Studies on water transport in quasi two-dimensional porous systems using neutron radiography

The spontaneous wetting and drying of flat porous samples of linen, cotton and synthetic textiles were studied using dynamic neutron radiography (DNR). The progress of the wetting process of the media was delineated from the obtained neutron dynamical radiography images. The results of the investigation reveal a non-classical behaviour of kinetics of wicking of these materials. The character of the wetting kinetics is discussed in terms of the fractal character of the tortuosity of fabric capillaries.

Radiation synthesis of poly(acrylic acid) nanogels for drug delivery applications – post-synthesis product colloidal stability

Synthesis of polymer nanogels (NGs) for biomedical applications is considered to be a very promising application in radiation engineering. Under high-dose pulse irradiation of dilute aqueous polymer solution, reactive species generated by water radiolysis can create multiple radicals on each macromolecule and consequently induce intramolecular cross-linking of polymer chains, resulting in NG formation. The obtained products are free from harmful monomers, initiators, and cross-linking agents, which makes them potentially applicable for drug delivery applications. One of the biggest challenges in handling and use of nanoparticles, however, is the colloidal stability, when aqueous suspensions are stored for prolonged periods. Therefore, development of the best protocols for the particular nanocarrier storage is key. To address this need, we have performed the prospective study in which we systematically assessed the influence of various processing and storage scenarios feasible in our lab, on the colloidal stability of the radiation-synthesized poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) NG particles in suspension. This allowed us to choose the optimal way of handling the product after its synthesis. We confirmed that none of the strategies we used and tested are substantially detrimental to our product. Filtration with 0.2-μm filters was proven sufficient for sample purification and prolonged storage in aqueous suspension did not exert a negative effect on the colloidal stability of particles suspension. We have also demonstrated that lyoprotectant-free lyophilization was suitable for our polymer nanoparticles. This is an important fact for further application of particles as nanocarriers for biologically active compounds such as targeting ligands or therapeutic moieties.

Numerical modelling of modular high-temperature gas-cooled reactors with thorium fuel

The volumetric homogenization method for the simplified modelling of modular high-temperature gas-cooled reactor core with thorium-uranium fuel is presented in the paper. The method significantly reduces the complexity of the 3D numerical model. Hence, the computation time associated with the time-consuming Monte Carlo modelling of neutron transport is considerably reduced. Example results comprise the time evolutions of the effective neutron multiplication factor and fissionable isotopes (233U, 235U, 239Pu, 241Pu) for a few configurations of the initial reactor core.

Plasma technology to remove NOx from off-gases

Operation of marine diesel engines causes significant emission of sulphur and nitrogen oxides. It was noticed worldwide and the regulations concerning harmful emissions were introduced. There were several solutions elaborated; however, emission control for both SOx and NOx requires two distinctive processes realized in separated devices, which is problematic due to limited space on ship board and high overall costs. Therefore, the electron beam flue gas treatment (EBFGT) process was adopted to ensure the abatement of the problem of marine diesel off-gases. This novel solution combines two main processes: first the flue gas is irradiated with electron beam where NO and SO2 are oxidized; the second stage is wet scrubbing to remove both pollutants with high efficiency. Laboratory tests showed that this process could be effectively applied to remove SO2 and NOx from diesel engine off-gases. Different compositions of absorbing solution with three different oxidants (NaClO, NaClO2 and NaClO3) were tested. The highest NOx removal efficiency (>96%) was obtained when seawater-NaClO2-NaOH was used as scrubber solution at 10.9 kGy dose. The process was further tested in real maritime conditions at Riga shipyard, Latvia. More than 45% NOx was removed at a 5.5 kGy dose, corresponding to 4800 Nm3/h off-gases arising from ship emission. The operation of the plant was the first case of examination of the hybrid electron beam technology in real conditions. Taking into account the experiment conditions, good agreement was obtained with laboratory tests. The results obtained in Riga shipyard provided valuable information for the application of this technology for control of large cargo ship emission.

Radiolytic synthesis of gold nanoparticles in HEMA-based hydrogels: Potentialities for imaging nanocomposites

This article reports on the radiolytic synthesis of nanocomposites containing gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) within two types of hydrogels based on 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA): (i) plain networks with various contents in ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA), as a cross-linker and (ii) stimuli-responsive (SR) networks prepared from these monomers copolymerized with [2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyl]trimethylammonium chloride (MADQUAT) to confer pH-switchable swelling. Hydrogels were prepared by photopolymerization with well-defined composition and a high degree of monomer conversion using two experimental procedures, as xerogels or in aqueous solution. Besides MADQUAT, acrylic acid (AA) or N-isopropylacrylamide have been tested as copolymers, yielding pHor temperature-sensitive hydrogels, respectively. Isothermal swelling in water was affected by monomer composition. Electron beam (EB) irradiation at doses up to 100 kGy of poly(HEMA) xerogels and water-swollen networks prepared with 0.5 wt% of EGDMA had a moderate impact on swelling characteristics and thermomechanical properties of the plain materials, whereas small amounts of extractables were formed. Poly(HEMA)-based nanocomposites containing AuNPs were successfully obtained by EB irradiation of samples swollen by aqueous solutions of Au(III). The effects of dose and cross-linking density on the formation of AuNPs were monitored by UV-visible spectroscopy. Irradiation at well-defined temperatures of the Au(III)-loaded SR hydrogels induced the formation of nanoparticles with size-dependent features, whereas the efficiency of Au(III) reduction at 10 kGy was not significantly affected by the network structure. EB-induced reduction of Au(III) in poly(HEMA) hydrogels using a lead mask to generate well-defined patterns yielded coloured and long-lasting images in the zones where the nanocomposite was formed.

Studies on uranium recovery from a U-bearing Radoniów Dump

This work reports the possibility of uranium recovery from a post-mining uranium ore dump in Poland by a bioleaching method. The studies were conducted on the dump leaching model with the mass of 570 kg of uranium bearing mineral material from Radoniów pile and in the periodic bioreactor with a work volume of 80 dm3 and with mechanical mixing and aeration of the charge. The uranium concentration in the examined material was about 800 ppm. In this process, the consortium of microorganisms isolated from former mines was used. It was composed of the following microorganisms: Bacillius, Pseudomonas, Sphingomonas, Thiobacillus, Halothiobacillus, Thiomonas, and Geothrix. The efficiency of the uranium bioleaching process was 98% in the reactor, and a yield of 70% was obtained in the dump leaching model. The post-leaching solution contained significant amounts of uranium ions that were separated in two stages: (1) by ion chromatography and then (2) by a two-step precipitation method. The resulting solution was a source of ammonium diuranate, the precursor of yellowcake (uranium oxides).

GC investigation of post-irradiation oxidation phenomena on polypropylene

The paper summarizes the results of research on gas products of polypropylene (PP) radiolysis. Particular attention was paid to the phenomena of post-radiation degradation of PP. The protective effect of selected aromatic compounds was investigated. The research was carried out both from the point of view of obtaining radiation-resistant PP varieties and the possibility of accelerating biodegradation phenomena, e.g., PP/cellulose composition. The phenomena of post-radiation chain oxidation of PP were investigated by gas chromatography (GC). The GC in the system used (packed column, thermal conductivity detector, argon – carrier gas) enables the determination of H2, O2, CO, and CH4 in one measurement. The samples were irradiated with electron beams (EBs) accelerated in accelerators: Elektronika 10/10 with a power of 10 kW and energy of 10 MeV and LAE 13/9 with a power of 9 kW and energy up to 13 MeV. In the tests, PP without stabilizing additives (obtained directly from the production line) and non-stabilized styrene were used. Radiolytic efficiency of hydrogen evolution allowed us to estimate the number of originally formed free radicals. The maintenance of the secondary oxidation processes was the loss of oxygen and the formation of oxidation products (CO, CH4). Attention is paid to the protective effect of aromatic compounds (polystyrene (PS), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), anthracene, fluoranthene, acenaphthene, pyrene, naphthalene) both at the stage of hydrogen atom separation and the secondary oxidation process. The examples of post-radiation oxidation of PP irradiated in cryogenic conditions (–196°C) are presented. All used aromatic compounds showed a protective effect in PP radiolysis. We suppose that this phenomenon is responsible for the charge transfer along the polymer chain from the ionization spurs to the aromatic compound. The protective ranges of PS in PP radiolysis were estimated for the variously prepared PP/PS type compositions from 6 mers to 28 mers.

Effect of gamma irradiation on microbiological and nutritional properties of the freeze-dried berries

Lyophilization or freeze-drying is the technique of removing ice or other frozen solvents from a material through sublimation and the removal of bound water molecules through the process of desorption. Drying occurs in an absolute vacuum at temperatures from −40°C to −50°C. This technique is often used for the conservation of fruits, especially berries. During this process, the water changes from frozen to gaseous, with no thawing. Due to low temperatures and the high vacuum, most microorganisms are rendered inactive during the lyophilization process. However, if there is a necessity to destroy all microorganisms from treated food, subsequent irradiation with gamma rays is an appropriate method. This paper investigated the influence of different doses of gamma radiation on lyophilized berries’ microbiological characteristics. It was shown that the radiation dose of 7 kGy is sufficient to eliminate the total number of microorganisms (excluding molds) to the extent that the number falls below the permitted limit according t o the law on the microbiological safety of foodstuffs of the Republic of Serbia, and 5 kGy is enough for molds to be rendered inactive. It was also concluded that gamma irradiation does not affect the nutritional value of lyophilized berries.

Optimization of the loading pattern of the PWR core using genetic algorithms and multi-purpose fitness function

The study demonstrates an application of genetic algorithms (GAs) in the optimization of the first core loading pattern. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) BEAVRS pressurized water reactor (PWR) model was applied with PARCS nodal-diffusion core simulator coupled with GA numerical tool to perform pattern selection. In principle, GAs have been successfully used in many nuclear engineering problems such as core geometry optimization and fuel configuration. In many cases, however, these analyses focused on optimizing only a single parameter, such as the effective neutron multiplication factor (k eff), and often limited to the simplified core model. On the contrary, the GAs developed in this work are equipped with multiple-purpose fitness function (FF) and allow the optimization of more than one parameter at the same time, and these were applied to a realistic full-core problem. The main parameters of interest in this study were the total power peaking factor (PPF) and the length of the fuel cycle. The basic purpose of this study was to improve the economics by finding longer fuel cycle with more uniform power/flux distribution. Proper FFs were developed, tested, and implemented and their results were compared with the reference BEAVRS first fuel cycle. In the two analysed test scenarios, it was possible to extend the first fuel cycle while maintaining lower or similar PPF, in comparison with the BEAVRS core, but for the price of increased initial reactivity.

Decomposition of diclofenac in sewage from municipal wastewater treatment plant using ionizing radiation

The decomposition of diclofenac (DCF) in sewage sludge from municipal wastewater treatment plant was investigated. It was found that adsorption of DCF on sludge is about 40%. Compared to previous studies, where the degradation yield in aqueous solution was 100%, in those experiments at the dose up to 5 kGy, only 50% of initial DCF concentration of 50 mg L−1 was decomposed in sediment and in solution over the sediment. The experiments were carried out using both gamma radiation and electron beam. It has been observed that DCF in the aqueous phase, above the sediment, was decomposed with the same efficiency using both gamma radiation and electron beam. Whereas for DCF in the sediment, a higher degradation efficiency was found when gamma radiation was applied. This is most likely due to the limited penetration depth of the electron beam into the sludge layer. It was shown that the applied peroxide addition (in a stoichiometric amount needed for complete mineralization of 50 mg L−1 DCF) did not cause increase in yield of DCF decomposition.