Isotopic feature and uranium dating of the volcanic rocks in the Okinawa Trough

Volcanic rocks from the northern and middle Okinawa Trough were dated by uranium-series dating method. Differential fractions using magnetic procedure were designed to separate samples. New report on the ages and isotopic data of rocks in the northern trough (especially black pumice) was discussed. Based on the uranium dates and Sr-Nd isotopic ratio, magmatic evolution process of the Okinawa Trough was noted. Firstly, there have been wide silicic volcanic activities in the Okinawa Trough from late Pleistocene to present, and the volcanic rocks can be divided into three subgroups. Secondly, magma generally came from PREMA source area under the Okinawa Trough. Magmatic evolution in the northern trough was similar to the middle, but different to the south. Finally, volcanic activities indicated that opening of the southern Okinawa Trough did not happen due to the collision between Luson Arc and Eurasian Plate until the early Pleistocene.

Behavior of uranium in the Yellow River plume (Yellow river estuary)

The Yellow River (Huanghe) is the second largest river in China and is known for its high turbidity. It also has remarkably high levels of dissolved uranium (U) concentrations (up to 38 nmol l(-1)). To examine the mixing behavior of dissolved U between river water and seawater, surface water samples were collected along a salinity gradient from the Yellow River plume during September 2004 and were measured for dissolved U concentration, U-234:U-238 activity ratio, phosphate (PO43-), and suspended particulate matter. Laboratory experiments were also conducted to simulate the mixing process in the Yellow River plume using unfiltered Yellow River water and filtered seawater. The results showed a nonconservative behavior for dissolved U at salinities < 20 with an addition of U to the plume waters estimated at about 1.4 X 10(5) mol yr(-1). A similarity between variations in dissolved U and PO43- with salinity was also found. There are two major mechanisms, desorption from suspended sediments and diffusion from interstitial waters of bottom sediments, that may cause the elevated concentrations of dissolved U and PO43- in mid-salinity waters. Mixing experiments indicate that desorption seems more responsible for the elevated dissolved U concentrations, whereas diffusion influences more the enrichment of PO43-.

Mantle-derived gaseous components in ore-forming fluids of the Xiangshan uranium

The Xiangshan U deposit, the largest hydrothermal U deposit in China, is hosted in late Jurassic felsic volcanic rocks although the U mineralization post dates the volcanics by at least 20 Ma. The mineralization coincides with intrusion of local mantle-derived mafic dykes formed during Cretaceous crustal extension in South China. Ore-forming fluids are rich in CO2, and U in the fluid is thought to have been dissolved in the form of UO2 (CO3)22− and UO2 (CO3) 34− complexes. This paper provides He and Ar isotope data of fluid inclusions in pyrites and C isotope data of calcites associated with U mineralization (pitchblende) in the Xiangshan U deposit. He isotopic compositions range between 0.1 and 2.0Ra (where Ra is the 3He/4He ratio of air=1.39×10−6) and correlates with 40Ar/36Ar; although there is potential for significant 3He production via 6Li(n,α)3H(β)3He reactions in a U deposit (due to abundant neutrons), nucleogenic production cannot account for either the 3He concentration in these fluids, nor the correlations between He and Ar isotopic compositions. It is more likely that the high 3He/4He ratios represent trapped mantle-derived gases. A mantle origin for the volatiles of Xiangshan is consistent with the δ13C values of calcites, which vary from −3.5‰ to −7.7‰, overlapping the range of mantle CO2. The He, Ar and CO2 characteristics of the ore-forming fluids responsible for the deposit are consistent with mixing between 3He- and CO2-rich mantle-derived fluids and CO2-poor meteoric fluids. These fluids were likely produced during Cretaceous extension and dyke intrusion which permitted mantle-derived CO2 to migrate upward and remobilize U from the acid volcanic source rocks, resulting in the formation of the U deposit. Subsequent decay of U within the fluid inclusions has reduced the 3He/4He ratio, and variations in U/3He result in the range in 3He/4He observed with U/3He ratios in the range 5–17×103 likely corresponding to U concentrations in the fluids b0.2 ppm.

Defects in U3+: CaF2 single crystals grown under different conditions by the temperature gradient technique

Defects in as-grown U3+ : CaF2 crystals grown with or without PbF2 as an oxygen scavenger were studied using Raman spectra, thermoluminescence glow curves, and additional absorption (AA) spectra induced by heating and gamma-irradiation. The effects of heating and irradiation on as-grown U3+: CaF2 crystals are similar, accompanied by the elimination of H-type centers and production of F-type centers. U3+ is demonstrated to act as an electron donor in the CaF2 lattice, which is oxidized to the tetravalent form by thermal activation or gamma-irradiation. In the absence of PbF(2)as an oxygen scavenger, the as-grown U3+:CaF2 crystals contain many more lattice defects in terms of both quantity and type, due to the presence of O2- impurities. Some of these defects can recombine with each other in the process of heating and gamma-irradiation. (c) 2005 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Optical properties of UO2 and PuO2

We perform first-principles calculations of electronic structure and optical properties for UO2 and PuO2 based on the density functional theory using the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) + U scheme. The main features in orbital-resolved partial density of states for occupied f and p orbitals, unoccupied d orbitals, and related gaps are well reproduced compared to experimental observations. Based on the satisfactory ground-state electronic structure calculations, the dynamical dielectric function and related optical spectra, i.e., the reflectivity, adsorption coefficient, energy-loss, and refractive index spectrum, are obtained. These results are consistent with the available experiments.

粘红酵母对铀的吸附研究

Characteristic of uranium biosorption in water solution by Rhodotorula glutinis was investigated in the present study and the optimal pH for uranium adsorption was found to be 6-7.At the same time,maximum adsorption capacity of 149.4 mgU/(g dry cell)was identified,and Langmuir adsorption models can be used to simulate the isothermal biosorption process with high correlation coefficient of 0.99.According to Fourier transform infrared spectra,a new peak at wave number of 904 cm-1,which can be assigned to the ...中文摘要：研究了粘红酵母对水溶液中铀的吸附行为,发现其吸附铀的最佳pH值为6～7,最大吸附量为149.4mgU.g-1,其吸附等温线和Langmuir吸附等温方程符合较好,相关系数R2达到0.99;比较吸附铀前后粘红酵母的红外光谱图发现,吸附过铀的菌体的红外光谱在904cm-1处出现了一个新的峰,此峰为UO2的伸缩振动峰,说明粘红酵母确实对铀发生了吸附作用。此外,氨基或羟基的伸缩振动峰由3309移至3287cm-1,细胞壁中碳水化合物或醇中C—O键伸缩振动发生位移,由1068移至1080cm-1,说明这些基团可能参与了吸附过程;蛋白质的特征吸收峰(1653,1540,1237cm-1)在吸附前后基本无明显变化,表明粘红酵母的主要成分及结构仍保持完整。吸附后的菌体利用0.1mol.L-1的NaHCO3处理后可解吸出其中96%的铀,可见该菌在铀矿废水处理方面具有广阔的应用前景。

The preparation of 238U targets on 2mm Al foils

Preparation of 238U on 2μm Al foils by molecular plating technique is described. In order to obtain optimum conditions for deposition, several parameters influencing the quality of layers such as current density, distance between the anode and cathode and the deposition time were investigated. The target thickness was determined by spectrophotometry. The uniformity and morphology of the target surface were studied by means of scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry and Infrared spectra. The results show that uranium is deposited in its oxide or hydroxide form uniformly and adherently onto the foil.