大气散落核素复合示踪在土壤侵蚀科学中的应用

介绍了大气散落核素 7Be、2 1 0 Pbex、1 37Cs复合在土壤侵蚀和泥沙来源领域中的研究进展 ;阐述了核素比率应用的原理、特点及其能更为敏感地反映土壤侵蚀速率和过程等优点 ;说明多元素复合示踪在推断土壤不同侵蚀过程及估算土壤侵蚀速率方面的作用 ;论述了建立两核素相关深度曲线确定泥沙起源深度的应用原理和特点及其应用范围 ,并对各种方法进行了简单的评价。

大气沉降核素~(7)Be在黄土高原地被物中的分布初探

7Be具有环境微粒示踪价值,在示踪土壤侵蚀研究中有一定的应用,但是有关地被覆盖物对7Be截留吸收的研究目前还相当少,这直接影响了示踪结果的准确性、示踪模型的建立及应用。本文对不同地被物中的7Be含量进行了分析,结果表明:春季末地表不同地被覆盖物中干枯植物的7Be含量最大,半分解物次之,活植物中含量最少。在整个植物生长期内,植物体7Be累积含量呈增长趋势,尤其在秋季增加更为突出;不同植物中7Be含量差异性很大,变异系数达0.6;从总体上看,不同类型植物中7Be的平均含量分布趋势是草本>半灌木及小灌木>种植作物;和其它同类植物种相比,不同作物种中7Be含量的变异系数相对较大,为0.47。

环境210Pb研究新进展

210Pb等核素对于大气物质传输途径、流域侵蚀作用和水体沉积过程有重要示踪价值.认识它们在环境运移过程的作用机理、速率和通量是示踪研究的基本内容.我们最新的研究进展主要有:1)取得采样及分析数据的国际可比性;2)揭示黔中地区近地面空气210Pb呈现高浓度U型年分布特征;3)获得青海瓦里及山关顶部7Be的高浓度分布;气流强下沉影响在观风山的滞后性和低海拔气团上升影响在瓦里关山的滞后性;4)模拟显示210Pb在一些地区近地面空气的高浓度分布和在全球的高沉降通量环带分布;5)揭示富营养湖泊出现的微粒清洗效应及210Pbex对湖泊生产力变化的示踪价值.

^137Cs在滇西与黔中地区散落的差异—青藏隆起对滇西地区全球性扩散大气污染物散落屏蔽效应的推断

云贵高原是青藏隆起在南亚大陆形成的一个海拔梯度大、地势格局复杂的特异环境单元。该地域兼受东南季风与西南季风的交汇影响，是全球变化的敏感区之一。青藏隆起对云贵高原现代环境影响主要表现在：1）全球性大气扩散污染物的屏蔽效应和局地性大气扩散污染物的滞留效应；2）区域化学风化的增强效应和物理侵蚀的梯级效应；3）地表环境地球化学过程的低纬度－高海拔效应。核素示踪模式分析表明：滇西与黔中地区之间^137Cs自大气散落差异明显[1986年以前，洱海和红枫湖沉积物中^137Cs散落的累计值分别为（0．11±0．01）Bq/cm^2及（0．37±0．01）Bq/cm^2],而^7Be的散落相近。这说明青藏隆起对滇西地区存在全球性扩散大气污染物散落的屏敝效应。

地球化学示踪在现代土壤侵蚀研究中的应用

土壤侵蚀导致土地退化，农产品产量和品质下降，水环境污染等诸多问题，引起各方面的广泛关注，而且这个问题随着持续增长的人口压力和农业生产方式深刻变革的影响而日益严重，由于目前广泛使用的高差法，遥感研究法，RUSLE，野外调查法，水土流失监测点法等土壤侵蚀研究方法存在着一些不足，因此，核素地球化学示踪法，稀土元素示踪法，土壤地球化学指标法等地球化学示踪方法应运而生，在土壤侵蚀研究中发挥其独特作用，在比较了各种传统的土壤侵蚀研究方法的优势和不足的基础上，作者认为：（1）^137Cs,^210Pb可用于研究30、40年左右平均土壤侵蚀速率，^7Be可用于示踪季节性土壤侵蚀和一次降雨事件的土粒运移，并说明这些核素的示踪原理和侵蚀速率的定量依据；（2）人为施放稀土元素（REE）示踪法适合定量一次或多次降雨事件的侵蚀速率，可用于土壤侵蚀理论的研究，尤其适合于室内模拟实验的研究；（3）土壤磁化率法和土壤理化性质指标法研究土壤侵蚀是一种处于起步阶段的侵蚀研究方法，适用于土壤质量退化研究，但要用于土壤侵蚀研究特别是侵蚀速率的定量研究还很不成熟。

Tecniche di analisi digitale dei segnali prodotti da rivelatori per neutroni

La disintegrazione dei nuclei atomici si traduce in una emissione di vari tipi di radiazioni e particelle tra cui neutroni e raggi gamma. La rivelazione dei neutroni comporta l’utilizzo di rivelatori a scintillazione e tecniche di analisi per poter identificare e ottenere informazioni sull’energia dei neutroni. Il processo di scintillazione per la rivelazione dei neutroni consiste nell’interazione con i nuclei del materiale e successiva emissione luminosa dovuta a ionizzazione degli atomi del rivelatore. La luce e in seguito convertita in impulsi elettrici, i quali possono essere analizzati con opportune tecniche. L’emissione di neutroni `e accompagnata da emissione di raggi gamma e quindi `e necessario identificare i neutroni. Rivelatori basati su scintillatori organici vengono spesso impiegati nella spettrometria neutronica ad energie superiori di 0.5 MeV ed in una vasta gamma di applicazioni come la medicina, l’industria e la radioprotezione. La rilevazione dei neutroni `e molto importante nello studio delle reazioni nucleari di bassa energia e nello studio della materia nucleare lontano dalla valle di stabilita. In questo lavoro abbiamo studiato tre algoritmi: Zero Crossing, Charge Comparison e Pulse Gradient Analysis. Questi algoritmi sono stati in seguito applicati all’analisi di un insieme di dati provenienti dalla reazione nucleare 7Li(p,n)7Be. E stato utilizzato uno scintillatore organico liquido BC501. Si `e effettuato un confronto tra le varie tecniche utilizzate per determinare il grado di discriminazione ottenuto con ognuna di esse. I risultati ottenuti permettono di decidere in seguito quale algoritmo si presta ad essere utilizzato anche in altri esperimenti futuri. Il metodo Pulse Gradient Analysis `e risultato il piu` prometente, essendo anche possibile l’utilizzo on-line.

Study of particle movement in the nearshore region of Lake Superior with radioisotope tracers

Biogeochemical processes in the coastal region, including the coastal area of the Great Lakes, are of great importance due to the complex physical, chemical and biological characteristics that differ from those on either the adjoining land or open water systems. Particle-reactive radioisotopes, both naturally occurring (210Pb, 210Po and 7Be) and man-made (137Cs), have proven to be useful tracers for these processes in many systems. However, a systematic isotope study on the northwest coast of the Keweenaw Peninsula in Lake Superior has not yet been performed. In this dissertation research, field sampling, laboratory measurements and numerical modeling were conducted to understand the biogeochemistry of the radioisotope tracers and some particulate-related coastal processes. In the first part of the dissertation, radioisotope activities of 210Po and 210Pb in a variability of samples (dissolved, suspended particle, sediment trap materials, surficial sediment) were measured. A completed picture of the distribution and disequilibrium of this pair of isotopes was drawn. The application of a simple box model utilizing these field observations reveals short isotope residence times in the water column and a significant contribution of sediment resuspension (for both particles and isotopes). The results imply a highly dynamic coastal region. In the second part of this dissertation, this conclusion is examined further. Based on intensive sediment coring, the spatial distribution of isotope inventories (mainly 210Pb, 137Cs and 7Be) in the nearshore region was determined. Isotope-based focusing factors categorized most of the sampling sites as non- or temporary depositional zones. A twodimensional steady-state box-in-series model was developed and applied to individual transects with the 210Pb inventories as model input. The modeling framework included both water column and upper sediments down to the depth of unsupported 210Pb penetration. The model was used to predict isotope residence times and cross-margin fluxes of sediments and isotopes at different locations along each transect. The time scale for sediment focusing from the nearshore to offshore regions of the transect was on the order of 10 years. The possibility of sediment longshore movement was indicated by high inventory ratios of 137Cs: 210Pb. Local deposition of fine particles, including fresh organic carbon, may explain the observed distribution of benthic organisms such as Diporeia. In the last part of this dissertation, isotope tracers, 210Pb and 210Po, were coupled into a hydrodynamic model for Lake Superior. The model was modified from an existing 2-D finite difference physical-biological model which has previously been successfully applied on Lake Superior. Using the field results from part one of this dissertation as initial conditions, the model was used to predict the isotope distribution in the water column; reasonable results were achieved. The modeling experiments demonstrated the potential for using a hydrodynamic model to study radioisotope biogeochemistry in the lake, although further refinements are necessary.

Neutrino physics with multi-ton scale liquid xenon detectors

We study the sensitivity of large-scale xenon detectors to low-energy solar neutrinos, to coherent neutrino-nucleus scattering and to neutrinoless double beta decay. As a concrete example, we consider the xenon part of the proposed DARWIN (Dark Matter WIMP Search with Noble Liquids) experiment. We perform detailed Monte Carlo simulations of the expected backgrounds, considering realistic energy resolutions and thresholds in the detector. In a low-energy window of 2–30 keV, where the sensitivity to solar pp and 7Be-neutrinos is highest, an integrated pp-neutrino rate of 5900 events can be reached in a fiducial mass of 14 tons of natural xenon, after 5 years of data. The pp-neutrino flux could thus be measured with a statistical uncertainty around 1%, reaching the precision of solar model predictions. These low-energy solar neutrinos will be the limiting background to the dark matter search channel for WIMP-nucleon cross sections below ~2X 10-48 cm2 and WIMP masses around 50 GeV c 2, for an assumed 99.5% rejection of electronic recoils due to elastic neutrino-electron scatters. Nuclear recoils from coherent scattering of solar neutrinos will limit the sensitivity to WIMP masses below ~6 GeV c-2 to cross sections above ~4X10-45cm2. DARWIN could reach a competitive half-life sensitivity of 5.6X1026 y to the neutrinoless double beta decay of 136Xe after 5 years of data, using 6 tons of natural xenon in the central detector region.

NA61/SHINE facility at the CERN SPS: beams and detector system

NA61/SHINE (SPS Heavy Ion and Neutrino Experiment) is a multi-purpose experimental facility to study hadron production in hadron-proton, hadron-nucleus and nucleus-nucleus collisions at the CERN Super Proton Synchrotron. It recorded the first physics data with hadron beams in 2009 and with ion beams (secondary 7Be beams) in 2011. NA61/SHINE has greatly profited from the long development of the CERN proton and ion sources and the accelerator chain as well as the H2 beamline of the CERN North Area. The latter has recently been modified to also serve as a fragment separator as needed to produce the Be beams for NA61/SHINE. Numerous components of the NA61/SHINE set-up were inherited from its predecessors, in particular, the last one, the NA49 experiment. Important new detectors and upgrades of the legacy equipment were introduced by the NA61/SHINE Collaboration. This paper describes the state of the NA61/SHINE facility — the beams and the detector system — before the CERN Long Shutdown I, which started in March 2013.

Cosmogenic activation of xenon and copper

Rare event search experiments using liquid xenon as target and detection medium require ultra-low background levels to fully exploit their physics potential. Cosmic ray induced activation of the detector components and, even more importantly, of the xenon itself during production, transportation and storage at the Earth's surface, might result in the production of radioactive isotopes with long half-lives, with a possible impact on the expected background. We present the first dedicated study on the cosmogenic activation of xenon after 345 days of exposure to cosmic rays at the Jungfraujoch research station at 3470m above sea level, complemented by a study of copper which has been activated simultaneously. We have directly observed the production of 7Be, 101Rh, 125Sb, 126I and 127Xe in xenon, out of which only 125Sb could potentially lead to background for a multi-ton scale dark matter search. The production rates for five out of eight studied radioactive isotopes in copper are in agreement with the only existing dedicated activation measurement, while we observe lower rates for the remaining ones. The specific saturation activities for both samples are also compared to predictions obtained with commonly used software packages, where we observe some underpredictions, especially for xenon activation.