Formation of nanoscale protrusions on polymer films after atomic oxygen exposure; Observations with positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy

Goto, Aki*; Michishio, Koji*; Oka, Toshitaka; Tagawa, Masahito*; Yamashita, Shinichi*

Langmuir, 39(34), p.11954 - 11963, 2023/08

https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.langmuir.3c00224

Atomic oxygen (AO) is one of the dominant components of the residual atmosphere in low Earth orbit. AO collides with spacecraft with translational energy of 5 eV, forming nanoscale protrusions on polymeric materials. This study investigated the size of free-volume holes and the layer thickness that interacted with AO for polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), and polystyrene (PS) by positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy. By the AO irradiation, oxidized layer formed in the surface, and the maximum depth of the oxidized layer for PE and PP were deeper than for PS. The different sizes of free-volume holes would affect the injection depths of AO, resulting in the oxidized layers' thicknesses and surface morphologies.

Observation of dihydrogen bonds in high-pressure phases of ammonia borane by X-ray and neutron diffraction measurements

Nakano, Satoshi*; Sano, Asami; Hattori, Takanori; Machida, Shinichi*; Komatsu, Kazuki*; Fujihisa, Hiroshi*; Yamawaki, Hiroshi*; Goto, Yoshito*; Kikegawa, Takumi*

Inorganic Chemistry, 60(5), p.3065 - 3073, 2021/03

https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.inorgchem.0c03345

X-ray and neutron diffraction analyses of ammonia borane were conducted at ambient and high pressures. The H-H distance in dihydrogen bonds was shorter than twice the van der Waals radius (2.4 ). The half of the dihydrogen bonds were broken on phase transition from AP to the first high pressure phase (HP1) at approximately 1.2 GPa as revealed by an increase in the H-H distances. On further pressure increase, all of the H-H distances became shorter than 2.4 again, implying the pressure-induced reformation of the dihydrogen bonds. Furthermore, the HP1 transformed to the second one with the structure of (Z = 2) at about 11 GPa. In this phase transition, the inclination of the molecule axis became larger and the number of types of dihydrogen bonds increased from 6 to 11. Just before the third transition at 18.9 GPa, the shortest dihydrogen bond decreased to 1.65 . The present study experimentally first confirmed the breakage and reformation of the dihydrogen bonds by the structural change under pressure.

Electrochemical Cs removal and crystal formation from Fukushima weathered biotite in molten NaCl-CaCl

Honda, Mitsunori; Goto, Takuya*; Sakanaka, Yoshihide*; Yaita, Tsuyoshi; Suzuki, Shinichi*

AIMS Electronics and Electrical Engineering (Internet), 3(2), p.102 - 110, 2019/03

https://doi.org/10.3934/ElectrEng.2019.2.102

The possibility of removal and controlling crystal formation from weathered biotite (WB) in clay minerals were investigated using molten salt electrochemistry (EC) in molten NaCl-CaCl under an electrochemical reductive reaction. Cyclic Voltammogram (CV) measurements were performed in the range of +0.5 V to -2.2 V. Several peaks were confirmed in the CV spectra. The peak at -1.4 V represents a reduction reaction of Fe in WB, so we conducted an experiment at -1.4 V for 2 h to reduce Iron (Fe). The Cs removal rate after EC treatment was determined by X-ray fluorescence analysis, and almost 100% Cs removal was confirmed. To understand the effect of the reductive reaction, we performed X-ray Adsorption Fine Structure (XAFS) analysis. Before EC treatment, the Fe in WB was present as a mixture of Fe and Fe. After EC treatment, the presence of Fe was confirmed by XAFS analysis. Based on this finding, EC treatment is effective for reducing Fe in WB. This result indicated that FeO formation was suppressed, and the reduction reaction was effective for controlling crystal formation.

Determination of fusion barrier distributions from quasielastic scattering cross sections towards superheavy nuclei synthesis

Tanaka, Taiki*; Narikiyo, Yoshihiro*; Morita, Kosuke*; Fujita, Kunihiro*; Kaji, Daiya*; Morimoto, Koji*; Yamaki, Sayaka*; Wakabayashi, Yasuo*; Tanaka, Kengo*; Takeyama, Mirei*; et al.

Journal of the Physical Society of Japan, 87(1), p.014201_1 - 014201_9, 2018/01

https://doi.org/10.7566/JPSJ.87.014201

Excitation functions of quasielastic scattering cross sections for the Ca + Pb, Ti + Pb, and Ca + Cm reactions were successfully measured by using the gas-filled recoil-ion separator GARIS. Fusion barrier distributions were extracted from these data, and compared with the coupled-channels calculations. It was found that the peak energies of the barrier distributions for the Ca + Pb and Ti + Pb systems coincide with those of the 2n evaporation channel cross sections for the systems, while that of the Ca + Cm is located slightly below the 4n evaporation ones. This results provide us helpful information to predict the optimum beam energy to synthesize superheavy nuclei.

Analytical study of the applicability of FeCrAl-ODS cladding for BWR

Takano, Sho*; Kusagaya, Kazuyuki*; Goto, Daisuke*; Sakamoto, Kan*; Yamashita, Shinichiro

Proceedings of 2017 Water Reactor Fuel Performance Meeting (WRFPM 2017) (USB Flash Drive), 10 Pages, 2017/09

http://www.wrfpm2017.org/upload/draft_file/F-032-PD1.pdf

We focused on one of accident tolerant fuel (ATF) materials, Oxide Dispersion Strengthened Fe-Cr-Al Steel (FeCrAl-ODS). There is a reasonable prospect that FeCrAl-ODS is applied to BWRs, but relatively high neutron absorption should be compensated. To decrease adverse neutron economic impact, thin FeCrAl-ODS cladding was designed, and we evaluated characteristics of a core into which 99 Advanced BWR (ABWR) bundles with thin FeCrAl-ODS claddings were loaded. Thin FeCrAl-ODS water rods and channel boxes were also applied. We confirmed that FeCrAl-ODS core reactivity was sufficient by increasing enrichment of UO fuel under the limit of 5 wt%. Moreover, some representative FeCrAl-ODS core characteristics were comparable to zircaloy core. We also confirmed that fuel thermal-mechanical behaviors of thin FeCrAl-ODS cladding at normal operation and transient conditions were acceptable. These results led to a conclusion that FeCrAl-ODS was applicable to BWR in the analysis range of this study.

Fission fragments mass distributions of nuclei populated by the multinucleon transfer channels of the O + Th reaction

Lguillon, R.; Nishio, Katsuhisa; Hirose, Kentaro; Makii, Hiroyuki; Nishinaka, Ichiro*; Orlandi, R.; Tsukada, Kazuaki; Smallcombe, J.*; Chiba, Satoshi*; Aritomo, Yoshihiro*; et al.

Physics Letters B, 761, p.125 - 130, 2016/10

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physletb.2016.08.010

Excitation functions for production of Rf isotopes in the Cm + O reaction

Murakami, Masashi*; Goto, Shinichi*; Murayama, Hirofumi*; Kojima, Takayuki*; Kudo, Hisaaki*; Kaji, Daiya*; Morimoto, Koji*; Haba, Hiromitsu*; Kudo, Yuki*; Sumita, Takayuki*; et al.

Physical Review C, 88(2), p.024618_1 - 024618_8, 2013/08

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.88.024618

Production cross sections of Rf isotopes in the Cm + O reaction were measured at the beam energy range of 88.2 to 101.3 MeV by use of a gas-filled recoil ion separator. The excitation functions of Rf, Rf, and Rf were obtained together with those of spontaneously fissioning nuclides which have few-second half-lives and have been assigned to Rf and a longer-lived state of Rf. The excitation function of few-second spontaneously fissioning nuclide exhibited the maximum cross section at the O beam energy of 94.8 MeV. The shape of the excitation function was almost the same as that of Rf, whereas it was quite different from those of Rf and Rf. A few-second spontaneously fissioning nuclide previously reported as Rf and Rf observed inCm + O reaction was identified as Rf.

New result in the production and decay of an isotope, 113 of the 113th element

Morita, Kosuke*; Morimoto, Koji*; Kaji, Daiya*; Haba, Hiromitsu*; Ozeki, Kazutaka*; Kudo, Yuki*; Sumita, Takayuki*; Wakabayashi, Yasuo*; Yoneda, Akira*; Tanaka, Kengo*; et al.

Journal of the Physical Society of Japan, 81(10), p.103201_1 - 103201_4, 2012/10

https://doi.org/10.1143/JPSJ.81.103201

An isotope of the 113th element, 113, was produced in a nuclear reaction with a Zn beam on a Bi target. We observed six consecutive decays following the implantation of a heavy particle in nearly the same position in the semiconductor detector, in extremely low background condition. The fifth and sixth decays are fully consistent with the sequential decays of Db and Lr both in decay energies and decay times. This indicates that the present decay chain consisted of 113, Rg (Z = 111), Mt (Z = 109), Bh (Z = 107), Db (Z = 105), and Lr (Z = 103) with firm connections. This result, together with previously reported results from 2004 and 2007, conclusively leads the unambiguous production and identification of the isotope 113, of the 113th element.

Fluorido complex formation of element 104, rutherfordium (Rf)

Ishii, Yasuo; Toyoshima, Atsushi; Tsukada, Kazuaki; Asai, Masato; Li, Z.*; Nagame, Yuichiro; Miyashita, Sunao*; Mori, Tomotaka*; Suganuma, Hideo*; Haba, Hiromitsu*; et al.

Bulletin of the Chemical Society of Japan, 84(9), p.903 - 911, 2011/09

https://doi.org/10.1246/bcsj.20110126

The cation-exchange behavior of element 104, rutherfordium (Rf), was investigated together with its lighter group-4 homologues Zr and Hf, and the tetravalent pseudo-homologue Th in HF/HNO mixed solution. The results demonstrate that distribution coefficients () of Rf in HF/0.10 M HNO decrease with increasing concentration of the fluoride ion [F], indicating the consecutive formation of fluorido complexes of Rf. We also measured the values of Rf and the homologues as a function of the hydrogen ion concentration [H]. The log values decrease linearly with an increase of log [H] with slopes between -2.1 and -2.5. This indicates that these elements are likely to form the same chemical compounds: mixture of [MF] and [MF] (M = Rf, Zr, Hf and Th) in the studied solution. It is also ascertained that sequence in the fluoride complex formation is Zr Hf Rf Th.

Identified charged hadron production in collisions at = 200 and 62.4 GeV

Adare, A.*; Afanasiev, S.*; Aidala, C.*; Ajitanand, N. N.*; Akiba, Yasuyuki*; Al-Bataineh, H.*; Alexander, J.*; Aoki, Kazuya*; Aphecetche, L.*; Armendariz, R.*; et al.

Physical Review C, 83(6), p.064903_1 - 064903_29, 2011/06

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.83.064903

Transverse momentum distributions and yields for , and in collisions at = 200 and 62.4 GeV at midrapidity are measured by the PHENIX experiment at the RHIC. We present the inverse slope parameter, mean transverse momentum, and yield per unit rapidity at each energy, and compare them to other measurements at different collisions. We also present the scaling properties such as and scaling and discuss the mechanism of the particle production in collisions. The measured spectra are compared to next-to-leading order perturbative QCD calculations.