Impact of different moderator ratios with light and heavy water cooled reactors in equilibrium states

As an issue of sustainable development in the world, energy sustainability using nuclear energy may be possible using several different ways such as increasing breeding capability of the reactors and optimizing the fuel utilization using spent fuel after reprocessing as well as exploring additional nuclear resources from sea water. In this present study the characteristics of light and heavy water cooled reactors for different moderator ratios in equilibrium states have been investigated. The moderator to fuel ratio (MFR) is varied from 0.1 to 4.0. Four fuel cycle schemes are evaluated in order to investigate the effect of heavy metal (HM) recycling. A calculation method for determining the required uranium enrichment for criticality of the systems has been developed by coupling the equilibrium fuel cycle burn-up calculation and cell calculation of SRAC 2000 code using nuclear data library from the JENDL 3.2. The results show a thermal spectrum peak appears for light water coolant and no thermal peak for heavy water coolant along the MFR (0.1 ? MFR ? 4.0). The plutonium quality can be reduced effectively by increasing the MFR and number of recycled HM. Considering the effect of increasing number of recycled HM; it is also effective to reduce the uranium utilization and to increase the conversion ratio. trans-Plutonium production such as americium (Am) and curium (Cm) productions are smaller for heavy water coolant than light water coolant. The light water coolant shows the feasibility of breeding when HM is recycled with reducing the MFR. Wider feasible area of breeding has been obtained when light water coolant is replaced by heavy water coolant.     

Influence of void fraction change on plutonium and minor actinides recycling in BWR with equilibrium burnup

A study on the influence of void fraction change on plutonium and minor actinides recycling in standard boiling water reactor (BWR) with equilibrium burnup model has been conducted. We considered the equilibrium burnup model since it is a simple time independent burnup method that can handle all possible produced nuclides in any nuclear system.

The uranium enrichment for the criticality of the reactor diminishes significantly for the plutonium and minor actinides recycling case compared to that of the once-through cycle of BWR case. This parameter decreases much lower with the increasing of the void fraction. A similar propensity was also shown in the required natural uranium per annum. The annual required natural uranium was calculated by assuming that the uranium concentration in the tail of the enrichment plant is 0.25 w%. The amount of loaded fuel reduces slightly with the increment of the void fraction for plutonium and minor recycling in BWR.     

Acidochromicity of a low‐molecular‐weight pyrimidine‐based copolymer

A new type of low‐molecular‐weight polypyrimidine in a π‐conjugated main chain was prepared by a Grignard reaction between 2‐amino‐4,6‐dichloropyrimidine and 1,4‐dibromo‐2,5‐didodecyloxybenzene in the presence of [1,2‐Bis(diphenylphosphino) ethane]dichloronickel(II). The structure of the copolymer was fully elucidated by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, ¹H‐NMR, and elemental analysis. The copolymer had good solubility in common organic solvents. The copolymer displayed a bathochromic shift when protonated with an organic or inorganic acid in chloroform or tetrahydrofuran. The copolymer depicted facile p‐doping and good electron‐transporting electrochemical properties in a 1M H₂SO₄ aqueous solution. The copolymer showed a narrow polydispersity of 1.04. Thermogravimetric analysis showed that the copolymer had a certain thermal stability with no decomposition at a temperature of 250°C under N₂. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014 , 131, 41174.     

改善高磷蠕墨铸铁机械性能的探讨

本文研究分析了含磷量对利用新疆地方生铁制取蠕铁的磷共晶数量、分布及机械性能的影响，并通过强化孕育和热处理方式进一步提高了该铸铁的机械性能指标．     

Synthesis and characterization of poly(hydroxamic acid) chelating resin from poly(methyl acrylate)‐grafted sago starch

A new chelating ion‐exchange resin containing the hydroxamic acid functional group was synthesized from poly(methyl acrylate) (PMA)‐grafted sago starch. The PMA grafted copolymer was obtained by a free‐radical initiating process in which ceric ammonium nitrate was used as an initiator. Conversion of the ester groups of the PMA‐grafted copolymer into hydroxamic acid was carried out by treatment of an ester with hydroxylamine in an alkaline solution. The characterization of the poly(hydroxamic acid) chelating resin was performed by FTIR spectroscopy, TG, and DSC analyses. The hydroxamic acid functional group was identified by infrared spectroscopy. The chelating behavior of the prepared resin toward some metal ions was investigated using a batch technique. The binding capacities of copper, iron, chromium, and nickel were excellent and the copper capacity was maximum (3.46 mmol g⁻¹) at pH 6. The rate of exchange of the copper ion was very fast that is, t_1/2 < 5 min. It was also observed that the metal ion‐sorption capacities of the resin were pH‐dependent and its selectivity toward the metal ions used is in the following order: Cu²⁺ > Fe³⁺ > Cr³⁺ > Ni²⁺ > Co²⁺ > Zn²⁺ > Cd²⁺ > As³⁺ > Pb²⁺. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 79: 1256–1264, 2001     

Simulation of forced convection in a channel with nanofluid by the lattice Boltzmann method

This paper presents a numerical study of the thermal performance of fins mounted on the bottom wall of a horizontal channel and cooled with either pure water or an Al₂O₃-water nanofluid. The bottom wall of the channel is heated at a constant temperature and cooled by mixed convection of laminar flow at a relatively low temperature. The results of the numerical simulation indicate that the heat transfer rate of fins is significantly affected by the Reynolds number (Re) and the thermal conductivity of the fins. The influence of the solid volume fraction on the increase of heat transfer is more noticeable at higher values of the Re.     

Predicting phase behavior in aqueous systems without fitting binary parameters I: CP‐PC‐SAFT EOS,aromatic compounds

This study examines an accuracy of CP‐PC‐SAFT attached by the 4C cross‐association scheme and zero values of binary parameters in predicting the high temperature‐high pressure phase behavior in aqueous systems of aromatic compounds containing one and two benzoic rings, CO₂ and cis‐decalin. In spite of the noteworthy complexity of these systems and the entirely predictive nature of the current approach, it correctly predicts the topology of phase behavior and typically yields the quantitatively accurate estimations of critical loci and the hydrocarbon–rich liquid phases in wide range of conditions. The available single phase volumetric data are also predicted accurately. Unfortunately, it is not a case of the water–rich phases exhibiting very small hydrocarbon concentrations. Nevertheless, the model is still capable of capturing the solubility minima characteristic for these phases around the room temperature. Predictions of the recent version of Simplified PC‐SAFT proposed by Liang et al. (2014) are also discussed. © 2017 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 63: 4124–4135, 2017     

Preliminary study on feasibility of large and small water cooled thorium breeder reactor in equilibrium states

Fuel breeding is one of the essential performances for a self-sustaining reactor system which can maintains the fuel sustainability while the reactor produces energy and consumes the fissile materials during operation. Thorium cycle shows some advantageous on higher breeding characteristics in thermal neutron spectrum region as shown in the Shippingport reactor and molten salt breeder reactor (MSBR) project. In the present study, the feasibility of large and small water cooled thorium breeder reactors is investigated under equilibrium conditions where the reactors are fueled by ²³³U–Th oxide and they adopts light water coolant as moderator. The key properties such as required enrichment, breeding capability, and initial fissile inventory are evaluated. The conversion ratio and fissile inventory ratio (FIR) are used for evaluating breeding performance. The results show the feasibility of breeding for small and large reactors. The breeding performance increases with increasing power output and lower power density. The small reactor may achieve the breeding condition when the fuel pellets' power density of about 22.5 W/cm³ and burnup of about 20 GWd/t.     

Adsorbed species and reaction rates for NO-CO-O2 over Rh(111)

We have studied the NO-CO-O₂ reaction over a Rh(111) catalyst by monitoring the reaction products (CO₂, N₂O, and N₂) and the infrared (IR) intensity of surface CO and NO at various partial pressures of NO, CO and O₂, and sample temperatures. The selectivity for N₂O formation, apparent activation energy for product formation, and NO consumption rate during NO-CO-O₂ are identical to those measured during the NO-CO reaction. The IR measurements show that during NO-CO-O₂ the same two adsorbed species, NO at 1640 cm^-1 and linear CO at ~2040 cm^-1, are present in the same surface concentrations as during NO-CO. For this reason the NO-CO-O₂ kinetics are dominated by the NO-CO kinetics, the NO consumption is rate limited by dissociation of adsorbed NO, and the N₂O selectivity is dominated by surface NO coverage. In contrast, O₂ consumption is adsorption rate limited with the NO-CO adsorption-desorption equilibrium controlling the vacant sites required to dissociatively adsorb O₂. These kinetic and IR data of the CO-NO-O₂ reaction and our interpretation of them agree with previous studies over supported Rh catalysts and thus confirm the previously proposed explanation. From RAIRS and kinetic data we estimate the rate constant for the CO+O→CO₂ elementary step. The pre-exponential factor for this rate is 2×10¹⁰ s^-1, a factor of 50 smaller than previous estimates. This rate constant is important to the NO-CO-O₂ kinetics because it affects O coverage, which, under certain conditions, inhibits NO consumption. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.