Nuclear Materials

Complexity in nuclear materials.

Nuclear power remains a contentious issue for many. Its proponents point towards it being a cost-competitive, feasible route for meeting our ever growing appetite for energy, with relatively low greenhouse gas emissions (Nature Mater. 7, 679; 2008). Those against a nuclear-led energy policy cite concerns over the devastating impact a nuclear incident can have, as well as the complex scientific ...

Thermodynamics of Nuclear Materials

In general, thermodynamics is the study of laws governing processes which involve heat changes. It includes the study of conditions under which various substances exist in chemical equilibria, the consequences of chemical reactions and the interchange of heat and other forms of energy when a chemical re action occurs. In the field of nuclear technology, it is necessary to know how construction ...

Using Nuclear Materials To Prevent Nuclear Proliferation

Efforts to halt proliferation of nuclear weapons are threatened by vulnerability of weapons-usable material to smuggling especially in Russia. Mixing 232 U into highlyenriched uranium (HEU) makes it readily observable and harder to steal. Adding a proportion of 233 U associated with a specific storage site enables attribution to be performed on stolen HEU that has been recovered. Incorporating ...

Uncovering Special Nuclear Materials by Low-energy Nuclear Reaction Imaging

Weapons-grade uranium and plutonium could be used as nuclear explosives with extreme destructive potential. The problem of their detection, especially in standard cargo containers during transit, has been described as "searching for a needle in a haystack" because of the inherently low rate of spontaneous emission of characteristic penetrating radiation and the ease of its shielding. Currently,...

Radiation Effects in Nuclear Waste Materials