The potential use of 241Am as proliferation resistant burnable poison in PWRs

This paper discusses the use of 241Am as proliferation resistant burnable poison for light water reactors. Homogeneous addition of small (as little as 0.12%) amounts of 241Am to the conventional light water reactor fuel results in significant increase in 238Pu/Pu ratio in the discharged fuel improving its proliferation resistance. Moreover, 241Am, admixed to the fuel, acts as burnable absorber allowing for substantial reduction in conventional reactivity control means without a notable fuel cycle length penalty. This is possible due to favorable characteristics of 241Am transmutation chain. The fuel cycle length penalty of introducing 241Am into the core is evaluated and discussed, as well as the impact of He production in the fuel pins and degradation of reactivity feedback coefficients. Proliferation resistance and reactivity control features related to the use of 241Am are compared to those of using 237Np, which has also been suggested as an additive to the conventional fuel in order to improve its proliferation resistance. It was found that 241Am admixture is more favorable than 237Np admixture because of the smaller fuel cycle length penalty and higher burnable poison savings. Addition of either 237Np or 241Am would provide substantial but not ultimate protection from misuse of Pu originating in the spent fuel from the commercial power reactors. Therefore, the benefits from application of the concept would have to be carefully evaluated against the additional costs and proliferation risks associated with manufacturing of 237Np or 241Am doped fuel. Although this work concerns specifically with PWRs, the conclusions could also be applied to BWRs and, to some extent, to other thermal spectrum reactor types. © 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The propagation of acoustic waves in a slowly varying duct with radially sheared axial mean flow

We consider the propagation of acoustic waves along a cylindrical duct carrying radially sheared axial mean flow, in which the duct radius is allowed to vary slowly along the axis. In previous work [A.J. Cooper & N. Peake, Journal of Fluid Mechanics 445 (2001) 207-234.] radially sheared axial mean flow with nonzero swirl in a slowly varying duct was considered, but in this paper we set the swirl to zero, thereby allowing simplification of the calculations of both the mean and unsteady flows. In this approach the acoustic wavenumber and corresponding eigenfunction are determined locally, while the wave amplitude is found by solving an evolution equation along the duct. Sample results are presented, including a case in which, perhaps surprisingly, the number of cut-on modes increases as the duct radius decreases. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

生活周期毒性试验动物─—方形网纹溞的生物学

在实验室条件下研究方形网纹的生物学。试验时水温２５±１℃，饲以斜生栅藻。初生幼体平均体长０．４０ｍｍ，第１成龄０．９６ｍｍ，最大体长可达１．４５ｍｍ，体长增长（１＿ｔ，单位ｍｍ）与年龄（ｔ，ｄ）的关系可以表达为１＿ｔ＝１．４３－ｅ￣（－０．２６８ｔ），平均寿命２２．７３（１７．１０－２５．００）ｄ，其中包括３个幼龄和１３个成龄。在３．９１ｄ达到性成熟。７ｄ内生殖３胎，产仔４０（１９－４７）个。一生生殖２２２．０个幼体，平均每胎１８．５（４．８－２３．６）个。生殖量最大出现在第６成龄。这时的年龄１１．０５ｄ