Removal of uranium(VI) by zerovalent iron has been suggested as a feasible pathway to control uranium contaminations in seepage waters. Available information in the literature however presents discrepant evidence on the process responsible for the mitigation effect. On basis of an EH-pH diagram of uranium and iron, it is outlined that these discrepancies may be explained by the aqueous chemistr...

We use a laser high-harmonics-based extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) polarimeter to determine the optical constants of elemental uranium in the wavelength range from 10 to 47 nm. The constants are extracted from the measured ratio of p-polarized to s-polarized reflectance from a thin uranium film deposited in situ. The film thickness is inferred from a spectroscopic ellipsometry measurement of the sam...

While thorium dioxide is already used industrially in high temperature applications, more insight is needed about the behaviour of the material as part of a mixed-oxide (MOX) nuclear fuel, incorporating uranium. We have developed a new interatomic potential model, commensurate with a prominent existing UO2 potential, to conduct configurational analyses of uranium-doped ThO2 supercells. Using th...

Background: The South-west coast of India is known to have very high levels of natural background radiation due to the monazite beach sand. Uranium is the heaviest trace element found in all terrestrial substances at varying levels with chemical and radio toxicities. It supports several short-lived radioisotopes in its decay series including radium. Uranium in drinking water is importa...

Porcelain teeth have been widely used in restorative and prosthetic dentistry because of their fine natures in aesthetics and hardness as an artificial denture. Among them there are some to which the uranium compounds have been added in order to simulate the fluorescence of the natural teeth. Recently, it was pointed out by several researchers that the radiations from uranium and its descendant...

Lichens are widely used to assess the atmospheric pollution by heavy metals and radionuclides. However, few studies are available in publications on using lichens to qualitatively assess the atmospheric pollution levels. The paper presents research results applying epiphytic lichens as bio-monitors of quantitative atmospheric contamination with uranium. The observations were conducted during 2....

The Baiyanghe uranium deposit is a currently important medium-sized deposit in the Xuemisitan area, Xinjiang. The hydrothermal alteration in this deposit is closely related to the uranium mineralization of the deposit. In this study, hyperspectral data are collected from drill cores in the Baiyanghe uranium deposit using a FieldSpec4 visible-shortwave infrared spectrometer to study the hydrothe...

Understanding the corrosion of uranium is important for its safe, long-term storage. Uranium metal corrodes rapidly in air, but the exact mechanism remains subject to debate. Atom Probe Tomography was used to investigate the surface microstructure of metallic depleted uranium specimens following polishing and exposure to moist air. A complex, corrugated metal-oxide interface was observed, with ...

Uranium L(III)-edge X-ray absorption spectroscopy is often used to probe the oxidation state and coordination of uranium in environmental samples, and micrometre-sized beams can be used to spatially map the distribution of uranium relative to other elements. Here a variety of uranium-containing environmental samples are analyzed at both microbeam and larger beam sizes to determine whether reoxi...