Non-radioactive scandium oxide receiving out of uranium ISR solutions

The task of the research was to study and determine an effective method for the preparation of non-radioactive scandium compounds from uranium In-Situ Recovery (ISR) solutions. The widespread use of scandium is restrained by the high price due to its small production volumes, low content in the raw materials (scandium is a scattered element and does not form its own deposits), as well as the complexity of technological schemes for its extraction. Scandium receiving out of uranium reverses ISR solutions technological scheme was experimental tested, including sorption on MTS 9580 (Purolite’s production) ion exchanger with recurrent ballast impurities desorption and receiving concentrate that contains scandium. New radiation cleaning technological sequencing based on different solubility of radioactive elements and scandium in carbonate solutions, that accompanied by insoluble macro components complex formation, that contains in deactivated scandium concentrate and allows to get scandium oxide with desired component maintenance more than 94 % and less than 0,3 kilobecquerels/kg specific activity level was developed. The developed technology is based on the ability to form soluble carbonate complexes of scandium and radioactive elements, while the main macro components of the concentrate - ferrum, aluminum, calcium, silicon and others under the conditions of carbonation of the concentrate are inert or form insoluble compounds. Optimal radioactive impurity removing from concentrate conditions and scandium leaching from deactivated residue of scandium and macro impurity were studied and identified in laboratory conditions and during pilot tests.

Determination of the radon concentration in homes depending on the insulation used for the floor

A current environmental problem is the presence of radon inside the house. Radon (222Rn) is a noble, colourless and odourless gas that comes from radioactive elements naturally present in rocks and soil. Being gas, it is released from the ground with a tendency to concentrate in closed spaces such as caves, mines, cellars but also in any rooms in the basement, ground floor or with poor ventilation. Due to the differences between the temperature inside and the soil, the radon in the soil will move naturally to the interior of the houses, concentrating in closed rooms. The accumulation of radon inside buildings is a consequence of technological progress. Insulation work, tightly closed windows, poor ventilation of rooms lead to unobservable increase in radon concentration inside. In this paper we aim to present the values of the concentration of radon accumulated inside a house depending on the way of insulating the floor.

Study of migration of radioactive elements in clay layers during the burial of radioactive waste

In 2015, Kazakhstan and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) signed an agreement to host a low-enriched uranium bank in Ust-Kamenogorsk. In 2019, several batches of enriched uranium were delivered to Kazakhstan and the bank began operations at the Ulba Metallurgical Plant. When transporting and disposing of radioactive elements, there is a need to reduce this possibility by limiting the transfer of uranium from underground storage to underground water. Therefore, in this article, a study was conducted on the migration of radioactive elements in clay layers during the disposal of radioactive uranium waste. There are now many underground repositories (for some types of radioactive waste). These systems are based on different underground container structures for different geological formations. For underground repositories located in geological environments where enriched uranium can migrate, other system components must reduce this possibility by preventing or limiting uranium mobility. This work investigates the process of convective transport of radioactive elements, in a moist soil layer through the installation of an additional natural clay barrier layer, the migration of radioactive elements during safe disposal, the effect of diffusion and convection through the solid waste layer.

AT 2018lqh and the Nature of the Emerging Population of Day-scale Duration Optical Transients

We report on the discovery of AT 2018lqh (ZTF 18abfzgpl)—a rapidly evolving extragalactic transient in a star-forming host at 242 Mpc. The transient g-band light curve’s duration above a half-maximum light is about 2.1 days, where 0.4/1.7 days are spent on the rise/decay, respectively. The estimated bolometric light curve of this object peaked at about 7 × 1042erg s−1—roughly 7 times brighter than the neutron star (NS)–NS merger event AT 2017gfo. We show that this event can be explained by an explosion with a fast (v ∼ 0.08 c) low-mass (≈0.07 M ⊙) ejecta, composed mostly of radioactive elements. For example, ejecta dominated by 56Ni with a timescale of t 0 ≅ 1.6 days for the ejecta to become optically thin for γ-rays fits the data well. Such a scenario requires burning at densities that are typically found in the envelopes of neutron stars or the cores of white dwarfs. A combination of circumstellar material (CSM) interaction power at early times and shock cooling at late times is consistent with the photometric observations, but the observed spectrum of the event may pose some challenges for this scenario. We argue that the observations are not consistent with a shock breakout from a stellar envelope, while a model involving a low-mass ejecta ramming into low-mass CSM cannot explain both the early- and late-time observations.

Measurement and Analysis of Natural Radioactive Elements in Salty Sediments from Central and Southern Iraq

Purification of fifteen NaCl samples from natural and different area in the middle and south of Iraq are prepared and studied the structural characteristics of samples by powder X-ray diffraction analysis at 𝛌=1.542Å. The present work considered the specific activities of naturally occurring radioactive materials in salt samples, which are measured and analyzed using high resolution HPGe system. Also, the radiological parameters have been considered in this work. The average specific concentration (in Bq.kg-1) of the salt samples is found 16.864.92 for 226Ra, 5.972.05 for 232Th and 9.852.8 for 40K, respectively, which are below the national levels, 40Bq.kg-1, 30Bq.kg-1 and 400Bq.kg-1, respectively (UNSCEAR, 2000). Similarly the absorb dose rates are in the range3.71 nGy.h-1 to 12.591nGy.h-1.The measured radiation hazard indices show that the concentrations of these radionuclides in all samples are within the allowable limits.

Peningkatan Perolehan Uranium, Torium, dan Logam Tanah Jarang dalam Residu Pelarutan Parsial pada Pengolahan Monasit

ABSTRAK. Monasit merupakan mineral hasil samping pengolahan timah yang mengandung fosfat, logam tanah jarang, dan unsur radioaktif berupa uranium dan torium. Unsur-unsur tersebut dapat dimanfaatkan secara optimal jika terpisah satu dengan yang lainnya melalui proses pengolahan. Pengolahan monasit meliputi proses dekomposisi, pelarutan parsial, dan pengendapan. Pemisahan unsur logam tanah jarang dari unsur radioaktif dalam monasit dilakukan melalui proses pelarutan parsial, akan tetapi pemisahan tersebut belum optimal sehingga diperlukan proses lebih lanjut untuk meningkatkan perolehan unsur-unsur tersebut. Pada penelitian ini, proses tersebut dilakukan melalui dua metode yaitu pelarutan total dengan asam klorida (HCl) yang bertujuan untuk melarutkan semua unsur dalam endapan dan pengendapan dengan ammonium hidroksida (NH4OH) yang bertujuan untuk memisahkan unsur radioaktif dan unsur logam tanah jarang. Kedua metode tersebut dilakukan pada kondisi optimum proses dengan berbagai variasi pH, suhu, dan waktu. Berdasarkan hasil pengamatan diperoleh bahwa kelarutan optimum masing-masing unsur sebesar 67,6% uranium, 15,3% torium, dan 50,8% LTJ pada kondisi proses pelarutan pH 1, pada suhu 80°C selama 2 jam. Sedangkan pada proses pengendapan diperoleh recovery pengendapan masing-masing unsur sebesar 57% uranium, 75,7% torium, 4,8% logam tanah jarang pada kondisi pH 6. Berdasarkan data tersebut disimpulkan bahwa uranium, torium, dan logam tanah jarang dapat larut pada kondisi proses pelarutan pH 1, suhu 80°C selama 2 jam, dan dapat dipisahkan pada kondisi pH pengendapan 6.ABSTRACT. Monazite is a by-product of tin processing containing phosphate, rare earth elements, and radioactive elements such as uranium and thorium. These elements can be utilized optimally if separated from one another through processing. Monazite processing includes decomposition, partial dissolution, and precipitation processes. The separation of rare earth elements from radioactive elements in monazite is carried out through a partial dissolution process, but the separation is not optimal so that further processes are needed to increase the recovery of these elements. In this study, the process was carried out using two methods, namely total dissolution with hydrochloric acid (HCl) which aims to dissolve all elements in the precipitate and precipitation with ammonium hydroxide (NH4OH) which aims to separate radioactive elements and rare earth elements. Both methods were carried out under optimum process conditions with various variations in pH, temperature, and time. Based on observations, it was found that the optimum solubility of each element was 67.6% uranium, 15.3% thorium and 50.8% LTJ under the dissolving process conditions of pH 1, at 80°C for 2 hours. While in the deposition process, the precipitation recovery of each element is 57% uranium, 75.7% thorium, 4.8% rare earth metals at pH 6 conditions. Based on these data, it can be concluded that uranium, thorium, and rare earth elements can be dissolved at pH 1, at 80°C for 2 hours, and can be separated at pH 6 precipitation conditions.

The Deep Rocky Biosphere: New Geomicrobiological Insights and Prospects

Rocks that react with liquid water are widespread but spatiotemporally limited throughout the solar system, except for Earth. Rock-forming minerals with high iron content and accessory minerals with high amounts of radioactive elements are essential to support rock-hosted microbial life by supplying organics, molecular hydrogen, and/or oxidants. Recent technological advances have broadened our understanding of the rocky biosphere, where microbial inhabitation appears to be difficult without nutrient and energy inputs from minerals. In particular, microbial proliferation in igneous rock basements has been revealed using innovative geomicrobiological techniques. These recent findings have dramatically changed our perspective on the nature and the extent of microbial life in the rocky biosphere, microbial interactions with minerals, and the influence of external factors on habitability. This study aimed to gather information from scientific and/or technological innovations, such as omics-based and single-cell level characterizations, targeting deep rocky habitats of organisms with minimal dependence on photosynthesis. By synthesizing pieces of rock-hosted life, we can explore the evo-phylogeny and ecophysiology of microbial life on Earth and the life’s potential on other planetary bodies.

Investigation of Magneto-/Radio-Metric Behavior in Order to Identify an Estimator Model Using K-Means Clustering and Artificial Neural Network (ANN) (Iron Ore Deposit, Yazd, IRAN)

The study area is located near Toot village in the Yazd province of Iran, which is considered in terms of its iron mineralization potential. In this area, due to radioactivity, radiometric surveys were performed in a part of the area where magnetometric studies have also been performed. According to geological studies, the presence of magnetic anomalies can have a complex relationship with the intensity of radioactivity of radioactive elements. Using the K-means clustering method, the centers of the clusters were calculated with and without considering the coordinates of radiometric points. Finally, the behavior of the two variables of magnetic field strength and radioactivity of radioactive elements relative to each other was studied, and a mathematical relationship was presented to analyze the behavior of these two variables relative to each other. On the other hand, the increasing and then decreasing behavior of the intensity of the Earth’s magnetic field relative to the intensity of radioactivity of radioactive elements shows that it is possible to generalize the results of magnetometric surveys to radiometry without radiometric re-sampling in this region and neighboring areas. For this purpose, using the general regression neural network and backpropagation neural network (BPNN) methods, radiometric data were estimated with very good accuracy. The general regression neural network (GRNN) method, with more precision in estimation, was used as a model for estimating the radiation intensity of radioactive elements in other neighboring areas.

Irene Joliot-Curie, Frederic Joliot-Curie

Irene Joliot-Curie is the daughter of Marie Curie, a double Nobel Prize-winner. In 1925, Irene Curie became Doctor of Science.In 1926, Irene married her colleague Frederic Joliot, an assistant at the Radium Institute. With him, she continued experiments with various chemical elements. In some of these experiments, Irene and Frederic performed bombardment of boron, and aluminium with alpha particles, thereby producing new chemical elements. These new elements were radioactive: aluminum became radioactive phosphorus, while boron became a radioactive isotope of nitrogen. Within a short time, Joliot-Curie created many new radioactive elements. In 1935, Irene and Frederic Joliot-Curie were jointly awarded the Nobel Prize for Chemistry for their artificial creation of new radioactive elements Working with uranium in the late 1930s, Irene Joliot-Curie made several important discoveries and came close to the discovery of uranium decay, when bombarded with neutrons.Jean Frederic Joliot was born in Paris, in the family of a prosperous merchant Henri Joliot and Emilia (Roederer) Joliot, who came from a wealthy Protestant family from Alsace.Frederic obtained his Doctor of Science degree in 1930 for a thesis on the electrochemistry of radioactive polonium. Having received the Nobel Prize in 1935 together with his wife, 35-year-old Frederick still remains the youngest Nobel Laureate in Chemistry.The discoveries and achievements of the Joliot-Curie family laid the foundation for further research in nuclear physics, chemistry, and nuclear medicine. Without their discoveries, it is impossible to imagine modern science and everyday life.