Nuclear physics studies using high energy lasers

This paper presents several mechanisms expected to be responsible for nuclear excitation in laser-heated plasma. Attempts to detect such processes in nuclei initially in their ground state are discussed in ¹⁸¹Ta and ²³⁵U cases. A calculation of the nuclear excitation by electronic transition (NEET) rate is presented in a ²⁰¹Hg plasma at local thermodynamic equilibrium. We also report on a new way of de-exciting isomeric states in plasma. This indirect decay mode is illustrated in the case of the ⁸⁴Rb isomer nucleus.     

Nuclear energy: current situation and prospects to 2020

For close to half a century nuclear fission has been providing reliable supplies of electricity to the UK, with virtually no emissions of carbon dioxide. Over that period, the UK nuclear industry has avoided the emission of over one and a half billion tonnes of CO2. Yet no nuclear plant has been built in the UK for over two decades even though many of the stations in our current fleet are now within a decade or so of the end of their lifetime. Without new plants being ordered soon, the UK's nuclear capacity will decline dramatically, from 23% today to 3% post-2020--just as considerations of supply security and climate change are becoming increasingly important. Elsewhere in the world, many countries such as China, India, Japan, South Korea, Finland and France are building new stations. Other countries such as the USA, South Africa, and some nations that currently do not have nuclear stations (such as Indonesia and Poland) are making preparations for future nuclear stations. Globally capacity factors for nuclear plants are higher than they have ever been, averaging around 85% and with the best stations achieving well over 90%. Lifetime can be 60 years. That the economics of such stations compete well with other technologies is well founded and easily verifiable--especially in the face of rising fossil fuel prices and the pricing in of costs for CO2 emissions--both of which stand to improve the economics of nuclear energy still further. Waste volumes arising from modern plants are just a fraction of those of some earlier stations, and the technologies are in place to deal with them safely and effectively. Following recent reviews and international developments, there is growing confidence that internationally available competitive designs of nuclear plant will provide part of the solution to the UK's long-term energy needs.     

Scientific wealth and inequality within nations

We show that the greater the scientific wealth of a nation, the more likely that it will tend to concentrate this excellence in a few premier institutions. That is, great wealth implies great inequality of distribution. The “scientific wealth” is interpreted in terms of citation data harvested by Google Scholar Citations for profiled institutions from all countries in the world.     

The patent system and the transfer of technology to developing nations

This paper examines the patent system as a source of technological information and its role in the transfer of technology to developing nations. Included are the activities of the United Nations and its Specialized Agencies in the transfer of technology from developed nations to developing nations. It also examines the successes and obstacles in the transfer of technology.     

Nuclear Regulatory Authority low energy germanium detection system: performance for the uranium individual monitoring

The lung counter facility of the Nuclear Regulatory Authority (ARN) is presented. A calibration was carried out using the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) phantom. This phantom is provided with a pair of lungs and lymph nodes containing uranium homogeneously distributed and a set of four overlay plates covering a chest wall thickness (CWT) ranging from 1.638 to 3.871 cm. Individual organ calibration factors were acquired for 235U photopeaks energies and for each effective chest thickness. Using these factors, a collection of theoretical fitting curves were found. A counting efficiency formulae and a curve for simultaneously active lymph nodes and lung was obtained and checked through measures. Background measurements of the chamber with and without volunteer persons were performed in order to obtain the detection limits (DL) of the system. As this task involves the knowledge of the volunteers CWTs, these magnitudes were determined through formulae selected from the literature taking into account the detection system characteristics. The deviation in the CWT assigned to an individual, generated by applying different equations, produces variations up to 33% in the estimations of the incorporated activity and DL. An analysis of the changes in efficiencies as consequences of the detectors locations and CWT was also performed. This reveals that the DL of the camera (detectors, shield and blank phantom) is between 2.7 and 6.4 Bq of 235U, which implies 4.9 and 11.5 mg lung burden of natural uranium. An estimation of the minimum detectable intake performed with the DL considering blank persons shows that a system with the characteristics described is only adequate for non-routine individual monitoring.     

Comparison of the etalons of the pressure unit of the CEMA member nations

Measurement Techniques -     

Porter vs. Porter: Modeling the technological competitiveness of nations

The author evaluates two major models of technological competitiveness of nations, and proposes a synthesized model based on their strengths and then complements it with additional measures. The paper addresses definition distinctions between the terms “competition” and “innovation”, discusses the differing views on whether certain statistics are either input or output indicators, and reconsiders the relevance of the unit of analysis. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Edge factors: scientific frontier positions of nations

Scientometrics - A key decision in scientific work is whether to build on novel or well-established ideas. Because exploiting new ideas is often harder than more conventional science, novel work...     

Technology achievement index 2009: ranking and comparative study of nations

Ranking of 91 countries based on the Technology Achievement Index 2009 (TAI-09) (2009 refers to the year in which most of data collection was carried out.) is reported. Originally proposed in 2002, the TAI is a composite indicator which aggregates national technological capabilities and performance in terms of creation/diffusion of new technologies, diffusion of old technologies and development of human skills. In addition to the overall ranking of 91 countries, rankings in each sub-dimension of the Index are also reported. Comparative analysis of TAI ranking of 56 countries, common to the present and previous study of 2002 under similar conditions, is quite instructive and indicates shifts in technological scenario of these countries even over a relatively short period of 5?C6 years. A simple concept based on Standard Deviation approach, as an indication of the technological spread or otherwise, is proposed for the first time. Application of this concept to 56 common countries is reported.     

Work to assure unity of angular measurements in the CEMA member nations

Measurement Techniques - Collaboration between the metrological institutes of the CEMA member nations in the area of measuring angles has, in a comparatively short time, permitted the creation of...     

Investigation of the interdependence of stress corrosion of austenitic chromium-nickel steels and their susceptibility to intergranular corrosion

The susceptibility of chromium-nickel austenitic steels to intergranular corrosion was studied on stressed and stress-free specimens tested in accordance with GOST [Soviet standard] 6032-58 and in superheated water at high pressures. It was concluded that steels susceptible to intergranular corrosion should not be used in contact with boiler water and chloride solutions.