from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology to JAEA since the newly adopted proposals in FY2018. On this occasion, JAEA constructed a new research system where JAEA-academia collaboration is reinforced and medium-to-long term research/development and human resource development contributing to the decommissioning are stably and consecutively implemented. Among the adopted proposals in FY2023, this report summarizes the research results of the "Challenge for screening of nuclear fuel debris by innovative spectral imaging and its verification by LIBS mapping" conducted in FY2023. The present study aims to develop a remote-sensing technique to identify the in-reactor materials by a combination of Hyper Spectral Imaging (HSI) and Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS). HSI analyzes spectral information of more than 100 colors, and is being applied to classify various materials. On the other hand, material composition cannot be directly evaluated by HSI. Therefore, we thought that the combination of HSI and LIBS could be an accurate and wide-ranging visualization technique. In order to demonstrate the HSI and LIBS, it is necessary to prepare standard materials that simulate in-reactor materials, and to acquire and accumulate training data on them. In this study, the University of Osaka is in charge of the preparation of standard materials and HSI data analysis, Nuclear Fuel Development (NFD) is in charge of the preparation of uranium bearing materials and HSI/LIBS measurements, and JAEA is in charge of LIBS development. On the UK side, the Univ. of Strathclyde, National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL), and Lancaster University participate in the joint research project. The compositions of the standard samples were determined from past experiments and thermodynamic calculation results. Several samples such as UO based composites and concrete were prepared. The HSI data were obtained using a hyperspectral camera installed in the NFD. For LIBS, we worked on the automatic optimization of focal distance as part of the development of remote operation technology.

Assessment of caesium-137 detections at CTBTO radionuclide monitoring stations in East Asia and their relationship to Asian dust dispersion

Furuno, Akiko; Omori, Ryuta*; Tateoka, Hisanori*; Minakawa, Yuya*; Kurihara, Toshiyuki; Yamamoto, Yoichi; Tomita, Yutaka

Pure and Applied Geophysics, 182(12), p.5175 - 5188, 2025/12

https://doi.org/10.1007/s00024-024-03620-y

The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) Okinawa radionuclide monitoring station (JPP37) is located on a hill facing the East China Sea at the center of the main island of Okinawa. It occasionally detects Cs-137, although no nuclear facilities are located on the island. This study focused on the detection of Cs-137 at JPP37 and examined the ratio of simultaneous detections at nearby stations of the International Monitoring System (IMS) of the CTBTO and the relationship with Asian dust from inland East Asia. The detection of Cs-137 in JPP37 from 2020 to 2023, which motivated this study, was high in spring. Among the nine IMS radionuclide stations in East Asia, the detections in Beijing, Lanzhou, and Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, were also high in spring. This suggested a high association with the detection of Asian dust in East Asia. Thus, we confirmed the detection of Cs-137 at nine nearby IMS stations when Asian dust was observed at any of the sites in Japan. In addition, we observed that the detection rates were high in Takasaki, Beijing, Lanzhou, and Ulaanbaatar. It can be inferred that the Cs-137 observed mainly in spring at the IMS particulate radionuclide stations in the East Asian region around Japan were likely to pick up the effects of global fallout conveyed by Asian dust. Thereafter, we conducted a preliminary source estimation analysis for Asian dust arrival near Japan. Atmospheric dispersion simulations explained the detection of Cs-137 at nearby IMS particulate radionuclide stations, assuming that Cs-137 was emitted from the desert, the source of the Asian dust.

Establishment of 3-D dose dispersion forecasting method and development of in-structure survey using the transparency difference of each line gamma-ray (Contract research); FY2023 Nuclear Energy Science & Technology and Human Resource Development Project

Collaborative Laboratories for Advanced Decommissioning Science; Kyoto University*

JAEA-Review 2025-020, 74 Pages, 2025/10

JAEA-Review-2025-020.pdf:5.85MB

The Collaborative Laboratories for Advanced Decommissioning Science (CLADS), Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA), had been conducting the Nuclear Energy Science & Technology and Human Resource Development Project (hereafter referred to "the Project") in FY2023. The Project aims to contribute to solving problems in the nuclear energy field represented by the decommissioning of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (1F), Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, Inc. (TEPCO). For this purpose, intelligence was collected from all over the world, and basic research and human resource development were promoted by closely integrating/collaborating knowledge and experiences in various fields beyond the barrier of conventional organizations and research fields. The sponsor of the Project was moved from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology to JAEA since the newly adopted proposals in FY2018. On this occasion, JAEA constructed a new research system where JAEA-academia collaboration is reinforced and medium-to-long term research/development and human resource development contributing to the decommissioning are stably and consecutively implemented. Among the adopted proposals in FY2022, this report summarizes the research results of the "Establishment of 3-D dose dispersion forecasting method and development of in-structure survey using the transparency difference of each line gamma-ray" conducted in FY2023. We realized an electron track detecting Compton camera (ETCC) that can measure gamma-ray images (linear images) with the bijective projection. In the "Quantitative analysis of radioactivity distribution by imaging of high radiation field environment using gamma-ray imaging spectroscopy" (hereinafter referred to as the previous project) adopted in FY2018, the 1 km square area including the reactor buildings was imaged at once. In FY2021, 3-D dosimetry in the reactor building of the Institute for Integrated Radiation and Nuclear Science was carried out, and 3-D imaging of gamma-rays was successfully obtained. This project will build on the results of the previous project to develop a practical 3-D contaminant dispersion detection and prediction system for sub-mSv/h environments. In addition, a 3-D radiographic Cs distribution measurement method inside the reactor building using highly penetrating Cs gamma-rays will be developed. In FY2023, we fabricated a lightweight and highly effective shielding specifically for the TPC of ETCC based on simulations. In addition, by conducting calibration experiments at the FRS facility, we were also able to repair bugs in the signal processing circuit. Those meticulous advance preparations enabled us to successfully conduct a 3-D experiment within 1F in March 2024.

A New analytical technique utilizing the PdI target for measurement of I in environmental samples by accelerator mass spectrometry

Honda, Maki; Takaku, Yuichi*; Sakaguchi, Aya*; Matsuzaki, Hiroyuki*; Sueki, Keisuke*

Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry, 334(8), p.5809 - 5820, 2025/08

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-025-10324-7

A series of in-house PdI standards appropriate for AMS was prepared by quantitatively mixing the I/I isotope standard solution and I solution. The dominant interferences from Pd were successfully suppressed by adjusting the electrostatic cylindrical analyser, etc., to select the ion beams finely. As a result, the I/I atom ratios of PdI prepared from the seawater and dolomite samples agreed with those prepared as AgI, respectively. The pretreatment time for the new method was shortened by 33% compared to the conventional method. This study demonstrated a new approach to I analysis in AMS that departs from conventional methods.

Development of a hybrid method for evaluating the long-term structural soundness of nuclear reactor buildings using response monitoring and damage imaging technologies (Contract research); FY2023 Nuclear Energy Science & Technology and Human Resource Development Project

Collaborative Laboratories for Advanced Decommissioning Science; Tohoku University*

JAEA-Review 2025-004, 186 Pages, 2025/07

JAEA-Review-2025-004.pdf:11.9MB

The Collaborative Laboratories for Advanced Decommissioning Science (CLADS), Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA), had been conducting the Nuclear Energy Science & Technology and Human Resource Development Project (hereafter referred to "the Project") in FY2023. The Project aims to contribute to solving problems in the nuclear energy field represented by the decommissioning of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, Inc. (TEPCO). For this purpose, intelligence was collected from all over the world, and basic research and human resource development were promoted by closely integrating/collaborating knowledge and experiences in various fields beyond the barrier of conventional organizations and research fields. The sponsor of the Project was moved from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology to JAEA since the newly adopted proposals in FY2018. On this occasion, JAEA constructed a new research system where JAEA-academia collaboration is reinforced and medium-to-long term research/development and human resource development contributing to the decommissioning are stably and consecutively implemented. Among the adopted proposals in FY2021, this report summarizes the research results of the "Development of a hybrid method for evaluating the long-term structural soundness of nuclear reactor buildings using response monitoring and damage imaging technologies" conducted from FY2021 to FY2023. The present study aims to develop an evaluation method necessary to obtain a perspective on the long-term structural soundness of accident-damaged reactor buildings, where accessibility to work sites is extremely limited due to high radiation dose rate and high contamination. In FY2023, the final year of the three-year project, experimental and analytical research activities were performed to develop, (1) Method for evaluating the building by monitoring the response to earthquakes and other disturbances, (2) Damage detection technology for concrete structures using electromagnetic waves, (3) Evaluation method for concrete materials and structures based on damage detection information, (4) Comprehensive soundness evaluation method and a long-term maintenance plan, (5) Promotion of the research. Expected results and final goals are achieved based on the outcomes including achievements up to FY2022.

Nacre-like MXene/polyacrylic acid layer-by-layer multilayers as hydrogen gas barriers

Auh, Y. H.*; Neal, N. N.*; Arole, K.*; Regis, N. A.*; Nguyen, T.*; Ogawa, Shuichi*; Tsuda, Yasutaka; Yoshigoe, Akitaka; Radovic, M.*; Green, M. J.*; et al.

ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 17(21), p.31392 - 31402, 2025/05

https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.5c03632

Random media criticality analysis using the Randomized Fourier Series for arbitrary-shaped power spectrum

Ueki, Taro

Proceedings of International Conference on Mathematics and Computational Methods Applied to Nuclear Science and Engineering (M&C 2025) (Internet), p.2018 - 2027, 2025/04

The criticality analysis of continuously mixed random media is essential to the safe retrieval of fuel debris. Image analysis of an oxide debris mockup reveals that the power spectrum cannot be fully explained by a single factor alone, but instead requires consideration of the complexity of multiple factors. This highlights the need for a randomized function capable of representing complex power spectra. To address this, we developed a new function called the Randomized Fourier Series (RFS), which introduces randomization in amplitude and phase. RFS allows the representation of power spectra with arbitrary shapes, facilitating realistic Monte Carlo (MC) simulations of random continuous material mixtures. For demonstration, taking the Lorentz power spectrum as an example, the spectrum flatness at low wavenumbers is analyzed to understand how the transition to white noise influences the fluctuation in neutron effective multiplication factor across independently generated random media replicas. Numerical results are presented for a mixture of 4 materials, along with the root mean-squared mass deviation over the constituent materials. The MC solver Solomon is employed with a partial volume pairing feature.

A Basic study for radioactive nuclides recovery from spent PUREX solvent using adsorbents

Arai, Tsuyoshi*; Nakamura, Fumiya*; Abe, Ryoji*; Ueno, Fuga*; Seko, Noriaki*; Arai, Yoichi; Watanabe, So

Progress in Nuclear Science and Technology (Internet), 7, p.147 - 153, 2025/03

https://doi.org/10.15669/pnst.7.147

no abstracts in English