Nondestructive technique for identifying nuclides using neutron resonance transmission analysis at CSNS Back-n

Nondestructive and noninvasive neutron assays are essential applications of neutron techniques.Neutron resonance transmission analysis(NRTA)is a powerful nondestructive method for investigating the elemental composition of an object.The back-streaming neutron line(Back-n)is a newly built time-of-flight facility at the China Spallation Neutron Source(CSNS)that provides neutrons in the eV to 300 MeV range.A feasibility study of the NRTA method for nuclide identification was conducted at the CSNS Back-n via two test experiments.The results demonstrate that it is feasible to identify different elements and isotopes in samples using the NRTA method at Back-n.This study reveals its potential future applications.

Efficient and selective extraction of uranium from seawater based on a novel pulsed liquid chromatography radionuclide separation method

The novel pulsed liquid chromatography radionuclide separation method presented here provides a new and promising strategy for the extraction of uranium from seawater.In this study,a new chromatographic separation method was proposed,and a pulsed nuclide automated separation device was developed,alongside a new chromatographic column.The length of this chromatographic column was 10 m,with an internal warp of 3 mm and a packing size of 1 mm,while the total separation units of the column reached 12,250.The most favorable conditions for the separation of nuclides were then obtained through optimizing the separation conditions of the device:Sample pH in the column=2,sample injection flow rate=5.698 mL/min,chromatographic column heating temperature=60℃.Separation experiments were also carried out for uranium,europium,and sodium ions in mixed solutions;uranium and sodium ions in water samples from the Ganjiang River;and uranium,sodium,and magnesium ions from seawater samples.The separation factors between the different nuclei were then calculated based on the experimental data,and a formula for the separation level was derived.The experimental results showed that the separation factor in the mixed solution of uranium and europium(1:1)was 1.088,while achieving the initial separation of uranium and europium theoretically required a 47-stage separation.Considering the separation factor of 1.50for the uranium and sodium ions in water samples from the Ganjiang River,achieving the initial separation of uranium and sodium ions would have theoretically required at least a 21-stage separation.Furthermore,for the seawater sample separation experiments,the separation factor of uranium and sodium ions was 1.2885;therefore,more than 28 stages of sample separation would be required to achieve uranium extraction from seawater.The novel pulsed liquid chromatography method proposed in this study was innovative in terms of uranium separation and enrichment,while expanding the possibilities of extracting uranium from seawater through chromatography.

Determining topographic shielding from digital elevation models for cosmogenic nuclide analysis: a GIS model for discrete sample sites

Topographic shielding(TS) is an important factor in cosmogenic nuclide surface exposure dating. The development of geographic information systems(GIS) and the availability of digital elevation models(DEMs) make it possible to derive this factor directly from a DEM. Most available GIS models derive the TS factors for an area(all cells in a DEM) without the consideration of surface conditions of individual sites, such as the strike, dip,and height above ground, into the calculation. This paper presents a new GIS model to derive the TS factors for discrete sample sites. This model uses the Skyline and Skyline Graph functions in ArcGIS to extract the set of azimuth and elevation angles of topographic obstructions around each site from a DEM(considering the sample height above ground)and then incorporates the strike and dip information of the sample surface to derive the TS factor. All processing tools and steps are streamlined in ArcGIS modelbuilder and this model can be run like a standard ArcGIS geoprocessing tool. It provides an easy and user-friendly means to derive the TS factors for discrete samples based on a DEM and the measured strike, dip and sample height for each site.

Fast nuclide identification based on a sequential Bayesian method

The rapid identification of radioactive substances in public areas is crucial.However,traditional nuclide identification methods only consider information regarding the full energy peaks of the gamma-ray spectrum and require long recording times,which lead to long response times.In this paper,a novel identification method using the event mode sequence(EMS)information of target radionuclides is proposed.The EMS of a target radionuclide and natural background radiation were established as two different probabilistic models and a decision function based on Bayesian inference and sequential testing was constructed.The proposed detection scheme individually processes each photon.When a photon is detected and accepted,the corresponding posterior probability distribution parameters are estimated using Bayesian inference and the decision function is updated.Then,value of the decision function is compared to preset detection thresholds to obtain a detection result.Experiments on different target radionuclides(137Cs and 60Co)were performed.The count rates of the regions of interest(ROI)in the backgrounds between[651,671],[1154,1186],and[1310,1350]keV were 2.35,5.14,and 0.57 CPS,respectively.The experimental results demonstrate that the average detection time was 6.0 s for 60Co(with an activity of 80400 Bq)at a distance of 60 cm from the detector.The average detection time was 7 s for 137Cs(with an activity of 131000 Bq)at a distance of 90 cm from the detector.The results demonstrate that the proposed method can detect radioactive substances with low activity.

Comparative Proteomic Analysis of Human Benign Prostatic Hyperplastic Tissue Before and After Irradiation with Radioactive Nuclide

The expressed proteins were extracted from human benign prostatic hyperplastic tissues obtained with transurethral resection of the prostate before and after their irradiation with radioactive nuclide. The proteins were separated by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and analyzed by mass spectrometry. Four proteins were differentially expressed and were identified with a database search. Three were associated with the regulation of cell motion and one was lactate dehydrogenase B, which plays an important role in the process of cell energy metabolism and cell state changes in tissue. The comparative proteomic analysis indicates that after irradiation with radioactive nuclide, changes occur in human benign prostatic hyperplastic cells, and associated proteins are expressed. Analysis of these proteins should help to identify the mechanism involved when human prostatic hyperplasia is treated by irradiation with radioactive nuclide.

Residual Nuclides Induced in Cu Target by a 250 MeV Proton Beam

Residual nuclide production is studied experimentally by bombarding a Cu target with a 250 MeV proton beam. The data are measured by the off-line γ-spectroscopy method. Six nuclides are identified and their cross sections are determined. The corresponding calculated results by the MCNPX and GEANT4 codes are compared with the experimental data to check the validity of the codes. A comparison shows that the MCNPX simulation has a better agreement with the experiment. The energy dependence of residual nuclide production is studied with the aid of MCNPX simulation, and it is found that the mass yields for the nuclides in the light mass region increase significantly with the proton energy.

5-1 Introduction to Code System COUPLE3.0 for Neutron Transport and Nuclides Burn-up Analyses

The code system COUPLE2.0[1] was developed by the Institute of Nuclear and New Energy Technology (INET) of Tsinghua University, which can be used for coupled neutron transport and nuclide burn-up analyses of Accelerator Driven sub- critical reactor System(ADS). The Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences imported the code system in 2014, and developed the version COUPLE3.0 according to the requirements of new function and preliminary verifications based on the fast reactor and ADS benchmarks were done.

Predicting the Binding Energies of the 1s Nuclides with High Precision, Based on Baryons which Are Yang-Mills Magnetic Monopoles

In an earlier paper, the author employed the thesis that baryons are Yang-Mills magnetic monopoles and that proton and neutron binding energies are determined based on their up and down current quark masses to predict a relationship among the electron and up and down quark masses within experimental errors and to obtain a very accurate relationship for nuclear binding energies generally and for the binding of 56Fe in particular. The free proton and neutron were understood to each contain intrinsic binding energies which confine their quarks, wherein some or most (never all) of this energy is released for binding when they are fused into composite nuclides. The purpose of this paper is to further advance this thesis by seeing whether it can explain the specific empirical binding energies of the light 1s nuclides, namely, 2H, 3H, 3He and 4He, with high precision. As the method to achieve this, we show how these 1s binding energies are in fact the components of inner and outer tensor products of Yang-Mills matrices which are implicit in the expressions for these intrinsic binding energies. The result is that the binding energies for the 4He, 3He and 3H nucleons are respectively, independently, explained to less than four parts in one million, four parts in 100,000, and seven parts in one million, all in AMU. Further, we are able to exactly relate the neutron minus proton mass difference to a function of the up and down current quark masses, which in turn enables us to explain the 2H binding energy most precisely of all, to just over 8 parts in ten million. These energies have never before been theoretically explained with such accuracy, which leads to the conclusion that the underlying thesis provides the strongest theoretical explanation to date of what baryons are, and of how protons and neutrons confine their quarks and bind together into composite nuclides. As is also reviewed in Section 9, these results may lay the foundation for more easily catalyzing nuclear fusion energy release.

An Effective Method for Studying Heavy Neutron-Rich Nuclide

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THE ADVANCES IN SYNTHESIS AND STUDY OF NEW NUCLIDES IN CHINA

This paper introduces the importance of synthesis and study of new nuclides far from the stability line. Following the example of new nuclides 208Hg, 185Hf and 237Th, which were synthesized for the first time by the scientists in the Institute of Modern Physics, the progress of physics and technology in this aspect in our country are summarized. This paper also outlines a proposal about farther development of the synthesis and study of new nuclides and the construction of relevant key facilities in our country at the beginning of the next century.

THE DECAY DIAGRAMS OF TWO NEW NUCLIDES ESTABLISHED BY CHINA FOR THE FIRST TIME IN THE WORLD Lanzhou Institute of Modern Physics, CAS

The decay diagrams of radioactive nuclei are the obvious indication of the main properties shown by the nuclei at low states of excitement and of the basic aspects of nuclear physics.They are extensively applied in industry’,agriculture,energy,national defense,medical science,the environment,and metrology,as well as in astronomy,archaeology,geology,biology,chemistry and other basic sciences.Therefore,they are always focuses of interest.

Opportunities and challenges of high-pressure ion exchange chromatography for nuclide separation and enrichment

With the rapid development of the nuclear industry,more-stringent requirements are proposed for highlevel radioactive waste liquid treatment and the enrichment of isotope products.High-pressure ion exchange chromatography has been widely accepted for the fine separation of elements and nuclides due to its advantages,such as high efficiency,environmental friendliness,ease of operation,and feasibility for large-scale industrial applications.Here,we summarized the evolution of high-pressure ion exchange chromatography and the relevant research progress in ion exchange equilibrium and related separation technology.The prospects for application of high-pressure ion exchange chromatography to rare earth elements,actinide elements and isotope separation were discussed.High-pressure ion exchange chromatography represents a promising strategy for the extraction of rare earth elements and actinide elements from high-level radioactive waste liquid,as well as being an effective method for the automated production of high purity isotope products with great environmental benefits.

Deciphering non-steady landscape evolution by in-situ cosmogenic nuclide depth profile

In-situ cosmogenic nuclide s are receiving growing attention in surface Earth system science in which the steady-state denudation is an important assumption for estimating the surface denudation of long-lived(103-106 years)surfaces.However,distinguishing steady-state denudation and deciphering a reliable denudation rate from non-steady state denudation region are difficult.Recent depth profile models for investigating the denudation rate,exposure age and inheritance are widely used for sediment and regolith of steady-state denudation region.Here we present in-situ co smogenic nuclides^(10)Be and^(26)Al from two typical granite regolithes from Jixian in Tianjin and Tengchong in Yunnan to model non-steady landscape evolution process by using steady state(Model 1)and non-steady state(Model 2,continuous exposure;Model 3 a,changed denudation rate;Model 3 b,abrupt denudation event)models.The results of steady state model show that both regolithes are in non-steady state.^(10)Be non-steady state models of Jixian regolith reveal that the surface has likely experienced a denudation rate change or an abrupt denudation event during the past several millennia,resulting in a non-steady state.The similar Model 3 a and 3 b denudation rates of 14.6-12.9^(+9.4)and 14.7-14.7^(+9.0)mmkyr^(-1),respectively,might demonstrate the long-term denudation rate rather than the exaggerated rate s of 39.0-2.3^(+2.6)and 39.0-2.4+^(2.5)mm kyr^(-1)calculated by assuming steady-state denudation and ignoring inheritance.The non-steady state model results of Tengchong regolith suggest that the surface has likely experienced a strong denudation about 157 ka(^(10)Be)or 127 ka(^(26)Al)ago.This timing is basically consistent with the termination of the MIS 6(TII:130 ka)and the climate change events in the Tibetan Plateau,suggesting a strong surface landscape denudation during the transition from glacial to interglacial.The compiling of basin-wide denudation rates in the Tibetan Plateau shows a good positive correlation with the regional tectonic activity,indicating that the denudation rate derived from non-steady state region with strong tectonic activity is likely to be overestimated by assuming steady state.We suggest that a combination of steady state and non-steady state depth profile models should be used to quantify denudation rate and exposure age more accurately and effectively in strong tectonic activity or climate change regions.

Activation cross-section measurement of a sort of nuclide produced with a target including two isotopes

Based on a formula used to calculate the activation cross-section sum of two reactions producing a sort of nuclide with a target including two isotopes, the related problems in some references have been analyzed and discussed. It is pointed out that the calculation methods of the cross-section sum of two reactions producing the same radioactive nuclide for two isotopes in some references are improper and usually it is impossible to obtain the correct cross-section sum of two reactions producing the same radioactive nuclide for two isotopes in the case of using natural samples. At the same time, the related concepts are clarified and the correct processing method and representation are given. The comparison with the experimental results show that the theoretical analysis results are right.

Novel algorithm for detection and identification of radioactive materials in an urban environment

This study introduces a novel algorithm to detect and identify radioactive materials in urban settings using time-series detector response data. To address the challenges posed by varying backgrounds and to enhance the quality and reliability of the energy spectrum data, we devised a temporal energy window. This partitioned the time-series detector response data, resulting in energy spectra that emphasize the vital information pertaining to radioactive materials. We then extracted characteristic features of these energy spectra, relying on the formation mechanism and measurement principles of the gammaray instrument spectrum. These features encompassed aggregated counts, peak-to-flat ratios, and peak-to-peak ratios. This methodology not only simplified the interpretation of the energy spectra's physical significance but also eliminated the necessity for peak searching and individual peak analyses. Given the requirements of imbalanced multi-classification, we created a detection and identification model using a weighted k-nearest neighbors(KNN) framework. This model recognized that energy spectra of identical radioactive materials exhibit minimal inter-class similarity. Consequently, it considerably boosted the classification accuracy of minority classes, enhancing the classifier's overall efficacy. We also executed a series of comparative experiments. Established methods for radionuclide identification classification, such as standard KNN, support vector machine, Bayesian network, and random tree, were used for comparison purposes. Our proposed algorithm realized an F1 measure of 0.9868 on the time-series detector response data, reflecting a minimum enhancement of 0.3% in comparison with other techniques. The results conclusively show that our algorithm outperforms others when applied to time-series detector response data in urban contexts.

Random forest-based prediction of decay modes and half-lives of superheavy nuclei

Information on the decay process of nuclides in the superheavy region is critical in investigating new elements beyond oganesson and the island of stability.This paper presents the application of a random forest algorithm to examine the competition among different decay modes in the superheavy region,includingα decay,β^(-)decay,β^(+)decay,electron capture and spontaneous fission.The observed half-lives and dominant decay mode are well reproduced.The dominant decay mode of 96.9%of the nuclei beyond ^(212) Po is correctly obtained.Further,α decay is predicted to be the dominant decay mode for isotopes in new elements Z=119-122,except for spontaneous fission in certain even–even elements owing to the increased Coulomb repulsion and odd–even effect.The predicted half-lives demonstrate the existence of a long-lived spontaneous fission island southwest of ^(298) Fl caused by the competition between the fission barrier and Coulomb repulsion.A better understanding of spontaneous fission,particularly beyond ^(286)Fl,is crucial in the search for new elements and the island of stability.

电子密度变化对^(56)Mn半衰期的影响

利用微型中子源反应堆辐照55Mn样品,得到放射性核素56Mn,使用高纯锗探测系统测量56Mn的能谱,得到56Mn在不同化合态下的半衰期并进行比较.通过β衰变的费米理论,引入约化电荷计算,对不同化合态下56Mn的衰变常数与约化电荷进行比对研究.利用同核异能移概念,分析原子价电子的交换和电子云的重叠对56Mn衰变常数的影响,说明56Mn半衰期会因为电子密度不同而改变.

Cosmogenic ^(10)Be and ^(26)Al Chronology of the Last Glaciation of the Palaeo-Daocheng Ice Cap,Southeastern Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau

The glacial landforms of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau （QTP） provide a unique opportunity to research hemispheric and global environmental changes. In this study, we focus on the glacial history of the palaeo-Daocheng Ice Cap （p-DIC） in the southeastern QTP during the last glacial cycle. Based on field investigations, morphostratigraphy, and surface exposure dating of roche moutonnée, polished surface and moraine debris through the terrestrial cosmogenic nuclides （TCN） ^10Be and ^26Al. We identify glacial deposits of the last deglaciation, with minimum ages of 14.9±1.3-18.7±1.7 ka, the Last Glacial Maximum （LGM） of 24.7±2.2 ka, and the early part of the last glacial period （marine oxygen isotope stage （MIS） 3） of 37.1±3.4-45.2±3.9 ka. Our results show that in this region, the extent of the glacial advance during MIS 3 was larger than that during the traditional LGM （MIS 2）. These ages are consistent with prior chronologies, and the ^10Be age is consistent with the ^26Al age for the same sample. Thus, these data provide reliable constraints on climate change in the QTP, during the last glaciation.