Phase 1 space fission propulsion system testing and development progress

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Van Dyke, Melissa; Houts, Mike; Godfroy, Tom; Dickens, Ricky; Poston, David; Kapernick, Rick; Reid, Bob; Salvail, Pat; Ring, Peter

2002-01-01

Successful development of space fission systems requires an extensive program of affordable and realistic testing. In addition to tests related to design/development of the fission system, realistic testing of the actual flight unit must also be performed. If the system is designed to operate within established radiation damage and fuel burn up limits while simultaneously being designed to allow close simulation of heat from fission using resistance heaters, high confidence in fission system performance and lifetime can be attained through a series of non-nuclear tests. The Safe Affordable Fission Engine (SAFE) test series, whose ultimate goal is the demonstration of a 300 kW flight configuration system, has demonstrated that realistic testing can be performed using non-nuclear methods. This test series, carried out in collaboration with other NASA centers, other government agencies, industry, and universities, successfully completed a testing program with a 30 kWt core. Stirling engine, and ion engine configuration. Additionally, a 100 kWt core is in fabrication and appropriate test facilities are being reconfigured. This paper describes the current SAFE non-nuclear tests, which includes test article descriptions, test results and conclusions, and future test plans

Shell effects in fission and quasi-fission of heavy and superheavy nuclei

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Itkis, M.G. E-mail: itkis@flnr.jinr.ru; Aeystoe, J.; Beghini, S.; Bogachev, A.A.; Corradi, L.; Dorvaux, O.; Gadea, A.; Giardina, G.; Hanappe, F.; Itkis, I.M.; Jandel, M.; Kliman, J.; Khlebnikov, S.V.; Kniajeva, G.N.; Kondratiev, N.A.; Kozulin, E.M.; Krupa, L.; Latina, A.; Materna, T.; Montagnoli, G.; Oganessian, Yu.Ts.; Pokrovsky, I.V.; Prokhorova, E.V.; Rowley, N.; Rubchenya, V.A.; Rusanov, A.Ya.; Sagaidak, R.N.; Scarlassara, F.; Stefanini, A.M.; Stuttge, L.; Szilner, S.; Trotta, M.; Trzaska, W.H.; Vakhtin, D.N.; Vinodkumar, A.M.; Voskressenski, V.M.; Zagrebaev, V.I

2004-04-05

Results of the experiments aimed at the study of fission and quasi-fission processes in the reactions {sup 12}C+{sup 204}Pb, {sup 48}Ca+{sup 144,154}Sm, {sup 168}Er, {sup 208}Pb, {sup 244}Pu, {sup 248}Cm; {sup 58}Fe+{sup 208}Pb, {sup 244}Pu, {sup 248}Cm, and {sup 64}Ni+{sup 186}W, {sup 242}Pu are presented in the work. The choice of the above-mentioned reactions was inspired by recent experiments on the production of the isotopes {sup 283}112, {sup 289}114 and {sup 283}116 at Dubna [1],[2] using the same reactions. The {sup 58}Fe and {sup 64}Ni projectiles were chosen since the corresponding projectile-target combinations lead to the synthesis of even heavier elements. The experiments were carried out at the U-400 accelerator of the Flerov Laboratory of Nuclear Reactions (JINR, Russia), the XTU Tandem accelerator of the National Laboratory of Legnaro (LNL, Italy) and the Accelerator of the Laboratory of University of Jyvaskyla (JYFL, Finland) using the time-of-flight spectrometer of fission fragments CORSET[3] and the neutron multi-detector DEMON[4],[5]. The role of shell effects and the influence of the entrance channel on the mechanism of the compound nucleus fusion-fission and the competitive process of quasi-fission are discussed.

Fission, fusion and photonuclear physics. Chapter 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mazur, C.; Ribrag, M.

Pronounced structures in the time of flight distribution of fission fragments, having a given energy, were recently reported. This experiment has been reproduced with a better time resolution and structures are not observed [fr

Binary scission configurations in fission of light actinides

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ohtsuki, Tsutomu [Tohoku Univ., Sendai (Japan). Lab. of Nuclear Science; Nagame, Y.; Nishinaka, I.; Tsukada, K.; Ikezoe, H.; Tanikawa, M.; Zhao, Y.L.; Sueki, K.; Nakahara, H.

1997-07-01

Mass and kinetic energy distributions of fission fragments have been accurately measured by a double velocity time-of-flight technique in the 13 MeV proton-induced fissions of {sup 232}Th and {sup 238}U. A binary structure is observed in total kinetic energy distributions in the fragments with mass number around A=130 for both the fissions, indicating that there are at least two kinds of scission configurations. A correlation between the scission configurations and mass yield distributions reveals that elongated scission configurations are associated with the symmetric mass distribution and compact scission configurations with the asymmetric mass distribution. (author)

Bimodal nature in low-energy fission of light actinides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nagame, Yuichiro; Nishinaka, Ichiro; Tsukada, Kazuaki; Ikezoe, Hiroshi; Otsuki, Tsutomu; Sueki, Keisuke; Nakahara, Hiromichi; Kudo, Hisaaki.

1995-01-01

To solve various problems in the mass division process of light actinoids, some experiments on the basis of bimodal fission were carried. Mass and kinetic energy distribution of Th-232 and U-238 were determined. Pa-225 (N= 134) and Pa-227 (N=136), fission nuclei, were produced by Bi-209 + 0-16 and Bi-209 + 0-18 heavy ion nucleus reactions, and the mass yield distribution were determined by the time-of-flight method and the radiochemical procedure. From the results, two independent deforming processes were proved in the fission process of light actinoid nuclei. On the deforming process through the low fission barrier, nucleus fissioned after small deformation under the influence of stabilization of the shell structure of fission product. In the case of process through the high barrier, however, the nucleus fissioned after large deformation. The unsymmetrical mass division was derived from the former and the symmetrical one from the latter. (S.Y.)

Space Fission System Test Effectiveness

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Houts, Mike; Schmidt, Glen L.; Van Dyke, Melissa; Godfroy, Tom; Martin, James; Bragg-Sitton, Shannon; Dickens, Ricky; Salvail, Pat; Harper, Roger

2004-01-01

Space fission technology has the potential to enable rapid access to any point in the solar system. If fission propulsion systems are to be developed to their full potential, however, near-term customers need to be identified and initial fission systems successfully developed, launched, and utilized. One key to successful utilization is to develop reactor designs that are highly testable. Testable reactor designs have a much higher probability of being successfully converted from paper concepts to working space hardware than do designs which are difficult or impossible to realistically test. ''Test Effectiveness'' is one measure of the ability to realistically test a space reactor system. The objective of this paper is to discuss test effectiveness as applied to the design, development, flight qualification, and acceptance testing of space fission systems. The ability to perform highly effective testing would be particularly important to the success of any near-term mission, such as NASA's Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter, the first mission under study within NASA's Project Prometheus, the Nuclear Systems Program

Ternary Fission of U235 by Resonance Neutrons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kvitek, I.; Popov, Ju.P.; Rjabov, Ju.V.

1965-01-01

Recently a number of papers have appeared indicating considerable variations in the ratio of the ternary-fission cross-section to the binary-fission cross-section of U 235 on transition from one neutron resonance to another. However, such variations have not been discovered in U 233 and Pu 239 . The paper reports investigations of the ternary fission of U 235 by neutrons with an energy of 0.1 to 30 eV. Unlike other investigators of the ternary fission of U 235 , we identified the ternary-fission event by the coincidence of one of the fission fragments with a light long-range particle. This made it passible to separate ternary fissions from the possible contribution of the (n, α)reaction. The measurements were performed at the fast pulsed reactor of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research by the time-of-flight method. A flight length of 100 m was used, giving a resolution of 0.6 μs/m. Gas scintillation counters filled with xenon at a pressure of 2 atm were used to record the fission fragments and the light long-range particle. A layer of enriched U 235 ∼2 mg/cm 2 thick and ∼300 cm 2 in area was applied to an aluminium foil 20-fim thick. The scintillations from the fission fragments were recorded in the gas volume on one side of the foil and those from the light long-range particles in that on the other. In order to assess the background (e.g . coincidences of the pulse from a fragment with that from a fission gamma quantum or a proton from the (n, p) reaction in the aluminium foil), a measurement was carried out in which the volume recording the long-range particle was shielded with a supplementary aluminium filter 1-mm thick. The results obtained indicate the absence of the considerable variations in the ratio between the ternary-and binary- fission cross-sections for U 235 that have been noted by other authors. Measurements showed no irregularity in the ratio of the cross-sections in the energy range 0.1 to 0.2 eV. The paper discusses the possible effect of

'Masurium' and the 'early transuranium elements' or how discovery of nuclear fission was not clearly seen

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Keller, C.

1988-01-01

Fifty years after the discovery of fission, the scientific community is aware that this type of nuclear reaction could have been discovered more than a decade earlier. Noddack, Tacke and Berg announced in 1925 the discovery of elements Z = 43 (masurium) and rhenium (Z = 75), the first one could be detected only in U-bearing minerals. A recent re-examination by P.H.M. von Assche of the published data clearly showed that the original claim for element Z = 43 of the authors in 1925 was correct and, therefore, they detected not only element Z = 43 but also the first fission product. Because this discovery of element Z = 43 could not be repeated by other authors as that time, the scientific credibility of Noddack-Tacke was very low in order to give credit to her proposal that the 'early' transuranium elements by Enrico Fermi might also be fragments of known (lighter) elements. Enrico Fermi in 1934 obtained these 'early' (and as we today know: wrong) transuranium isotopes by irradiation of uranium with neutrons. A 'wrong' periodic system in the thirties which placed Th, Pa and U as 6d-elements and not as 5f-actinides chemically helped to consider these fission products as transuranium elements Z = 93/94. In 1937/38 I. Curie and P. Savitch discovered an 'actinium-nuclide' with 3,5 h half-life which, however, had properties similar to lanthanium and not to actinium, as they stated. (orig.) [de

Actinide neutron-induced fission cross section measurements at LANSCE

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tovesson, Fredrik K [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Laptev, Alexander B [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Hill, Tony S [INL

2010-01-01

Fission cross sections of a range of actinides have been measured at the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) in support of nuclear energy applications in a wide energy range from sub-thermal energies up to 200 MeV. A parallel-plate ionization chamber are used to measure fission cross sections ratios relative to the {sup 235}U standard while incident neutron energies are determined using the time-of-flight method. Recent measurements include the {sup 233,238}U, {sup 239-242}Pu and {sup 243}Am neutron-induced fission cross sections. Obtained data are presented in comparison with ex isting evaluations and previous data.

Kinetic-energy distribution for symmetric fission of 236U

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brissot, R.; Bocquet, J.P.; Ristori, C.; Crancon, J.; Guet, C.R.; Nifenecker, H.A.; Montoya, M.

1980-01-01

Fission fragment kinetic-energy distributions have been measured at the Grenoble high-flux reactor with the Lohengrin facility. Spurious events were eliminated in the symmetric region by a coherence test based on a time-of-flight measurement of fragment velocities. A Monte-Carlo calculation is then performed to correct the experimental data for neutron evaporation. The difference between the most probable kinetic energy in symmetric fission and the fission in which the heavy fragment is 'magic' (Zsub(H)=50) is found to be approximately =30 MeV. The results suggest that for the symmetric case the total excitation energy available at scission is shared equally among the fragments. (author)

Symmetric and asymmetric ternary fission of hot nuclei

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Siwek-Wilczynska, K.; Wilczynski, J.; Leegte, H.K.W.; Siemssen, R.H.; Wilschut, H.W.; Grotowski, K.; Panasiewicz, A.; Sosin, Z.; Wieloch, A.

1993-01-01

Emission of α particles accompanying fusion-fission processes in the 40 Ar + 232 Th reaction at E( 40 Ar) = 365 MeV was studied in a wide range of in-fission-plane and out-of-plane angles. The exact determination of the emission angles of both fission fragments combined with the time-of-flight measurements allowed us to reconstruct the complete kinematics of each ternary event. The coincident energy spectra of α particles were analyzed by using predictions of the energy spectra of the statistical code CASCADE . The analysis clearly demonstrates emission from the composite system prior to fission, emission from fully accelerated fragments after fission, and also emission during scission. The analysis is presented for both symmetric and asymmetric fission. The results have been analyzed using a time-dependent statistical decay code and confronted with dynamical calculations based on a classical one-body dissipation model. The observed near-scission emission is consistent with evaporation from a dinuclear system just before scission and evaporation from separated fragments just after scission. The analysis suggests that the time scale of fission of the hot composite systems is long (about 7x10 -20 s) and the motion during the descent to scission almost completely damped

Storage ion trap of an 'In-Flight Capture' type for precise mass measurement of radioactive nuclear reaction products and fission fragments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tarantin, N.I.

2001-01-01

Data on nuclear masses provide a basis for creating and testing various nuclear models. A tandem system of FLNR comprised of the U-400M cyclotron, the COMBAS magnetic separator and the mass-spectrometric ion trap of an 'in-flight capture' type is considered as a possible complex for producing of the short-lived nuclei in fragmentation reactions by heavy ions and for precise mass measurement of these nuclei. The plan of scientific and technical FLNR research includes a project DRIBs for producing beams of accelerated radioactive nuclear reaction products and photofission fragments. This project proposes also precise mass measurements of the fission fragment with the help of the ion trap. The in-flight entrance of the ions and their capture in the mass-spectrometric ion trap using the monochromatizing degrader, the static electric and magnetic fields and a new invention, a magnetic unidirectional transporting ventil, is considered

The study of prompt neutron spectra of 238U fission induced by fast neutron

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Anli; Bai Xixiang; Wang Yufeng; Wang Xiaozhong; Men Jiangchen; Huang Shengnian

1990-01-01

The measurements of prompt neutron time-of-flight spectra of U fission induced by 11 MeV neutrons were carried out at HI-13 Tandem Van de Graaff Accelerator Laboratory in 1989. The block diagram of the electronics is shown. A fission neutron TOF spectrum for the sixth section of the fission plates and the left detector at low bias is given. The data accumulation time is 60 h

Fission cross section measurements of actinides at LANSCE

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tovesson, Fredrik [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Laptev, Alexander B [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Hill, Tony S [INL

2010-01-01

Fission cross sections of a range of actinides have been measured at the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) in support of nuclear energy applications. By combining measurement at two LANSCE facilities, Lujan Center and the Weapons Neutron Research center (WNR), differential cross sections can be measured from sub-thermal energies up to 200 MeV. Incident neutron energies are determined using the time-of-flight method, and parallel-plate ionization chambers are used to measure fission cross sections relative to the {sup 235}U standard. Recent measurements include the {sup 233,238}U, {sup 239,242}Pu and {sup 243}Am neutron-induced fission cross sections. In this paper preliminary results for cross section data of {sup 243}Am and {sup 233}U will be presented.

Neutron-induced fission cross sections

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Weigmann, H.

1991-01-01

In the history of fission research, neutron-induced fission has always played the most important role. The practical importance of neutron-induced fission rests upon the fact that additional neutrons are produced in the fission process, and thus a chain reaction becomes possible. The practical applications of neutron-induced fission will not be discussed in this chapter, but only the physical properties of one of its characteristics, namely (n,f) cross sections. The most important early summaries on the subject are the monograph edited by Michaudon which also deals with the practical applications, the earlier review article on fission by Michaudon, and the review by Bjornholm and Lynn, in which neutron-induced fission receives major attention. This chapter will attempt to go an intermediate way between the very detailed theoretical treatment in the latter review and the cited monograph which emphasizes the applied aspects and the techniques of fission cross-section measurements. The more recent investigations in the field will be included. Section II will survey the properties of cross sections for neutron-induced fission and also address some special aspects of the experimental methods applied in their measurement. Section Ill will deal with the formal theory of neutron-induced nuclear reactions for the resolved resonance region and the region of statistical nuclear reactions. In Section IV, the fission width, or fission transmission coefficient, will be discussed in detail. Section V will deal with the broader structures due to incompletely damped vibrational resonances, and in particular will address the special case of thorium and neighboring isotopes. Finally, Section VI will briefly discuss parity violation effects in neutron-induced fission. 74 refs., 14 figs., 3 tabs

Status update on the NIFFTE high precision fission cross section measurement program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Laptev, Alexander B.; Tovesson, Fredrik; Burgett, Eric; Greife, Uwe; Grimes, Steven; Heffner, Michael D.; Hertel, Nolan E.; Hill, Tony; Isenhower, Donald; Klay, Jennifer L.; Kornilov, Nickolay; Kudo, Ryuho; Loveland, Walter; Massey, Thomas; McGrath, Chris; Pickle, Nathan; Qu, Hai; Sharma, Sarvagya; Snyder, Lucas; Thornton, Tyler; Towell, Rusty S.; Watson, Shon

2010-01-01

The Neutron Induced Fission Fragment Tracking Experiment (NIFFTE) program has been underway for nearly two years. The program's mission is to measure fission cross sections of the primary fissionable and fissile materials ( 235 U, 239 Pu, 238 U) as well as the minor actinides across energies from approximately 50 keV up to 20 MeV with an absolute uncertainty of less than one percent while investigating energy ranges from below an eV to 600 MeV. This basic nuclear physics data is being reinvestigated to support the next generation power plants and a fast burner reactor program. Uncertainties in the fast, resolved and unresolved resonance regions in plutonium and other transuranics are extremely large, dominating safety margins in the next generation nuclear power plants and power plants of today. This basic nuclear data can be used to support all aspects of the nuciear renaissance. The measurement campaign is utilizing a Time Projection Chamber or TPC as the tool to measure these cross sections to these unprecedented levels. Unlike traditional fission cross section measurements using time-of-flight and a multiple fission foil configurations in which fission cross sections in relation to that of 235 U are performed, the TPC project uses time-of-flight and hydrogen as the benchmark cross section. Using the switch to hydrogen, a simple, smooth cross section that can be used which removes the uncertainties associated with the resolved and unresolved resonances in 235 U.

Kinematic structure at the early flight position in ski jumping.

Science.gov (United States)

Vodičar, Janez; Coh, Milan; Jošt, Bojan

2012-12-01

The purpose of our research was to establish the variability of correlation between the length of the jumps and selected multi-item kinematic variables (n=9) in the early flight phase technique of ski jumping. This study was conducted on a sample of elite Slovenian ski jumpers (N=29) who participated in the experiment on a jumping hill in Hinterzarten, Germany (HS95m) on the 20(th) of August, 2008. The highest and most significant correlations (p=0.01) with the length of the ski jump were found in the multi-item variable height of flying, which was also expressed with the highest level of stability of the explained total variance (TV) on the first factor (TV=69.13%). The most important characteristic of the aerodynamic aspect of early flight was the variable angle between the body chord and the horizontal axis with significantly high correlations (pjump. Only two more variables, the angle between the upper body and the horizontal plane (TV=53.69%), and the angle between left ski and left leg (TV=50.13%), had an explained common variance on the first factor greater than 50% of total variance. The results indicated that some kinematic parameters of ski jumping early flight technique were more important for success considering the length of the jump.

Fission Detection Using the Associated Particle Technique

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

R.P. Keegan; J.P. Hurley; J.R. Tinsley; R. Trainham; S.C. Wilde

2008-01-01

A beam of tagged 14 MeV neutrons from the deuterium-tritium (DT) reaction is used to induce fission in a target composed of depleted uranium. The generator yield is 10 7 neutrons/second radiated into a 4 x 4 in. NaI detectors are used for gamma-ray detection. The fission process is known to produce multiple gamma-rays and neutrons. Triple coincidences (α-γ-γ) are measured as a function of neutron flight time up to 90 ns after fission, where the α-particle arises from the DT reaction. A sudden increase in the triple coincidence rate at the location of the material is used to localize and detect fission in the interrogated target. Comparisons are made with experiment runs where lead, tungsten, and iron were used as target materials. The triple coincidence response profile from depleted uranium is noted to be different to those observed from the other target materials. The response from interrogation targets composed of fissile material is anticipated to be even more unique than that observed from depleted uranium

Fragment properties in the fission of 237Np with fast neutrons - an experimental investigation of fission dynamics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Naqvi, A.A.

1980-03-01

Fission fragment properties such as mass distribution, kinetic energy distribution or number of prompt emitted neutrons as a function of fragment mass can be used to characterize the scission point configuration. The present experiment allows for the first time to investigate these quantities for neutron induced fission in the MeV range. In this way the influence of excitation energy of the saddle point deformation of the fissioning system ( 237 Np + n) can be studied. Neutrons with energies of 0.8 and 5.5 MeV were produced by the Karlsruhe pulsed 3MV Van de Graaff accelerator. Kinetic energies and velocities of correlated fragments were determined by solid state detectors using the time-of-flight technique. The experimentally determined distributions of fragment properties were compared to a recent model suggested by Wilkins et al. which assumes only relatively weak coupling between internal and collective degrees of freedom. At least qualitative agreement is found for most of the results. (orig.) [de

Fission theory and actinide fission data

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Michaudon, A.

1975-06-01

The understanding of the fission process has made great progress recently, as a result of the calculation of fission barriers, using the Strutinsky prescription. Double-humped shapes were obtained for nuclei in the actinide region. Such shapes could explain, in a coherent manner, many different phenomena: fission isomers, structure in near-threshold fission cross sections, intermediate structure in subthreshold fission cross sections and anisotropy in the emission of the fission fragments. A brief review of fission barrier calculations and relevant experimental data is presented. Calculations of fission cross sections, using double-humped barrier shapes and fission channel properties, as obtained from the data discussed previously, are given for some U and Pu isotopes. The fission channel theory of A. Bohr has greatly influenced the study of low-energy fission. However, recent investigation of the yields of prompt neutrons and γ rays emitted in the resonances of {sup 235}U and {sup 239}Pu, together with the spin determination for many resonances of these two nuclei cannot be explained purely in terms of the Bohr theory. Variation in the prompt neutron and γ-ray yields from resonance to resonance does not seem to be due to such fission channels, as was thought previously, but to the effect of the (n,γf) reaction. The number of prompt fission neutrons and the kinetic energy of the fission fragments are affected by the energy balance and damping or viscosity effects in the last stage of the fission process, from saddle point to scission. These effects are discussed for some nuclei, especially for {sup 240}Pu.

Some aspects of the nuclear fission process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Netter, F.

1961-01-01

In the following report one can find first a short general view on the present situation of our knowledge concerning the nuclear fission process, namely on the nucleus going through the saddle-point. Then there are some aspects connected with the excitation energy of the fissioning nucleus. The measurements made at Saclay on the fast neutron fission cross-section of U 233 , U 235 , Pu 239 , U 238 are described at the beginning of this work. It appears that for U 233 there is some characteristic shape modulation of the cross-section curve, in relation with the collective excited state of the deformed nucleus at the saddle-point. Good evidence of this is also given by the study of the relative fission rate with emission of long-range particles; it appears also that this ternary fission rate does not change substantially for neutron between thermal energy and 2 MeV, but that is very lower for the compound nucleus U 239 than for even-even compound nuclei. At the end there are some experiments on the strong 4,5 MeV gamma-ray originated by slow neutron absorption in U 235 . Time-of-flight device is used to establish that this 4,5 MeV gamma-ray seems mostly connected with radiative capture. (author) [fr

Antiproton Induced Fission and Fragmentation of Nuclei

CERN Multimedia

2002-01-01

The annihilation of slow antiprotons with nuclei results in a large highly localized energy deposition primarily on the nuclear surface. \\\\ \\\\ The study of antiproton induced fission and fragmentation processes is expected to yield new information on special nuclear matter states, unexplored fission modes, multifragmentation of nuclei, and intranuclear cascades.\\\\ \\\\ In order to investigate the antiproton-nucleus interaction and the processes following the antiproton annihilation at the nucleus, we propose the following experiments: \\item A)~Measurement of several fragments from fission and from multifragmentation in coincidence with particle spectra, especially neutrons and kaons. \\item B)~Precise spectra of $\\pi$, K, n, p, d and t with time-of-flight techniques. \\item C)~Installation of the Berlin 4$\\pi$ neutron detector with a 4$\\pi$ Si detector placed inside for fragments and charged particles. This yields neutron multiplicity distributions and consequently distributions of thermal excitation energies and...

4π-spectrometer technique for measurements of secondary neutron average number in nuclear fission by 252Cf neutrons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vasil'ev, Yu.A.; Barashkov, Yu.A.; Golovanov, O.A.; Sidorov, L.V.

1977-01-01

A method for determining the average number of secondary neutrons anti ν produced in nuclear fission by the neutrons of the 252 Cf fission spectra by means of a 4π time-of-flight spectrometer is described. Layers of 252 Cf and an isotope studied are placed close to each other; if the isotope layer density is 1 mg/cm 2 probability of its fission is about 10 -5 per one spontaneous fission of californium. Fission fragments of 252 Cf and the isotope investigated have been detected by two surface-barrier counters with an efficiency close to 100%. The layers and the counters are situated in a measuring chamber placed in the center of the 4π time-of-flight spectrometer. The latter is utilized as a neutron counter because of its fast response. The method has been verified by carrying out measurements for 235 U and 239 Pu. A comparison of the experimental and calculated results shows that the method suggested can apply to determine the number of secondary neutrons in fission of isotopes that have not been investigated yet

High-energy Neutron-induced Fission Cross Sections of Natural Lead and Bismuth-209

CERN Document Server

Tarrio, D; Carrapico, C; Eleftheriadis, C; Leeb, H; Calvino, F; Herrera-Martinez, A; Savvidis, I; Vlachoudis, V; Haas, B; Koehler, P; Vannini, G; Oshima, M; Le Naour, C; Gramegna, F; Wiescher, M; Pigni, M T; Audouin, L; Mengoni, A; Quesada, J; Becvar, F; Plag, R; Cennini, P; Mosconi, M; Rauscher, T; Couture, A; Capote, R; Sarchiapone, L; Vlastou, R; Domingo-Pardo, C; Dillmann, I; Pavlopoulos, P; Karamanis, D; Krticka, M; Jericha, E; Ferrari, A; Martinez, T; Trubert, D; Oberhummer, H; Karadimos, D; Plompen, A; Isaev, S; Terlizzi, R; Cortes, G; Cox, J; Cano-Ott, D; Pretel, C; Colonna, N; Berthoumieux, E; Vaz, P; Heil, M; Lopes, I; Lampoudis, C; Walter, S; Calviani, M; Gonzalez-Romero, E; Embid-Segura, M; Stephan, C; Igashira, M; Papachristodoulou, C; Aerts, G; Tavora, L; Berthier, B; Rudolf, G; Andrzejewski, J; Villamarin, D; Ferreira-Marques, R; Tain, J L; O'Brien, S; Reifarth, R; Kadi, Y; Neves, F; Poch, A; Kerveno, M; Rubbia, C; Lazano, M; Dahlfors, M; Wisshak, K; Salgado, J; Dridi, W; Ventura, A; Andriamonje, S; Assimakopoulos, P; Santos, C; Voss, F; Ferrant, L; Patronis, N; Chiaveri, E; Guerrero, C; Perrot, L; Vicente, M C; Lindote, A; Praena, J; Baumann, P; Kappeler, F; Rullhusen, P; Furman, W; David, S; Marrone, S; Tassan-Got, L; Gunsig, F; Alvarez-Velarde, F; Massimi, C; Mastinu, P; Pancin, J; Papadopoulos, C; Tagliente, G; Haight, R; Chepel, V; Kossionides, E; Badurek, G; Marganiec, J; Lukic, S; Pavlik, A; Goncalves, I; Duran, I; Alvarez, H; Abbondanno, U; Fujii, K; Milazzo, P M; Moreau, C

2011-01-01

The CERN Neutron Time-Of-Flight (n\\_TOF) facility is well suited to measure small neutron-induced fission cross sections, as those of subactinides. The cross section ratios of (nat)Pb and (209)Bi relative to (235)U and (238)U were measured using PPAC detectors. The fragment coincidence method allows to unambiguously identify the fission events. The present experiment provides the first results for neutron-induced fission up to 1 GeV for (nat)Pb and (209)Bi. A good agreement with previous experimental data below 200 MeV is shown. The comparison with proton-induced fission indicates that the limiting regime where neutron-induced and proton-induced fission reach equal cross section is close to 1 GeV.

Fission physics experiments at the time-of-flight spectrometer GNEIS in Gatchina (PNPI)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shcherbakov, O.A.

1994-01-01

The outline of and fission physics experiments at the Gatchina neutron spectrometer GNEIS based on the 1 GeV PNPI proton synchrotron are presented. The prefission gamma-ray spectrum of the (n, gamma f) reaction were investigated. The capture gamma-ray spectra for 721.6 eV and 1211.4 eV resonances in U-238 were measured and the nature of the 721.6 eV resonance in U-238 were examined. The forward-backward asymmetry in slow neutron fission of U-235 and energy dependence of the forward-backward and instrumental asymmetry coefficients were obtained. Fission cross section ratios for Th-232 to U-235 and for U-238 to U-235 in the energy range up to 200 MeV were measured. The results of the cross section ratios agreed well with those of Behrens et al. and Difilippo et al. (T.H.)

Some aspects of the nuclear fission process; Quelques aspects du processus de fission nucleaire

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Netter, F [Commissariat a l' Energie Atomique, Saclay (France). Centre d' Etudes Nucleaires

1961-07-01

In the following report one can find first a short general view on the present situation of our knowledge concerning the nuclear fission process, namely on the nucleus going through the saddle-point. Then there are some aspects connected with the excitation energy of the fissioning nucleus. The measurements made at Saclay on the fast neutron fission cross-section of U{sup 233}, U{sup 235}, Pu{sup 239}, U{sup 238} are described at the beginning of this work. It appears that for U{sup 233} there is some characteristic shape modulation of the cross-section curve, in relation with the collective excited state of the deformed nucleus at the saddle-point. Good evidence of this is also given by the study of the relative fission rate with emission of long-range particles; it appears also that this ternary fission rate does not change substantially for neutron between thermal energy and 2 MeV, but that is very lower for the compound nucleus U{sup 239} than for even-even compound nuclei. At the end there are some experiments on the strong 4,5 MeV gamma-ray originated by slow neutron absorption in U{sup 235}. Time-of-flight device is used to establish that this 4,5 MeV gamma-ray seems mostly connected with radiative capture. (author) [French] Le present travail debute par un apercu de l'etat actuel de nos connaissances sur le processus de fission nucleaire, notamment sur le passage par le point-seuil. Puis sont evoques des aspects lies au niveau d'energie d'excitation auquel est porte le noyau qui subit la fission. Les mesures de sections efficaces de fission induite dans {sup 233}U, {sup 235}U, {sup 239}Pu et {sup 238}U par des neutrons rapides effectuees a Saclay sont decrites en premier lieu; elles font apparaitre pour {sup 233}U une ondulation caracteristique du role des etats collectifs d'excitation du noyau deforme au point-seuil. Des experiences sur la fission avec emission de particules de long parcours confirment cet aspect tout en demontrant que la frequence

Early results utilizing high-energy fission product gamma rays to detect fissionable material in cargo

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Slaughter, D.R.; Accatino, M.R.; Alford, O.J.; Bernstein, A.; Descalle, M.; Gosnell, T.B.; Hall, J.M.; Loshak, A.; Manatt, D.R.; McDowell, M.R.; Moore, T.L.; Petersen, D.C.; Pohl, B.A.; Pruet, J.A.; Prussin, S.G.

2004-01-01

Full text: A concept for detecting the presence of special nuclear material ( 235 U or 239 Pu) concealed in inter modal cargo containers is described. It is based on interrogation with a pulsed beam of 6-8 MeV neutrons and fission events are identified between beam pulses by their β-delayed neutron emission or β -delayed high-energy γ-radiation. The high-energy γ-ray signature is being employed for the first time. Fission product γ-rays above 3 MeV are distinct from natural radioactivity and from nearly all of the induced activity in a normal cargo. High-energy γ-radiation is nearly 10X more abundant than the delayed neutrons and penetrates even thick cargo's readily. The concept employs two large (8x20 ft) arrays of liquid scintillation detectors that have high efficiency for the detection of both delayed neutrons and delayed γ-radiation. Detector backgrounds and potential interferences with the fission signature radiation have been identified and quantified. This information, together with predicted signature strength, has been applied to the estimation of detection probability for the nuclear material and estimation of false alarm rates. This work was performed under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Energy by the University of California, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory under contract No. W-7405-Eng-48

Fifty years with nuclear fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Behrens, J.W.; Carlson, A.D.

1989-01-01

The news of the discovery of nucler fission, by Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann in Germany, was brought to the United States by Niels Bohr in January 1939. Since its discovery, the United States, and the world for that matter, has never been the same. It therefore seemed appropriate to acknowledge the fiftieth anniversary of its discovery by holding a topical meeting entitled, ''Fifty years with nuclear fission,'' in the United States during the year 1989. The objective of the meeting was to bring together pioneers of the nuclear industry and other scientists and engineers to report on reminiscences of the past and on the more recent developments in fission science and technology. The conference highlighted the early pioneers of the nuclear industry by dedicating a full day (April 26), consisting of two plenary sessions, at the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) in Washington, DC. More recent developments in fission science and technology in addition to historical reflections were topics for two full days of sessions (April 27 and 28) at the main sites of the NIST in Gaithersburg, Maryland. The wide range of topics covered by Volume 2 of this topical meeting included plenary invited, and contributed sessions entitled, Nuclear fission -- a prospective; reactors II; fission science II; medical and industrial applications by by-products; reactors and safeguards; general research, instrumentation, and by-products; and fission data, astrophysics, and space applications. The individual papers have been cataloged separately

Fission - track age of the Marjalahti Pallasite

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bondar, Yu.V.; Perelygin, V.P.

2006-01-01

Full text: Investigation of fossil charged-particle tracks in various mineral phases of extraterrestrial samples is a powerful method for research the early stages of the solar system. Over geological time, meteorites crystals have accumulated a record of tracks produced by heavily charged energetic particles from both internal (spontaneous fission of 238U and some other extinct isotopes) and external sources (galactic cosmic rays with Z>20). The fortunate fact that meteorite grains can accumulate latent and very long-lived tracks since soon after the end of nucleosynthesis in the solar nebula enables one to decode their radiation history and to detect any thermal events in the meteorite cosmic history by revealing these tracks through suitable etching procedures. Only a few minerals in meteorites (mainly phosphates) contain small amount of uranium; the fact that 238 U undergoes fission with fission-decay constant λ f ∼ 8.2x10 -17 yr -1 allows one to use this isotope as a chronometer. By measuring the U concentration in the crystals (by reactor irradiation) and the density of the spontaneous-fission tracks it is relatively easy to calculate the 'fission-track age' if 238 U is the main source of fission tracks. However the fission-track dating of extraterrestrial samples compared with the terrestrial ones has some peculiar features due to presence of a number of other potential track sources except the spontaneous fission of 238 U, such as the spontaneous fission of presently extinct 244 Pu, heavy nuclei of cosmic rays and induced fission by cosmic ray primaries. Only tracks from the spontaneous fission of U and Pu are suitable for fission-track dating. The competing effects of these fissioning elements, whose half-lives differ by a factor of ∼50, form a basis for a fission-track chronology for samples older than ∼ 4.0 Gyr. Over small intervals in time (∼ few x10 8 yr ) the track density from spontaneous fission of 238 U is nearly constant. However, the

Exploiting Fission Chain Reaction Dynamics to Image Fissile Materials

Science.gov (United States)

Chapman, Peter Henry

Radiation imaging is one potential method to verify nuclear weapons dismantlement. The neutron coded aperture imager (NCAI), jointly developed by Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), is capable of imaging sources of fast (e.g., fission spectrum) neutrons using an array of organic scintillators. This work presents a method developed to discriminate between non-multiplying (i.e., non-fissile) neutron sources and multiplying (i.e., fissile) neutron sources using the NCAI. This method exploits the dynamics of fission chain-reactions; it applies time-correlated pulse-height (TCPH) analysis to identify neutrons in fission chain reactions. TCPH analyzes the neutron energy deposited in the organic scintillator vs. the apparent neutron time-of-flight. Energy deposition is estimated from light output, and time-of-flight is estimated from the time between the neutron interaction and the immediately preceding gamma interaction. Neutrons that deposit more energy than can be accounted for by their apparent time-of-flight are identified as fission chain-reaction neutrons, and the image is reconstructed using only these neutron detection events. This analysis was applied to measurements of weapons-grade plutonium (WGPu) metal and 252Cf performed at the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS) Device Assembly Facility (DAF) in July 2015. The results demonstrate it is possible to eliminate the non-fissile 252Cf source from the image while preserving the fissileWGPu source. TCPH analysis was also applied to additional scenes in which theWGPu and 252Cf sources were measured individually. The results of these separate measurements further demonstrate the ability to remove the non-fissile 252Cf source and retain the fissileWGPu source. Simulations performed using MCNPX-PoliMi indicate that in a one hour measurement, solid spheres ofWGPu are retained at a 1sigma level for neutron multiplications M -˜ 3.0 and above, while hollowWGPu spheres are

Measurements of fission cross-sections and of neutron production rates; Mesures de sections efficaces de fission et du nombre de neutrons prompts emis par fission

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Billaud, P; Clair, C; Gaudin, M; Genin, R; Joly, R; Leroy, J L; Michaudon, A; Ouvry, J; Signarbieux, C; Vendryes, G [Commissariat a l' Energie Atomique, Saclay (France). Centre d' Etudes Nucleaires

1958-07-01

a) Measurements of neutron induced fission cross-sections in the low energy region. The variation of the fission cross sections of several fissile isotopes has been measured and analysed, for neutron energies below 0,025 eV. The monochromator was a crystal spectrometer used in conjunction with a mechanical velocity selector removing higher order Bragg reflections. The fissile material was laid down on the plates of a fission chamber by painting technic. An ionization chamber, having its plates coated with thin {sup 10}B layers, was used as the neutron flux monitor. b) Measurement of the fission cross section of {sup 235}U. We intend to measure the variation of the neutron induced fission cross section of {sup 235}U over the neutron energy range from 1 keV by the time of flight method. The neutron source is the uranium target of a pulsed 28 MeV electron linear accelerator. The detector is a large fission chamber, with parallel plates, containing about 10 g of {sup 235}U (20 deposits of 25 cm diameter). The relative fission data were corrected for the neutron spectrum measured with a set of BF{sub 3} proportional counters. c) Mean number {nu} of neutrons emitted in neutron induced fission. We measured the value of {nu} for several fissile isotopes in the case of fission induced by 14 MeV neutrons. The 14 MeV neutrons were produced by D (t, n) {alpha} reaction by means of a 300 kV Cockcroft Walton generator. (author)Fren. [French] a) Mesures de sectionficaces de fission a basse energie. Nous avons mesure et analyse la variation de la section efficace de fission de divers isotopes fissiles pour des neutrons d'energie inferieure a 0,025 eV. Le monochromateur est constitue par un spectrometre a cristal auquel est associe un selecteur mecanique destine a eliminer les diffractions de Bragg d'ordre superieur au premier. Le materiau fissile est contenu dans une chambre a fission sous forme de depots realises par peinture; une chambre d'ionisation a depots minces de B{sub 10

Measurements of fission cross-sections and of neutron production rates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Billaud, P.; Clair, C.; Gaudin, M.; Genin, R.; Joly, R.; Leroy, J.L.; Michaudon, A.; Ouvry, J.; Signarbieux, C.; Vendryes, G.

1958-01-01

a) Measurements of neutron induced fission cross-sections in the low energy region. The variation of the fission cross sections of several fissile isotopes has been measured and analysed, for neutron energies below 0,025 eV. The monochromator was a crystal spectrometer used in conjunction with a mechanical velocity selector removing higher order Bragg reflections. The fissile material was laid down on the plates of a fission chamber by painting technic. An ionization chamber, having its plates coated with thin 10 B layers, was used as the neutron flux monitor. b) Measurement of the fission cross section of 235 U. We intend to measure the variation of the neutron induced fission cross section of 235 U over the neutron energy range from 1 keV by the time of flight method. The neutron source is the uranium target of a pulsed 28 MeV electron linear accelerator. The detector is a large fission chamber, with parallel plates, containing about 10 g of 235 U (20 deposits of 25 cm diameter). The relative fission data were corrected for the neutron spectrum measured with a set of BF 3 proportional counters. c) Mean number ν of neutrons emitted in neutron induced fission. We measured the value of ν for several fissile isotopes in the case of fission induced by 14 MeV neutrons. The 14 MeV neutrons were produced by D (t, n) α reaction by means of a 300 kV Cockcroft Walton generator. (author) [fr

Fission coincident neutrons from the reactions p + sup(235,236,238)U with protons between 12,7 and 25.5 MeV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Plischke, P.

1981-01-01

With the proton beam of the Hamburg isochronous cyclotron (HAIZY) thin uranium targets with the mass numbers 235, 236, and 238 were bombarded. Both fragments from the fission of the Np reaction systems and the neutrons coincident with the fragments were detected in the plane perpendicular to the beam direction. Measured and stored event by event were for all particles the times of flight. The detection of the neutron succeeded in conventional time-of-flight technique with NE213 liquid scintillators. A fission detector system with plastic scintillator foils was developed. It permits high event rates over long measuring times and allows the choice of so long neutron flight paths that a neutron energy resolution between 2% and 4% could be reached. The determination of the fragment masses is in spite of the short flight paths of 15 respectively 21 cm possible to +-2 amu. The isotropic component das discussed under the assumption that it is composed of prefission and scission neutrons which were emitted befor fission respectively during the fragmentation. From the post fission results the distribution of the excitation energy to both fragments was determined in dependence of Esup(*) and the fragment mass. (orig./HSI) [de

The measurement of prompt neutron spectrum in spontaneous fission of {sup 244}Cm

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Batenkov, O.I.; Boykov, G.S.; Drapchinsky, L.V.; Majorov, M.Ju.; Trenkin, V.A. [V.G. Khlopin Radium Inst., Saint Petersburg (Russian Federation)

1997-03-01

Under the Program of Measurements of Prompt Fission Neutron Spectra of Minor Actinides for Transmutation Purposes the integral neutron spectrum in spontaneous fission of {sup 244}Cm has been measured by the time-of-flight method in the energy range of 0.1-15 MeV relative to the standard neutron spectrum in {sup 252}Cf spontaneous fission. Essential attention was paid to revealing of possible systematic errors. It is shown, that the {sup 244}Cm spectrum shape may be well described by using Mannhart evaluation with appropriate parameter of Maxwell temperature T{sub M} = 1.37 MeV. (author)

An absolute measurement of 252Cf prompt fission neutron spectrum at low energy range

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lajtai, A.; Dyachenko, P.P.; Kutzaeva, L.S.; Kononov, V.N.; Androsenko, P.A.; Androsenko, A.A.

1983-01-01

Prompt neutron energy spectrum at low energies (25 keV 252 Cf spontaneous fission has been measured with a time-of-flight technique on a 30 cm flight-path. Ionization chamber and lithium-glass were used as fission fragment and neutron detectors, respectively. Lithium glasses of NE-912 (containing 6 Li) and of NE-913 (containing 7 Li) 45 mm in diameter and 9.5 mm in thickness have been employed alternatively, for the registration of fission neutrons and gammas. For the correct determination of the multiscattering effects - the main difficulty of the low energy neutron spectrum measurements - a special geometry for the neutron detector was used. Special attention was paid also to the determination of the absolute efficiency of the neutron detector. The real response function of the spectrometer was determined by a Monte-Carlo calculation. The scattering material content of the ionization chamber containing a 252 Cf source was minimized. As a result of this measurement a prompt fission neutron spectrum of Maxwell type with a T=1.42 MeV parameter was obtained at this low energy range. We did not find any neutron excess or irregularities over the Maxwellian. (author)

Theory of neutron emission in fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Madland, D.G.

1998-01-01

A survey of theoretical representations of two of the observables in neutron emission in fission is given, namely, the prompt fission neutron spectrum N(E) and the average prompt neutron multiplicity bar ν p . Early representations of the two observables are presented and their deficiencies are discussed. This is followed by summaries and some examples of recent theoretical models for the calculation of these quantities. Emphasis is placed upon the predictability and accuracy of the recent models. In particular, the dependencies of N(E) and bar ν p upon the fissioning nucleus and its excitation energy are treated in detail for the Los Alamos model. Recent work in the calculation of the prompt fission neutron spectrum matrix N(E, E n ), where E n is the energy of the neutron inducing fission, is then discussed. Concluding remarks address the current status of the ability to calculate these observables with confidence, the direction of future theoretical efforts, and limitations to current (and future) approaches. This paper is an extension of a similar paper presented at the International Centre for Theoretical Physics in 1996

Theoretical descriptions of neutron emission in fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Madland, D.G.

1991-01-01

Brief descriptions are given of the observables in neutron emission in fission together with early theoretical representations of two of these observables, namely, the prompt fission neutron spectrum N(E) and the average prompt neutron multiplicity ν-bar p . This is followed by summaries, together with examples, of modern approaches to the calculation of these two quantities. Here, emphasis is placed upon the predictability and accuracy of the new approaches. In particular, the dependencies of N(E) and ν-bar p upon the fissioning nucleus and its excitation energy are discussed. Then, recent work in multiple-chance fission and other recent work involving new measurements are presented and discussed. Following this, some properties of fission fragments are mentioned that must be better known and better understood in order to calculate N(E) and ν-bar p with higher accuracy than is currently possible. In conclusion, some measurements are recommended for the purpose of benchmarking simultaneous calculations of neutron emission and gamma emission in fission. (author). 32 refs, 26 figs

Prompt fissionγ-ray characteristics from neutron-induced fission on 239Pu and the time-dependence of prompt-γray emission

Science.gov (United States)

Gatera, Angélique; Göök, Alf; Hambsch, Franz-Josef; Moens, André; Oberstedt, Andreas; Oberstedt, Stephan; Sibbens, Goedele; Vanleeuw, David; Vidali, Marzio

2018-03-01

Recent years have seen an increased interest in prompt fission γ-ray (PFG) measurements motivated by a high priority request of the OECD/NEA for high precision data, mainly for the nuclear fuel isotopes 235U and 239Pu. Our group has conducted a PFG measurement campaign using state-of-the-art lanthanum halide detectors for all the main actinides to a precision better than 3%. The experiments were performed in a coincidence setup between a fission trigger and γ-ray detectors. The time-of-flight technique was used to discriminate photons, traveling at the speed of light, and prompt fission neutrons. For a full rejection of all neutrons below 20 MeV, the PFG time window should not be wider than a few nanoseconds. This window includes most PFG, provided that no isomeric states were populated during the de-excitation process. When isomeric states are populated, PFGs can still be emitted up to 1 yus after the instant of fission or later. To study these γ-rays, the detector response to neutrons had to be determined and a correction had to be applied to the γ-ray spectra. The latest results for PFG characteristics from the reaction 239Pu(nth,f) will be presented, together with an analysis of PFGs emitted up to 200 ns after fission in the spontaneous fission of 252Cf as well as for thermal-neutron induced fission on 235U and 239Pu. The results are compared with calculations in the framework of the Hauser-Feshbach Monte Carlo code CGMF and FIFRELIN.

Isotopic resolution of fission fragments from 238U + 12C transfer and fusion reactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Caamano, M.; Rejmund, F.; Derkx, X.; Schmidt, K. H.; Andouin, L.; Bacri, C. O.; Barreau, G.; Benlliure, J.; Casarejos, E.; Fernandez-Dominguez, B.; Gaudefroy, L.; Golabek, C.; Jurado, B.; Lemasson, A.; Navin, A.; Rejmund, M.; Roger, T.; Shrivastava, A.; Schmitt, C.; Taieb, J.

2010-01-01

Recent results from an experiment at GANIL, performed to investigate the main properties of fission-fragment yields and energy distributions in different fissioning nuclei as a function of the excitation energy, in a neutron-rich region of actinides, are presented. Transfer reactions in inverse kinematics between a 238 U beam and a 12 C target produced different actinides, within a range of excitation energy below 30 MeV. These fissioning nuclei are identified by detecting the target-like recoil, and their kinetic and excitation energy are determined from the reconstruction of the transfer reaction. The large-acceptance spectrometer VAMOS was used to identify the mass, atomic number and charge state of the fission fragments in flight. As a result, the characteristics of the fission-fragment isotopic distributions of a variety of neutron-rich actinides are observed for the first time over the complete range of fission fragments. (authors)

Simultaneous investigation of fission fragments and neutrons in 252Cf(s,f)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Budtz-Joergensen, C.; Knitter, H.H.

1986-01-01

The gridded twin ion chamber developed at CBNM is used to measure the kinetic energy-, mass- and angular distributions of the fission fragments of 252 Cf in an advantageous 4π-geometry. Together with a neutron time-of-flight detector this experimental arrangement permits to measure the correlation between neutron emission, fragment angle, mass and energy in the spontaneous fission of 252 Cf. With the present experimental set-up a mass resolution for fission fragments of 0.5 a.m.u., an angular resolution of Δcosθ = 0.05 and a timing resolution of 0.7 ns FWHM were observed. Preliminary evaluations of the raw experimental data are presented for the fission fragment mass distribution, the average total kinetic energy and their variance as function of mass, the angular distribution between fragments and neutrons, the number of neutrons emitted per fragment as function of fragment mass, the average neutron emission energies as function of mass, and the prompt fission neutron spectrum averaged over all fragments. (author)

Measurements of actinide-fission product yields in Caliban and Prospero metallic core reactor fission neutron fields

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Casoli, P.; Authier, N. [CEA, Centre de Valduc, 21120 Is-sur-Tille (France); Laurec, J.; Bauge, E.; Granier, T. [CEA, Centre DIF, 91297 Arpajon (France)

2011-07-01

In the 1970's and early 1980's, an experimental program was performed on the facilities of the CEA Valduc Research Center to measure several actinide-fission product yields. Experiments were, in particular, completed on the Caliban and Prospero metallic core reactors to study fission-neutron-induced reactions on {sup 233}U, {sup 235}U, and {sup 239}Pu. Thick actinide samples were irradiated and the number of nuclei of each fission product was determined by gamma spectrometry. Fission chambers were irradiated simultaneously to measure the numbers of fissions in thin deposits of the same actinides. The masses of the thick samples and the thin deposits were determined by mass spectrometry and alpha spectrometry. The results of these experiments will be fully presented in this paper for the first time. A description of the Caliban and Prospero reactors, their characteristics and performances, and explanations about the experimental approach will also be given in the article. A recent work has been completed to analyze and reinterpret these measurements and particularly to evaluate the associated uncertainties. In this context, calculations have also been carried out with the Monte Carlo transport code Tripoli-4, using the published benchmarked Caliban description and a three-dimensional model of Prospero, to determine the average neutron energy causing fission. Simulation results will be discussed in this paper. Finally, new fission yield measurements will be proposed on Caliban and Prospero reactors to strengthen the results of the first experiments. (authors)

Modelling the widths of fission observables in GEF

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Schmidt K.-H.

2013-03-01

Full Text Available The widths of the mass distributions of the different fission channels are traced back to the probability distributions of the corresponding quantum oscillators that are coupled to the heat bath, which is formed by the intrinsic degrees of freedom of the fissioning system under the influence of pairing correlations and shell effects. Following conclusion from stochastic calculations of Adeev and Pashkevich, an early freezing due to dynamical effects is assumed. It is shown that the mass width of the fission channels in low-energy fission is strongly influenced by the zero-point motion of the corresponding quantum oscillator. The observed variation of the mass widths of the asymmetric fission channels with excitation energy is attributed to the energy-dependent properties of the heat bath and not to the population of excited states of the corresponding quantum oscillator.

The FRS Ion Catcher : A facility for high-precision experiments with stopped projectile and fission fragments

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Plass, W. R.; Dickel, T.; Purushothaman, S.; Dendooven, P.; Geissel, H.; Ebert, J.; Haettner, E.; Jesch, C.; Ranjan, M.; Reiter, M. P.; Weick, H.; Amjad, F.; Ayet, S.; Diwisch, M.; Estrade, A.; Farinon, F.; Greiner, F.; Kalantar-Nayestanaki, N.; Knoebel, R.; Kurcewicz, J.; Lang, J.; Moore, I.; Mukha, I.; Nociforo, C.; Petrick, M.; Pfuetzner, M.; Pietri, S.; Prochazka, A.; Rink, A. -K.; Rinta-Antila, S.; Schaefer, D.; Scheidenberger, C.; Takechi, M.; Tanaka, Y. K.; Winfield, J. S.; Yavor, M. I.

2013-01-01

At the FRS Ion Catcher at GSI, projectile and fission fragments are produced at relativistic energies, separated in-flight, range-focused, slowed down and thermalized in a cryogenic stopping cell. A multiple-reflection time-of-flight mass spectrometer (MR-TOF-MS) is used to perform direct mass

Determination of the neutron-induced fission cross section of 242Pu

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koegler, Toni Joerg

2016-01-01

Neutron induced fission cross sections of actinides like the Pu-isotopes are of relevance for the development of nuclear transmutation technologies. For 242 Pu, current uncertainties are of around 21%. Sensitivity studies show that the total uncertainty has to be reduced to below 5% to allow for reliable neutron physics simulations. This challenging task was performed at the neutron time-of-flight facility of the new German National Center for High Power Radiation Sources at HZDR, Dresden. Within the TRAKULA project, thin, large and homogeneous deposits of 235 U and 242 Pu have been produced successfully. Using two consecutively placed fission chambers allowed the determination of the neutron induced fission cross section of 242 Pu relative to 235 U. The areal density of the Plutonium targets was calculated using the measured spontaneous fission rate. Experimental results of the fast neutron induced fission of 242 Pu acquired at nELBE will be presented and compared to recent experiments and evaluated data. Corrections addressing the neutron scattering are discussed by using results of different neutron transport simulations (Geant 4, MCNP 6 and FLUKA).

Fast-neutron-induced fission of 242Pu at nELBE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kögler Toni

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The fast neutron-induced fission cross section of 242Pu was determined in the range of 0.5 MeV to 10 MeV relative to 235U(n,f at the neutron time-of-flight facility nELBE. The number of target nuclei was calculated by means of measuring the spontaneous fission rate of 242Pu. Neutron transport simulations with Geant4 and MCNP6 are used to correct the relative cross section for neutron scattering. The determined results are in good agreement with current experimental and evaluated data sets.

Numerical investigation of the early flight phase in ski-jumping.

Science.gov (United States)

Gardan, N; Schneider, A; Polidori, G; Trenchard, H; Seigneur, J M; Beaumont, F; Fourchet, F; Taiar, R

2017-07-05

The purpose of this study is to develop a numerical methodology based on real data from wind tunnel experiments to investigate the effect of the ski jumper's posture and speed on aerodynamic forces in a wide range of angles of attack. To improve our knowledge of the aerodynamic behavior of the ski jumper and his equipment during the early flight phase of the ski jump, we applied CFD methodology to evaluate the influence of angle of attack (α=14°, 21.5°, 29°, 36.5° and 44°) and speed (u=23, 26 and 29m/s) on aerodynamic forces in the situation of stable attitude of the ski jumper's body and skis. The standard k-ω turbulence model was used to investigate both the influence of the ski jumper's posture and speed on aerodynamic performance during the early flight phase. Numerical results show that the ski jumper's speed has very little impact on the lift and drag coefficients. Conversely, the lift and drag forces acting on the ski jumper's body during the early flight phase of the jump are strongly influenced by the variations of the angle of attack. The present results suggest that the greater the ski jumper's angle of inclination, with respect to the relative flow, the greater the pressure difference between the lower and upper parts of the skier. Further studies will focus on the dependency of the parameters with both the angle of attack α and the body-ski angle β as control variables. It will be possible to test and optimize different ski jumping styles in different ski jumping hills and investigate different environmental conditions such as temperature, altitude or crosswinds. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Fission 2009 4. International Workshop on Nuclear Fission and Fission Product Spectroscopy - Compilation of slides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2009-01-01

This conference is dedicated to the last achievements in experimental and theoretical aspects of the nuclear fission process. The topics include: mass, charge and energy distribution, dynamical aspect of the fission process, nuclear data evaluation, quasi-fission and fission lifetime in super heavy elements, fission fragment spectroscopy, cross-section and fission barrier, and neutron and gamma emission. This document gathers the program of the conference and the slides of the presentations

Nuclear fission and neutron-induced fission cross-sections

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

James, G.D.; Lynn, J.E.; Michaudon, A.; Rowlands, J.; de Saussure, G.

1981-01-01

A general presentation of current knowledge of the fission process is given with emphasis on the low energy fission of actinide nuclei and neutron induced fission. The need for and the required accuracy of fission cross section data in nuclear energy programs are discussed. A summary is given of the steps involved in fission cross section measurement and the range of available techniques. Methods of fission detection are described with emphasis on energy dependent changed and detector efficiency. Examples of cross section measurements are given and data reduction is discussed. The calculation of fission cross sections is discussed and relevant nuclear theory including the formation and decay of compound nuclei and energy level density is introduced. A description of a practical computation of fission cross sections is given.

Fission fragment yields from heavy-ion-induced reactions measured with a fragment separator

Science.gov (United States)

Tarasov, O. B.; Delaune, O.; Farget, F.; Morrissey, D. J.; Amthor, A. M.; Bastin, B.; Bazin, D.; Blank, B.; Cacéres, L.; Chbihi, A.; Fernández-Dominguez, B.; Grévy, S.; Kamalou, O.; Lukyanov, S. M.; Mittig, W.; Pereira, J.; Perrot, L.; Saint-Laurent, M.-G.; Savajols, H.; Sherrill, B. M.; Stodel, C.; Thomas, J. C.; Villari, A. C.

2018-04-01

The systematic study of fission fragment yields under different initial conditions has provided valuable experimental data for benchmarking models of fission product yields. Nuclear reactions using inverse kinematics coupled to the use of a high-resolution spectrometer with good fragment identification are shown here to be a powerful tool to measure the inclusive isotopic yields of fission fragments. In-flight fusion-fission was used in this work to produce secondary beams of neutron-rich isotopes in the collisions of a 238U beam at 24 MeV/u with 9Be and 12C targets at GANIL using the LISE3 fragment separator. Unique identification of the A, Z, and atomic charge state, q, of fission products was attained with the Δ E- TKE-B ρ- ToF measurement technique. Mass, and atomic number distributions are reported for the two reactions. The results show the importance of different reaction mechanisms in the two cases. The optimal target material for higher yields of neutron-rich high- Z isotopes produced in fusion-fission reactions as a function of projectile energy is discussed.

Theoretical models of neutron emission in fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Madland, D.G.

1992-01-01

A brief survey of theoretical representations of two of the observables in neutron emission in fission is given, namely, the prompt fission neutron spectrum N(E) and the average prompt neutron multiplicity bar v p . Early representations of the two observables are presented and their deficiencies are discussed. This is followed by summaries and examples of recent theoretical models for the calculation of these quantities. Emphasis is placed upon the predictability and accuracy of the new models. In particular, the dependencies of N(E) and bar v p upon the fissioning nucleus and its excitation energy are treated. Recent work in the calculation of the prompt fission neutron spectrum matrix N(E,E n ), where E n is the energy of the neutron inducing fission, is then discussed. Concluding remarks address the current status of our ability to calculate these observables with confidence, the direction of future theoretical efforts, and limititations to current and future calculations. Finally, recommendations are presented as to which model should be used currently and which model should be pursued in future efforts

Nuclear fission and fission-product spectroscopy: 3. International workshop on nuclear fission and fission-product spectroscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goutte, Heloise; Fioni, Gabriele; Faust, Herbert; Goutte, Dominique

2005-01-01

The present book contains the proceedings of the third workshop in a series of workshops previously held in Seyssins in 1994 and 1998. The meeting was jointly organized by different divisions of CEA and two major international laboratories. In the opening address, Prof. B. Bigot, the French High Commissioner for Atomic Energy, outlined France's energy policy for the next few decades. He emphasized the continuing progress of nuclear fission in both technical and economic terms, allowing it to contribute to the energy needs of the planet even more in the future than it does today. Such progress implies a very strong link between fundamental and applied research based on experimental and theoretical approaches. The workshop gathered the different nuclear communities studying the fission process, including topics as the following: - nuclear fission experiments, - spectroscopy of neutron rich nuclei, - fission data evaluation, - theoretical aspects of nuclear fission, - and innovative nuclear systems and new facilities. The scientific program was suggested by an International Advisory Committee. About 100 scientists from 13 different countries attended the conference in the friendly working atmosphere of the Castle of Cadarache in the heart of the Provence. The proceedings of the workshop were divided into 11 sections addressing the following subject matters: 1. Cross sections and resonances (5 papers); 2. Fission at higher energies - I (5 papers); 3. Fission: mass and charge yields (4 papers); 4. Light particles and cluster emission (4 papers); 5. Spectroscopy of neutron rich nuclei (5 papers); 6. Resonances, barriers, and fission times (5 papers); 7. Fragment excitation and neutron emission (4 papers); 8. Mass and energy distributions (4 papers); 9. Needs for nuclear data and new facilities - I (4 papers); 10. Angular momenta and fission at higher Energies - II (3 papers); 11. New facilities - II (2 papers). A poster session of 8 presentations completed the workshop

Angular Distribution of Gamma Rays from the Fission of {sup 235}U Induced by 14-Mev Neutrons

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jeki, L.; Kluge, Gy.; Lajtai, A. [Central Research Institute for Physics, Hungarian Academy of Sciences (Hungary)

1969-12-15

Experiments are reported which were performed to study the angular distribution of the gamma radiation following fast-neutron-induced nuclear fission. The investigations were, in particular, focussed on the influence which the angular momentum imparted to the compound nucleus by the fast neutrons has on the angular distribution of the {gamma}-rays. The fission of {sup 235}U is induced by 14-MeV-energy neutrons from the T(d, n) {alpha} reaction. The fission fragments are detected by a gas-scintillation counter filled with a mixture of Ar and Ni gases, the {gamma}-rays by 5 cm x 5 cm Nal(Tl) crystal with an energy threshold of 120 keV. The intensity of the {gamma}-rays is measured at 90 Degree-Sign and 174 Degree-Sign to the direction of fragment motion. The flight times of fission neutrons and {gamma}-rays are measured with a 20-ns overlap-type time-to-pulse height converter while the background was covered simultaneously with another converter delayed with respect to the former. The signals from both converters are analysed by a multichannel analyser with divisible memory. The flight path, which is chosen to be about 70 cm, makes it possible to separate the neutron from the gamma counts. The geometry is designed to keep the direction of the outflying fission fragments nearly the same as that of the incident fast neutrons. In this way the angular momenta of the fast neutrons are normal to the flight path of the fragments. The measured gamma intensities are extrapolated to 180 Degree-Sign on a computer using Strutinski's formula n( Greek-Theta-Symbol ) {approx}1 + B sin Greek-Theta-Symbol . On transformation of the measured data from the laboratory system to the system of fragments the anisotropy is found to be A = 1(180 Degree-Sign )/l (90 Degree-Sign ) = 1.33 {+-} 0.05. The main angular momentum of fission fragments is calculated from the anisotropy as 15 h units. As compared with the thermal-neutron-induced fission the present results indicate an additional

Measurement of fast neutron induced fission cross section of minor-actinide

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hirakawa, Naohiro

1997-03-01

In fuel cycles with recycled actinide, core characteristics are largely influenced by minor actinide (MA: Np, Am, Cm). Accurate nuclear data of MA such as fission cross section are required to estimate the effect of MA with high accuracy. In this study, fast neutron induced fission cross section of MA is measured using Dynamitron Accelerator in Tohoku University. The experimental method and the samples, which were developed or introduced during the last year, were improved in this fiscal year: (1) Development of a sealed fission chamber, (2) Intensification of Li neutron target, (3) Improvement of time-resolution of Time-of-Flight (TOF) electronic circuit, (4) Introduction of Np237 samples with large sample mass and (5) Introduction of a U235 sample with high purity. Using these improved tools and samples, the fission cross section ratio of Np237 relative to U235 was measured between 5 to 100 keV, and the fission cross section of Np237 was deduced. On the other hand, samples of Am241 and Am243 were obtained from Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI) after investigating fission cross section of two americium isotopes (Am241 and Am 243) which are important for core physics calculation of fast reactors. (author)

Fifty years of nuclear fission: Nuclear data and measurements series

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lynn, J.E.

1989-06-01

This report is the written version of a colloquium first presented at Argonne National Laboratory in January 1989. The paper begins with an historical preamble about the events leading to the discovery of nuclear fission. This leads naturally to an account of early results and understanding of the fission phenomena. Some of the key concepts in the development of fission theory are then discussed. The main theme of this discussion is the topography of the fission barrier, in which the interplay of the liquid-drop model and nucleon shell effects lead to a wide range of fascinating phenomena encompassing metastable isomers, intermediate-structure effects in fission cross-sections, and large changes in fission product properties. It is shown how study of these changing effects and theoretical calculations of the potential energy of the deformed nucleus have led to broad qualitative understanding of the nature of the fission process. 54 refs., 35 figs

Gamma rays as probe of fission and quasi-fission dynamics in the reaction 32S + 197Au near the Coulomb barrier

Science.gov (United States)

Pulcini, A.; Vardaci, E.; Kozulin, E.; Ashaduzzaman, M.; Borcea, C.; Bracco, A.; Brambilla, S.; Calinescu, S.; Camera, F.; Ciemala, M.; de Canditiis, B.; Dorvaux, O.; Harca, I. M.; Itkis, I.; Kirakosyan, V. V.; Knyazheva, G.; Kozulina, N.; Kolesov, I. V.; La Rana, G.; Maj, A.; Matea, I.; Novikov, K.; Petrone, C.; Quero, D.; Rath, P.; Saveleva, E.; Schmitt, C.; Sposito, G.; Stezowski, O.; Trzaska, W. H.; Wilson, J.

2018-05-01

Compound nucleus fission and quasi-fission are both binary decay channels whose common properties make the experimental separation between them difficult. A way to achieve this separation could be to probe the angular momentum of the binary fragments. This can be done detecting gamma rays in coincidence with the two fragments. As a case study, the reaction 32S + 197Au near the Coulomb barrier has been performed at the Tandem ALTO facility at IPN ORSAY. ORGAM and PARIS, two different gamma detectors arrays, are coupled with the CORSET detector, a two-arm time-of-flight spectrometer. TOF-TOF data were analyzed to reconstruct the mass-energy distribution of the primary fragments coupled with gamma multiplicity and spectroscopic analysis. Preliminary results of will be shown.

Determination of the fast-neutron-induced fission cross-section of 242Pu at nELBE

Science.gov (United States)

Kögler, Toni; Beyer, Roland; Junghans, Arnd R.; Schwengner, Ronald; Wagner, Andreas

2018-03-01

The fast-neutron-induced fission cross section of 242Pu was determined in the energy range of 0.5 MeV to 10MeV at the neutron time-of-flight facility nELBE. Using a parallel-plate fission ionization chamber this quantity was measured relative to 235U(n,f). The number of target nuclei was thereby calculated by means of measuring the spontaneous fission rate of 242Pu. An MCNP 6 neutron transport simulation was used to correct the relative cross section for neutron scattering. The determined results are in good agreement with current experimental and evaluated data sets.

The 235U prompt fission neutron spectrum measured by the Chi-Nu project at LANSCE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gomez J.A.

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The Chi-Nu experiment aims to accurately measure the prompt fission neutron spectrum for the major actinides. At the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE, fission can be induced with neutrons ranging from 0.7 MeV and above. Using a two arm time-of-flight (TOF technique, the fission neutrons are measured in one of two arrays: a 22-6Li glass array for lower energies, or a 54-liquid scintillator array for outgoing energies of 0.5 MeV and greater. Presented here are the collaboration's preliminary efforts at measuring the 235U PFNS.

Effective K quantum numbers in fission of oriented 235U

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dabbs, J.W.T.; Eggerman, C.; Cauvin, B.; Michaudon, A.; Sanche, M.

1969-01-01

The angular anisotropy of fission fragments produced in neutron-induced fission of aligned 235 U nuclei has been measured for neutron energies between 0.3 eV and 175 eV, using time-of-flight techniques at the pulsed 45 MeV electron linear accelerator at Saclay. The low-temperature nuclear-alignment apparatus used was a modified version of the apparatus described at the Salzburg conference, and gave an average temperature of 0.61 K for the four UO 2 Rb(NO 3 ) 3 single crystal samples during a measurement period of approximately 220 h. The flight path was 5 m and the election pulse length was 100 ns. Multilevel fits to the observed 0 deg and 90 deg fission cross-sections have been made using the Adler and Adler formalism with the aid of a program developed by G. de Saussure. The most striking result obtained in the analysis of some 16 of 100 levels or groups of levels is a strong correlation between small fission width and an effective value of K ≅ J. All 5 resonances in the group of 16 for which results are final, for which K ≅ J is deduced, have exceptionally small widths. This result suggests that the small widths are associated with a large rotational energy and consequent diminution in available deformation energy, so that these 5 resonances are effectively sub-threshold resonances; such a suggestion is quite in accord with the ideas of Bohr. The preponderance of other resonances so far analysed have effective K values of 1 or 2. An analysis of all resolvable resonances is presented. (author)

Delayed fission

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hatsukawa, Yuichi [Japan Atomic Energy Research Inst., Tokai, Ibaraki (Japan). Tokai Research Establishment

1997-07-01

Delayed fission is a nuclear decay process that couples {beta} decay and fission. In the delayed fission process, a parent nucleus undergoes {beta} decay and thereby populates excited states in the daughter. If these states are of energies comparable to or greater than the fission barrier of the daughter, then fission may compete with other decay modes of the excited states in the daughter. In this paper, mechanism and some experiments of the delayed fission will be discussed. (author)

Fission and activation of uranium by fashion-plasma neutrons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, J.H.; Hochl, F.; McFarland, D.R.

1978-01-01

Disks of enriched and depleted uranium were irradiated by neutrons from the D-D fusions in a dense plasma-focus. A fission yield of 10 6 fissions-cm -3 in U 235 per pulse was determined with Ge(Li) gamme-ray spectrometry. Activation of U 238 caused increased beta activity after the plasma-neutron irradiation but alpha-particle spectrometry showed Pu 239 production was negligible. In addition, with a disk of lithium in the apparatus, 13.3 MeV neutrons from 7 Li(d,n) 8 Be was observed with a 80-m time-of-flight neutron detector. Dense plasma focuses are now operated not only in a single coaxial gun, but also in improved geometries, such as the hypocycloidal pinch and the staged plasma focus, from which a multiple plasma-focus array suitable for experimental verification of, and eventuel development into a fusion-fission hybrid reactor could be produced. (orig.) [de

Isotopic production cross sections of fission residues in 197Au-on-proton collisions at 800 A MeV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Benlliure, J.; Armbruster, P.; Bernas, M.

2000-02-01

Interactions of 197 Au projectiles at 800 A MeV with protons leading to fission are investigated. We measured the production cross sections and velocities of all fission residues which are fully identified in atomic and mass number by using the in-flight separator FRS at GSI. The new data are compared with partial measurements of the characteristics of fission in similar reactions. Both the production cross sections and the recoil energies are relevant for a better understanding of spallation reactions. (orig.)

Nuclear-charge polarization at scission in fission from moderately excited light-actinide nuclei

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nishinaka, Ichiro

2009-01-01

Fragment mass yields and the average neutron multiplicity in the proton-induced fission of 232 Th and 238 U were measured by a double time-of-flight method. The most probable charges of secondary fragments were evaluated from the fragment mass yields measured by the double time-of-flight method and the fractional cumulative and independent yields reported in literature. The nuclear-charge polarization of primary fragments at scission was obtained by correcting the most probable charge of secondary fragments for neutron evaporation. The results show that the nuclear-charge polarization at scission is associated with the liquid-drop properties of nuclei and the proton shell effect with Z = 50 of heavy fragments and that it is practically insensitive to mass and excitation energy of the fissioning nucleus in the region of light-actinide nuclei. (author)

The LANL/LLNL Program to Measure Prompt Fission Neutron Spectra at LANSCE

Science.gov (United States)

Haight, Robert; Wu, Ching Yen; Lee, Hye Young; Taddeucci, Terry; Mosby, Shea; O'Donnell, John; Fotiades, Nikolaos; Devlin, Mattew; Ullmann, John; Nelson, Ronald; Wender, Stephen; White, Morgan; Solomon, Clell; Neudecker, Denise; Talou, Patrick; Rising, Michael; Bucher, Brian; Buckner, Matthew; Henderson, Roger

2015-10-01

Accurate data on the spectrum of neutrons emitted in neutron-induced fission are needed for applications and for a better understanding of the fission process. At LANSCE we have made important progress in understanding systematic uncertainties and in obtaining data for 235U on the low-energy part of the prompt fission neutron spectra (PFNS), a particularly difficult region because down-scattered neutrons go in this direction. We use a double time-of-flight technique to determine energies of incoming and outgoing neutrons. With data acquisition via waveform digitizers, accidental coincidences between fission chamber and neutron detector are measured to high statistical accuracy and then subtracted from measured events. Monte Carlo simulations with high performance computers have proven to be essential in the design to minimize neutron scattering and in calculating detector response. Results from one of three approaches to analyzing the data will be presented. This work is funded by the US Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration and Office of Nuclear Physics.

Angular distribution of gamma rays from the fission of {sup 235}U induced by 14-MeV neutrons

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jeki, L; Kluge, G; Lajtai, A [Central Research Institute for Physics, Hungarian Academy of Sciences (Hungary)

1969-12-15

Experiments are reported which were performed to study the angular distribution of the gamma radiation following fast-neutron-induced nuclear fission. The investigations were, in particular, focussed on the influence which the angular momentum imparted to the compound nucleus by the fast neutrons has on the angular distribution of the {gamma}-rays. The fission of {sup 235}U is induced by 14-MeV-energy neutrons from the T(d, n) {alpha} reaction. The fission fragments are detected by a gas-scintillation counter filled with a mixture of Ar and Ni gases, the {gamma}-rays by 5 cm x 5 cm Nal(Tl) crystal with an energy threshold of 120 keV. The intensity of the {gamma}-rays is measured at 90 deg. and 174 deg. to the direction of fragment motion. The flight times of fission neutrons and {gamma}-rays are measured with a 20-ns overlap-type time-to-pulse height converter while the background was covered simultaneously with another converter delayed with respect to the former. The signals from both converters are analysed by a multichannel analyser with divisible memory. The flight path, which is chosen to be about 70 cm, makes it possible to separate the neutron from the gamma counts. The geometry is designed to keep the direction of the outflying fission fragments nearly the same as that of the incident fast neutrons. In this way the angular momenta of the fast neutrons are normal to the flight path of the fragments. The measured gamma intensities are extrapolated to 180 deg on a computer using Strutinski's formula n({theta}) {approx} 1 + B sin {theta}. On transformation of the measured data from the laboratory system to the system of fragments the anisotropy is found to be A = I(180 deg.)/I (90 deg.) = 1.33 {+-} 0.05. The main angular momentum of fission fragments is calculated from the anisotropy as 15 (h/2{pi}) units. As compared with the thermal-neutron-induced fission the present results indicate an additional contribution from the angular momentum of the compound

The Prompt Fission Neutron Spectrum of 235U for Einc 0.7-5.0 MeV

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gomez, Jaime A. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Devlin, Matthew James [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Haight, Robert Cameron [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); O' Donnell, John M. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Lee, Hye Young [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Mosby, Shea Morgan [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Taddeucci, Terry Nicholas [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Kelly, Keegan John [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Fotiadis, Nikolaos [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Neudecker, Denise [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); White, Morgan Curtis [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Talou, Patrick [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Rising, Michael Evan [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Solomon, Clell Jeffrey Jr. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Wu, Ching-Yen [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Bucher, Brian Michael [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Buckner, Matthew Quinn [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Henderson, Roger Alan [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)

2017-03-23

The Chi-Nu experiment aims to accurately measure the prompt fission neutron spectrum (PFNS) for the major actinides. At the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE), fission can be induced using the white neutron source. Using a two arm time of flight (T.O.F) technique; Chi-Nu presents a preliminary result of the low energy component of the 235U PFNS measured using an array of 22-Lithium glass scintillators.

Measurement of the angular distribution of fission fragments using a PPAC assembly at CERN n{sub T}OF

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tarrío, D., E-mail: dtarriov@gmail.com [Universidade de Santiago de Compostela (Spain); Leong, L.S.; Audouin, L. [Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique/IN2P3 -Université Paris-Sud - IPN, Orsay (France); Duran, I.; Paradela, C. [Universidade de Santiago de Compostela (Spain); Tassan-Got, L.; Le Naour, C.; Bacri, C.O.; Petitbon, V.; Mottier, J. [Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique/IN2P3 -Université Paris-Sud - IPN, Orsay (France); Caamaño, M. [Universidade de Santiago de Compostela (Spain); Altstadt, S. [Johann-Wolfgang-Goethe Universität, Frankfurt (Germany); Andrzejewski, J. [Uniwersytet Łódzki, Lodz (Poland); Barbagallo, M. [Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Bari (Italy); Bécares, V. [Centro de Investigaciones Energeticas Medioambientales y Tecnológicas (CIEMAT), Madrid (Spain); Bečvář, F. [Charles University, Prague (Czech Republic); Belloni, F. [Commissariat à l’Énergie Atomique (CEA) Saclay - Irfu, Gif-sur-Yvette (France); Berthoumieux, E. [Commissariat à l’Énergie Atomique (CEA) Saclay - Irfu, Gif-sur-Yvette (France); European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), Geneva (Switzerland); Billowes, J. [University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester (United Kingdom); Boccone, V. [European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), Geneva (Switzerland); and others

2014-04-11

A fission reaction chamber based on Parallel Plate Avalanche Counters (PPACs) was built for measuring angular distributions of fragments emitted in neutron-induced fission of actinides at the neutron beam available at the Neutron Time-Of-Flight (n{sub T}OF) facility at CERN. The detectors and the samples were tilted 45° with respect to the neutron beam direction to cover all the possible values of the emission angle of the fission fragments. The main features of this setup are discussed and results on the fission fragment angular distribution are provided for the {sup 232}Th(n,f) reaction around the fission threshold. The results are compared with the available data in the literature, demonstrating the good capabilities of this setup.

Fission of {sup 209}Bi and {sup 197}Au nuclei induced by 30 MeV protons

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Noshad, Houshyar; Soheyli, Saeed [Amir-Kabir University of Technology, Physics and Nuclear Science Department, Tehran (Iran); Lamehi-Rachti, Mohammad [Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), Nuclear Research Center, Van de Graaff Laboratory, Tehran (Iran)

2001-10-01

Thin targets of {sup 209}Bi and {sup 197}Au were bombarded with 30 MeV protons at the Cyclotron Department of Nuclear Research Center for Agriculture and Medicine (NRCAM). Correlated measurements of kinetic energies of fission fragment pairs, and their time-of-flights were made using pair spectrometry. The fission cross sections, fragment mass distributions, and total kinetic energy distributions of the fragments were measured in our experiment. The accurate values of cross sections for fission of {sup 209}Bi and {sup 197}Au nuclei with 30 MeV protons were obtained to be 1,100{+-}100 and 62{+-}5.6 {mu}b, respectively. The cross section of {sup 209}Bi fission with its associated error, through using this method, has not been reported previously. The interpretation in terms of liquid-drop model of fissioning nucleus {sup 210}Po at the excitation energy of 35 MeV was confirmed by the dispersion of the distribution in fragment mass for bismuth fission. (author)

Coulomb fission and transfer fission at heavy ion collisions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Himmele, G.

1981-01-01

In the present thesis the first direct evidence of nuclear fission after inelastic scattering of heavy ions (sup(183,184)W, 152 Sm → 238 U; 184 W → 232 Th; 184 W, 232 Th → 248 Cm) is reported. Experiments which were performed at the UNILAC of the Gesellschaft fuer Schwerionenforschung in Darmstadt show the observed heavy ion induced fission possesses significant properties of the Coulomb fission. The observed dependence of the fission probability for inelastic scattering on the projectile charge proves that the nuclear fission is mediated by the electromagnetic interaction between heavy ions. This result suggests moreover a multiple Coulomb-excitation preceding the fission. Model calculations give a first indication, that the Coulomb fission proceeds mainly from the higher β phonons. In the irradiation with 184 W the fission probability of 232 Th is for all incident energies about 40% smaller that at 238 U. The target dependence of the Coulomb fission however doesn't allow, to give quantitative statements about the position and B(E2)-values of higher lying β phonons. (orig./HSI) [de

Determination of the fast-neutron-induced fission cross-section of 242Pu at nELBE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kögler Toni

2018-01-01

Full Text Available The fast-neutron-induced fission cross section of 242Pu was determined in the energy range of 0.5 MeV to 10MeV at the neutron time-of-flight facility nELBE. Using a parallel-plate fission ionization chamber this quantity was measured relative to 235U(n,f. The number of target nuclei was thereby calculated by means of measuring the spontaneous fission rate of 242Pu. An MCNP 6 neutron transport simulation was used to correct the relative cross section for neutron scattering. The determined results are in good agreement with current experimental and evaluated data sets.

Prompt neutron energy spectrum for the spontaneous fission of Cf-252

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blinov, M.V.; Boykov, G.S.; Vitenko, V.A.

1985-06-01

The prompt neutron spectrum for the spontaneous fission of Cf-252 has been measured in 0.01-10 MeV region by the time-of-flight technique using a fast ionization chamber with U-235 layers as the neutron detector. Numerical data for the spectrum are presented, with an error file. (author)

Fission Product Data Measured at Los Alamos for Fission Spectrum and Thermal Neutrons on 239Pu, 235U, 238U

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Selby, H.D.; Mac Innes, M.R.; Barr, D.W.; Keksis, A.L.; Meade, R.A.; Burns, C.J.; Chadwick, M.B.; Wallstrom, T.C.

2010-01-01

We describe measurements of fission product data at Los Alamos that are important for determining the number of fissions that have occurred when neutrons are incident on plutonium and uranium isotopes. The fission-spectrum measurements were made using a fission chamber designed by the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) in the BIG TEN critical assembly, as part of the Inter-laboratory Liquid Metal Fast Breeder Reactor (LMFBR) Reaction Rate (ILRR) collaboration. The thermal measurements were made at Los Alamos' Omega West Reactor. A related set of measurements were made of fission-product ratios (so-called R-values) in neutron environments provided by a number of Los Alamos critical assemblies that range from having average energies causing fission of 400-600 keV (BIG TEN and the outer regions of the Flattop-25 assembly) to higher energies (1.4-1.9 MeV) in the Jezebel, and in the central regions of the Flattop-25 and Flattop-Pu, critical assemblies. From these data we determine ratios of fission product yields in different fuel and neutron environments (Q-values) and fission product yields in fission spectrum neutron environments for 99 Mo, 95 Zr, 137 Cs, 140 Ba, 141,143 Ce, and 147 Nd. Modest incident-energy dependence exists for the 147 Nd fission product yield; this is discussed in the context of models for fission that include thermal and dynamical effects. The fission product data agree with measurements by Maeck and other authors using mass-spectrometry methods, and with the ILRR collaboration results that used gamma spectroscopy for quantifying fission products. We note that the measurements also contradict earlier 1950s historical Los Alamos estimates by ∼5-7%, most likely owing to self-shielding corrections not made in the early thermal measurements. Our experimental results provide a confirmation of the England-Rider ENDF/B-VI evaluated fission-spectrum fission product yields that were carried over to the ENDF/B-VII.0 library, except

Advances on fission chamber modelling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Filliatre, Philippe; Jammes, Christian; Geslot, Benoit; Veenhof, Rob

2013-06-01

lifetime of fission chambers and perform an early diagnosis of failures. (authors)

Energy spectra of neutrons accompanying the emission fission of 238U

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smirenkin, G.N.; Lovchikova, G.N.; Trufanov, A.M.; Svirin, M.I.; Polyakov, A.V.; Vinogradov, V.A.; Dmitriev, V.D.; Boykov, G.S.

1996-01-01

The spectra of fission neutrons emitted from 238U are measured for the first time by the time-of-flight method at incident-neutron energies of 16.0 and 17.7 MeV. Analysis of the neutron spectra shows that experimental results at incident-neutron energies of 14.7, 16.0, and 17.7 MeV (above the threshold of chance fission) differ significantly from those obtained at a neutron energy of 2.9 MeV (below the threshold of chance fission). Owing to the prefission emission of neutrons, the observed spectra of neutrons from emission fission exhibit a characteristic growth of the neutron yield in both hard and soft sections of the spectrum of secondary neutrons. This growth manifests itself as a step in the first case and as a rise in the second case, where it results in a noticeable excess of neutrons over the statistical-model predictions for E<2 MeV. The first feature in the spectra of neutrons from emission fission can be associated with the nonequilibrium decay of an excited fissile nucleus. On the contrary, the origin of the second feature has yet to be clarified. Additional measurements of angular distributions of secondary neutrons may prove helpful in this respect

Investigation of exotic fission modes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Poenaru, D. N.; Gherghescu, R. A.; Greiner, W.; Nagame, Y.; Hamilton, J. H.; Ramayya, A. V.

2002-01-01

clusters are: 2α, α + 6 He, α + 10 Be, 3α, etc. The strong shell effect corresponding to the doubly magic heavy fragment 132 Sn was emphasized. We concluded that the most favorable mechanism of such decay modes should be the cluster emission from an elongated neck formed between the two heavy fragments. A formation mechanism of the touching configuration, based on a three-center phenomenological model is suggested. It is derived from the liquid drop model under the assumption that the aligned configuration, with the emitted particle between the light and heavy fragment is obtained by increasing continuously the separation distance, while the radii of the heavy fragment and of the light particle are kept constant. During the first stage of the deformation one has a two-center evolution until the neck radius becomes equal to the radius of the emitted particle. Then the three center starts developing by decreasing with the same amount the two tip distances. In such a way a new minimum, typical for a cluster molecule, appears in the deformation energy. A single-particle three center shell model just developed by us will be used in the future. It represents an extension of the advanced two center shell model which takes into account 5 deformation coordinates. The existence of this minimum proves the quasimolecular character of the aligned configuration of three fragments in touch. It explains why the 3.368 MeV γ-ray, by which decays the first excited state of 10 Be accompanying cold fission of 252 Cf, is not Doppler-broadened as it should be if this γ-ray would be emitted in flight. (authors)

Measurement of Fission Product Yields from Fast-Neutron Fission

Science.gov (United States)

Arnold, C. W.; Bond, E. M.; Bredeweg, T. A.; Fowler, M. M.; Moody, W. A.; Rusev, G.; Vieira, D. J.; Wilhelmy, J. B.; Becker, J. A.; Henderson, R.; Kenneally, J.; Macri, R.; McNabb, D.; Ryan, C.; Sheets, S.; Stoyer, M. A.; Tonchev, A. P.; Bhatia, C.; Bhike, M.; Fallin, B.; Gooden, M. E.; Howell, C. R.; Kelley, J. H.; Tornow, W.

2014-09-01

One of the aims of the Stockpile Stewardship Program is a reduction of the uncertainties on fission data used for analyzing nuclear test data [1,2]. Fission products such as 147Nd are convenient for determining fission yields because of their relatively high yield per fission (about 2%) and long half-life (10.98 days). A scientific program for measuring fission product yields from 235U,238U and 239Pu targets as a function of bombarding neutron energy (0.1 to 15 MeV) is currently underway using monoenergetic neutron beams produced at the 10 MV Tandem Accelerator at TUNL. Dual-fission chambers are used to determine the rate of fission in targets during activation. Activated targets are counted in highly shielded HPGe detectors over a period of several weeks to identify decaying fission products. To date, data have been collected at neutron bombarding energies 4.6, 9.0, 14.5 and 14.8 MeV. Experimental methods and data reduction techniques are discussed, and some preliminary results are presented.

[Fission product yields of 60 fissioning reactions]. Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rider, B.F.

1995-01-01

In keeping with the statement of work, I have examined the fission product yields of 60 fissioning reactions. In co-authorship with the UTR (University Technical Representative) Talmadge R. England ''Evaluation and Compilation of Fission Product Yields 1993,'' LA-UR-94-3106(ENDF-349) October, (1994) was published. This is an evaluated set of fission product Yields for use in calculation of decay heat curves with improved accuracy has been prepared. These evaluated yields are based on all known experimental data through 1992. Unmeasured fission product yields are calculated from charge distribution, pairing effects, and isomeric state models developed at Los Alamos National Laboratory. The current evaluation has been distributed as the ENDF/B-VI fission product yield data set

Neutron-induced fission fragment angular distribution at CERN n TOF: The Th-232 case

CERN Document Server

Tarrio, Diego; Paradela, Carlos

This thesis work was done in the frame of the study of the neutron-induced fission of actinides and subactinides at the CERN n TOF facility using a fast Parallel Plate Avalanche Counters (PPACs) setup. This experimental setup provide us with an intense neutron beam with a white spectrum from thermal to 1 GeV and with an outstanding high resolution provided by its flight path of 185 m. In our experiment, fission events were identified by detection of both fission fragments in time coincidence in the two PPAC detectors flanking the corresponding target. This technique allowed us to discriminate the fission events from the background produced by α disintegration of radioactive samples and by particles produced in spallation reactions. Because PPAC detectors are insensitive to the γ flash, it is possible to reach energies as high as 1 GeV. The stripped cathodes provide the spatial position of the hits in the detectors, so that the emission angle of the fission fragments can be measured. Inside the reaction cham...

The fusion-fission process in the reaction {sup 34}S+{sup 186}W near the interaction barrier

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Harca, I. M. [Flerov Laboratory of Nuclear Reactions, Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, (FLNR JINR) Dubna, Russia and Faculty of Physics, University of Bucharest - P.O. Box MG 11, RO 77125, Bucharest-Magurele (Romania); Dmitriev, S.; Itkis, J.; Kozulin, E. M.; Knyazheva, G.; Loktev, T.; Novikov, K. [Flerov Laboratory of Nuclear Reactions, Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, (FLNR JINR) Dubna (Russian Federation); Azaiez, F.; Gottardo, A.; Matea, I.; Verney, D. [IPN, CNRS/IN2P3, Univ. Paris-Sud, 91405 Orsay (France); Chubarian, G. [Cyclotron Institute, Texas A and M University, College Station, TX 77843-3366 (United States); Hanappe, F. [Universite Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Bruxelles (Belgium); Piot, J.; Schmitt, C. [GANIL, CEA/DSM-CNRS/IN2P3, Bd Henri Becquerel, BP 55027, F-14076 Caen Cedex 5 (France); Trzaska, W. H. [Accelerator Laboratory of University of Jyväskylä (JYFL), Jyväskylä (Finland); Vardaci, E. [Dipartamento di Scienze Fisiche and INFN (INFN-Na), Napoli (Italy)

2015-02-24

The reaction {sup 34}S+{sup 186}W at E{sub lab}=160 MeV was investigated with the aim of diving into the features of the fusion-fission process. Gamma rays in coincidence with binary reaction fragments were measured using the high efficiency gamma-ray spectrometer ORGAM at the TANDEM Accelerator facility of I.P.N., Orsay, and the time-of-flight spectrometer for fission fragments (FF) registration CORSET of the Flerov Laboratory of Nuclear Reactions (FLNR), Dubna. The coupling of the ORGAM and CORSET setups offers the unique opportunity of extracting details for characterizing the fusion-fission process and gives information regarding production of neutron-rich heavy nuclei. The FF–γ coincidence method is of better use then the γ – γ coincidence method when dealing with low statistic measurements and also offers the opportunity to precisely correct the Dopler shift for in-flight emitted gamma rays. Evidence of symmetric and asymmetric fission modes were observed in the mass and TKE distributions, occurring due to shell effects in the fragments. Coincident measurements allow for discrimination between the gamma rays by accepting a specific range within the mass distribution of the reaction products. Details regarding the experimental setup, methods of processing the acquisitioned data and preliminary results are presented.

Event-by-Event Simulation of Induced Fission

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vogt, R; Randrup, J

2007-12-13

We are developing a novel code that treats induced fission by statistical (or Monte-Carlo) simulation of individual decay chains. After its initial excitation, the fissionable compound nucleus may either deexcite by evaporation or undergo binary fission into a large number of fission channels each with different energetics involving both energy dissipation and deformed scission prefragments. After separation and Coulomb acceleration, each fission fragment undergoes a succession of individual (neutron) evaporations, leading to two bound but still excited fission products (that may further decay electromagnetically and, ultimately, weakly), as well as typically several neutrons. (The inclusion of other possible ejectiles is planned.) This kind of approach makes it possible to study more detailed observables than could be addressed with previous treatments which have tended to focus on average quantities. In particular, any type of correlation observable can readily be extracted from a generated set of events. With a view towards making the code practically useful in a variety of applications, emphasis is being put on making it numerically efficient so that large event samples can be generated quickly. In its present form, the code can generate one million full events in about 12 seconds on a MacBook laptop computer. The development of this qualitatively new tool is still at an early stage and quantitative reproduction of existing data should not be expected until a number of detailed refinement have been implemented.

Event-by-Event Simulation of Induced Fission

Science.gov (United States)

Vogt, Ramona; Randrup, Jørgen

2008-04-01

We are developing a novel code that treats induced fission by statistical (or Monte-Carlo) simulation of individual decay chains. After its initial excitation, the fissionable compound nucleus may either de-excite by evaporation or undergo binary fission into a large number of fission channels each with different energetics involving both energy dissipation and deformed scission pre-fragments. After separation and Coulomb acceleration, each fission fragment undergoes a succession of individual (neutron) evaporations, leading to two bound but still excited fission products (that may further decay electromagnetically and, ultimately, weakly), as well as typically several neutrons. (The inclusion of other possible ejectiles is planned.) This kind of approach makes it possible to study more detailed observables than could be addressed with previous treatments which have tended to focus on average quantities. In particular, any type of correlation observable can readily be extracted from a generated set of events. With a view towards making the code practically useful in a variety of applications, emphasis is being put on making it numerically efficient so that large event samples can be generated quickly. In its present form, the code can generate one million full events in about 12 seconds on a MacBook laptop computer. The development of this qualitatively new tool is still at an early stage and quantitative reproduction of existing data should not be expected until a number of detailed refinement have been implemented.

Event-by-Event Simulation of Induced Fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vogt, Ramona; Randrup, Joergen

2008-01-01

We are developing a novel code that treats induced fission by statistical (or Monte-Carlo) simulation of individual decay chains. After its initial excitation, the fissionable compound nucleus may either de-excite by evaporation or undergo binary fission into a large number of fission channels each with different energetics involving both energy dissipation and deformed scission pre-fragments. After separation and Coulomb acceleration, each fission fragment undergoes a succession of individual (neutron) evaporations, leading to two bound but still excited fission products (that may further decay electromagnetically and, ultimately, weakly), as well as typically several neutrons. (The inclusion of other possible ejectiles is planned.) This kind of approach makes it possible to study more detailed observables than could be addressed with previous treatments which have tended to focus on average quantities. In particular, any type of correlation observable can readily be extracted from a generated set of events. With a view towards making the code practically useful in a variety of applications, emphasis is being put on making it numerically efficient so that large event samples can be generated quickly. In its present form, the code can generate one million full events in about 12 seconds on a MacBook laptop computer. The development of this qualitatively new tool is still at an early stage and quantitative reproduction of existing data should not be expected until a number of detailed refinement have been implemented

Event-by-Event Simulation of Induced Fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vogt, R; Randrup, J

2007-01-01

We are developing a novel code that treats induced fission by statistical (or Monte-Carlo) simulation of individual decay chains. After its initial excitation, the fissionable compound nucleus may either deexcite by evaporation or undergo binary fission into a large number of fission channels each with different energetics involving both energy dissipation and deformed scission prefragments. After separation and Coulomb acceleration, each fission fragment undergoes a succession of individual (neutron) evaporations, leading to two bound but still excited fission products (that may further decay electromagnetically and, ultimately, weakly), as well as typically several neutrons. (The inclusion of other possible ejectiles is planned.) This kind of approach makes it possible to study more detailed observables than could be addressed with previous treatments which have tended to focus on average quantities. In particular, any type of correlation observable can readily be extracted from a generated set of events. With a view towards making the code practically useful in a variety of applications, emphasis is being put on making it numerically efficient so that large event samples can be generated quickly. In its present form, the code can generate one million full events in about 12 seconds on a MacBook laptop computer. The development of this qualitatively new tool is still at an early stage and quantitative reproduction of existing data should not be expected until a number of detailed refinement have been implemented

Prompt neutron spectrum of the spontaneous fission of californium-252

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zamyatnin, Yu.S.; Kroshkin, N.I.; Korostylev, V.A.; Nefedov, V.N.; Ryazanov, D.K.; Starostov, B.I.; Semenov, A.F.

1976-01-01

The californium-252 spontaneous fission neutron spectrum was measured in the energy range of 0.01 to 10 MeV by the time-of-flight technique using various neutron detectors. The measurements of 252 Cf neutron spectrum at energies of 0.01 to 5 MeV were performed as a function of fission fragment kinetic energy. The mean neutron spectrum energy in the range of 0.7 to 10 MeV was found from the results of measurements. The irregularity in the 252 Cf neutron spectrum in the neutron energy range of less than 0.7 MeV compared to theoretical values is discussed. The mechanism of 252 Cf neutron emission is also discussed on the basis of neutron yield angle measurements. 12 references

Fast neutron measurements at the nELBE time-of-flight facility

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Junghansa A. R.

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The compact neutron-time-of-flight facility nELBE at the superconducting electron accelerator ELBE of Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf has been rebuilt. A new enlarged experimental hall with a flight path of up to 10 m is available for neutron time-of-flight experiments in the fast energy range from about 50 keV to 10 MeV. nELBE is intended to deliver nuclear data of fast neutron nuclear interactions e.g. for the transmutation of nuclear waste and improvement of neutron physical simulations of innovative nuclear systems. The experimental programme consists of transmission measurements of neutron total cross sections, elastic and inelastic scattering cross section measurements, and neutron induced fission cross sections. The inelastic scattering to the first few excited states in 56Fe was investigated by measuring the gamma production cross section with an HPGe detector. The neutron induced fission of 242Pu was studied using fast ionisation chambers with large homogeneous actinide deposits.

Studies of short-lived products of spallation fission reactions at TRIUMF

CERN Document Server

Bischoff, G; D'Auria, J M; Dautet, H; Lee, J K P; Pate, B D; Wiesehahn, W

1976-01-01

The gas-jet recoil transport technique has been used to transport products from spallation and fission reactions from a target chamber to a shielded location for nuclear spectroscopic studies. These involve X- beta - gamma coincidence measurements and (shortly) time- of-flight mass spectroscopy. It has been deduced that the proton beam at present intensities has no appreciable effect on the ability of ethylene and other cluster-producing gases to transport radioactivity. Preliminary results will be presented for shortlived fission products from uranium, and for spallation products of iodine and argon. The latter were obtained from the bombardment of gas and aerosol targets mixed with the transporting gas in the target chamber, which appears to be a generally useful technique.

Neutron induced fission cross section ratios for 232Th, 235,238U, 237Np and 239Pu from 1 to 400 MeV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lisowski, P.W.; Ullmann, J.L.; Balestrini, S.J.; Carlson, A.D.; Wasson, O.A.; Hill, N.W.

1988-01-01

Time-of-flight measurements of neutron induced fission cross section ratios for 232 Th, 235,238 U, 237 Np, and 239 Pu, were performed using the WNR high intensity spallation neutron source located at Los Alamos National Laboratory. A multiple-plate gas ionization chamber located at a 20-m flight path was used to simultaneously measure the fission rate for all samples over the energy range from 1 to 400 MeV. Because the measurements were made with nearly identical neutron fluxes, we were able to cancel many systematic uncertainties present in previous measurements. This allows us to resolve discrepancies among different data sets. In addition, these are the first neutron-induced fission cross section values for most of the nuclei at energies above 30 MeV. (author)

Fission in 1939: The puzzle and the promise

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wheeler, J.A.

1989-01-01

Never more actively, responsibly and productively than today do historians of science study the evolution of modern physics. Their enterprise founds itself on written records, historical training and scholarship. As they build, however, the living lamps of memory one by one go out. Therefore, the present account - by one early participant in fission physics - will perhaps be more useful if it is conceived, not as history, but as memories, impressions, and atmosphere. This paper is John Wheeler's account of his part in the work in fission physics in the USA

Ternary fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wagemans, C.

1991-01-01

Since its discovery in 1946, light (charged) particle accompanied fission (ternary fission) has been extensively studied, for spontaneous as well as for induced fission reactions. The reason for this interest was twofold: the ternary particles being emitted in space and time close to the scission point were expected to supply information on the scission point configuration and the ternary fission process was an important source of helium, tritium, and hydrogen production in nuclear reactors, for which data were requested by the nuclear industry. Significant experimental progress has been realized with the advent of high-resolution detectors, powerful multiparameter data acquisition systems, and intense neutron and photon beams. As far as theory is concerned, the trajectory calculations (in which scission point parameters are deduced from the experimental observations) have been very much improved. An attempt was made to explain ternary particle emission in terms of a Plateau-Rayleigh hydrodynamical instability of a relatively long cylindrical neck or cylindrical nucleus. New results have also been obtained on the so-called open-quotes trueclose quotes ternary fission (fission in three about-equal fragments). The spontaneous emission of charged particles has also clearly been demonstrated in recent years. This chapter discusses the main characteristics of ternary fission, theoretical models, light particle emission probabilities, the dependence of the emission probabilities on experimental variables, light particle energy distributions, light particle angular distributions, correlations between light particle accompanied fission observables, open-quotes trueclose quotes ternary fission, and spontaneous emission of heavy ions. 143 refs., 18 figs., 8 tabs

Fission--fusion systems: classification and critique

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lidsky, L.M.

1974-01-01

A useful classification scheme for hybrid systems is described and some common features that the scheme makes apparent are pointed out. The early history of fusion-fission systems is reviewed. Some designs are described along with advantages and disadvantages of each. The extension to low and moderate Q devices is noted. (U.S.)

Fission level densities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maslov, V.M.

1998-01-01

Fission level densities (or fissioning nucleus level densities at fission saddle deformations) are required for statistical model calculations of actinide fission cross sections. Back-shifted Fermi-Gas Model, Constant Temperature Model and Generalized Superfluid Model (GSM) are widely used for the description of level densities at stable deformations. These models provide approximately identical level density description at excitations close to the neutron binding energy. It is at low excitation energies that they are discrepant, while this energy region is crucial for fission cross section calculations. A drawback of back-shifted Fermi gas model and traditional constant temperature model approaches is that it is difficult to include in a consistent way pair correlations, collective effects and shell effects. Pair, shell and collective properties of nucleus do not reduce just to the renormalization of level density parameter a, but influence the energy dependence of level densities. These effects turn out to be important because they seem to depend upon deformation of either equilibrium or saddle-point. These effects are easily introduced within GSM approach. Fission barriers are another key ingredients involved in the fission cross section calculations. Fission level density and barrier parameters are strongly interdependent. This is the reason for including fission barrier parameters along with the fission level densities in the Starter File. The recommended file is maslov.dat - fission barrier parameters. Recent version of actinide fission barrier data obtained in Obninsk (obninsk.dat) should only be considered as a guide for selection of initial parameters. These data are included in the Starter File, together with the fission barrier parameters recommended by CNDC (beijing.dat), for completeness. (author)

Lunar surface fission power supplies: Radiation issues

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Houts, M.G.; Lee, S.K.

1994-01-01

A lunar space fission power supply shield that uses a combination of lunar regolith and materials brought from earth may be optimal for early lunar outposts and bases. This type of shield can be designed such that the fission power supply does not have to be moved from its landing configuration, minimizing handling and required equipment on the lunar surface. Mechanisms for removing heat from the lunar regolith are built into the shield, and can be tested on earth. Regolith activation is greatly reduced compared with a shield that uses only regolith, and it is possible to keep the thermal conditions of the fission power supply close to these seen in free space. For a well designed shield, the additional mass required to be brought fro earth should be less than 1000 kg. Detailed radiation transport calculations confirm the feasibility of such a shield

Lunar surface fission power supplies: Radiation issues

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Houts, M.G.; Lee, S.K.

1994-01-01

A lunar space fission power supply shield that uses a combination of lunar regolith and materials brought from earth may be optimal for early lunar outposts and bases. This type of shield can be designed such that the fission power supply does not have to be moved from its landing configuration, minimizing handling and required equipment on the lunar surface. Mechanisms for removing heat from the lunar regolith are built into the shield, and can be tested on earth. Regolith activation is greatly reduced compared with a shield that uses only regolith, and it is possible to keep the thermal conditions of the fission power supply close to those seen in free space. For a well designed shield, the additional mass required to be brought from earth should be less than 1,000 kg. Detailed radiation transport calculations confirm the feasibility of such a shield

Measurements of the prompt neutron spectra in 233U, 235U, 239Pu thermal neutron fission in the energy range of 0.01-5 MeV and in 252Cf spontaneous fission in the energy range of 0.01-10 MeV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Starostov, B.I.; Semenov, A.F.; Nefedov, V.N.

1978-01-01

The measurement results on the prompt neutron spectra in 233 U, 235 U, 239 Pu thermal neutron fission in the energy range of 0.01-5 MeV and in 252 Cf spontaneous fission in the energy range of 0.01-10 MeV are presented. The time-of-flight method was used. The exceeding of the spectra over the Maxwell distributions is observed at E 252 Cf neutron fission spectra. The spectra analysis was performed after normalization of the spectra and corresponding Maxwell distributions for one and the same area. In the range of 0.05-0.22 MeV the yield of 235 U + nsub(t) fission neutrons is approximately 8 and approximately 15 % greater than the yield of 252 Cf and 239 Pu + nsub(t) fission neutrons, respectively. In the range of 0.3-1.2 MeV the yield of 235 U + nsub(t) fission neutrons is 8 % greater than the fission neutron yield in case of 239 Pu + nsub(t) fission. The 235 U + nsub(t) and 233 U + nsub(t) fission neutron spectra do not differ from one another in the 0.05-0.6 MeV range

Thermal-Neutron-Induced Fission of U235, U233 and Pu239

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thomas, T.D.; Gibson, W.M.; Safford, G.J.

1965-01-01

We have used solid-state detectors to measure the kinetic energies of the coincident fission fragments in the thermal-neutron-induced fission of U 235 , U 233 and Pu 239 . Special care has been taken to eliminate spurious-events near symmetry to give an accurate measure of such quantities as the average total kinetic energy at symmetry. For each fissioning system over 10 6 events were recorded. As a result the statistics are good enough to see definite evidence for fine structure over a wide range of masses and energies. The data have been analysed to give mass yield curves, average kinetic energies as a function of mass, and other quantities of interest. For each fissioning system the average total kinetic energy goes through a maximum for a heavy fragment mass of about 132 and for the corresponding light fragment mass. There is a pronounced minimum at symmetry, although not as deep as that found in time-of-flight experiments. The difference between the maximum average kinetic energy and that at symmetry is about 32 MeV for U 235 , 18 MeV for U 233 and 20 MeV for Pu 239 . The dispersion of kinetic energies at symmetry is also smaller than that found in time-of-flight experiments. Fine structure is apparent in two different representations of the data. The energy spectrum of heavy fragments in coincidence with light fragment energies is greater than the most probable value. This structure becomes more pronounced as the light fragment energy increases. The mass yield curves for a given total kinetic energy show a structure suggesting a preference for fission fragments with masses ∼134, ∼140 and ∼145 (and their light fragment partners). Much of the structure observed can be understood by considering a semi-empirical mass surface and a simple model for the nuclear configuration at the saddle point. (author) [fr

Rocket Engine Health Management: Early Definition of Critical Flight Measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Christenson, Rick L.; Nelson, Michael A.; Butas, John P.

2003-01-01

The NASA led Space Launch Initiative (SLI) program has established key requirements related to safety, reliability, launch availability and operations cost to be met by the next generation of reusable launch vehicles. Key to meeting these requirements will be an integrated vehicle health management ( M) system that includes sensors, harnesses, software, memory, and processors. Such a system must be integrated across all the vehicle subsystems and meet component, subsystem, and system requirements relative to fault detection, fault isolation, and false alarm rate. The purpose of this activity is to evolve techniques for defining critical flight engine system measurements-early within the definition of an engine health management system (EHMS). Two approaches, performance-based and failure mode-based, are integrated to provide a proposed set of measurements to be collected. This integrated approach is applied to MSFC s MC-1 engine. Early identification of measurements supports early identification of candidate sensor systems whose design and impacts to the engine components must be considered in engine design.

Neutron induced fission cross section ratios for 232Th, /sup 235,238/U, 237Np, and 239Pu from 1 to 400 MeV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lisowski, P.W.; Ullmann, J.L.; Balestrini, S.J.; Carlson, A.D.; Wasson, O.A.; Hill, N.W.

1988-01-01

Time-of-flight measurements of neutron induced fission cross section ratios for 232 Th, /sup 235,238/U, 237 Np, and 239 Pu, were performed using the WNR high intensity spallation neutron source located at Los Alamos National Laboratory. A multiple-plate gas ionization chamber located at a 20-m flight path was used to simultaneously measure the fission rate for all samples over the energy range from 1 to 400 MeV. Because the measurements were made with nearly identical neutron fluxes, we were able to cancel many systematic uncertainties present in previous measurements. This allows us to resolve discrepancies among different data sets. In addition, these are the first neutron-induced fission cross section values for most of the nuclei at energies above 30 MeV. 8 refs., 3 figs

Fission products collecting devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matsumoto, Hiroshi

1979-01-01

Purpose: To enable fission products trap with no contamination to coolants and cover gas by the provision of a fission products trap above the upper part of a nuclear power plant. Constitution: Upon fuel failures in a reactor core, nuclear fission products leak into coolants and move along the flow of the coolants to the coolants above the reactor core. The fission products are collected in a trap container and guided along a pipeline into fission products detector. The fission products detector monitors the concentration of the fission products and opens the downstream valve of the detector when a predetermined concentration of the fission products is detected to introduce the fission products into a waste gas processing device and release them through the exhaust pipe. (Seki, T.)

An Inconvenient History: the Nuclear-Fission Display in the Deutsches Museum

Science.gov (United States)

Sime, Ruth Lewin

2010-06-01

One of the longstanding attractions of the Deutsches Museum in Munich, Germany, has been its display of the apparatus associated with the discovery of nuclear fission. Although the discovery involved three scientists, Otto Hahn, Lise Meitner, and Fritz Strassmann, the fission display was designated for over 30 years as the Arbeitstisch von Otto Hahn (Otto Hahn’s Worktable), with Strassmann mentioned peripherally and Meitner not at all, and it was not until the early 1990s that the display was revised to include all three codiscoverers more equitably. I examine the creation of the fission display in the context of the postwar German culture of silencing the National Socialist past, and trace the eventual transformation of the display into a contemporary exhibit that more accurately represents the scientific history of the fission discovery.

Nuclear fission and reactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1975-01-01

The nuclear fission research programs are designed to elucidate basic features of the fission process. Specifically, (1) factors determining how nucleons of a fissioning nucleus are distributed between two fission fragments, (2) factors determining kinetic energy and excitation energies of fragments, and (3) factors controlling fission lifetimes. To these ends, fission studies are reported for several heavy elements and include investigations of spontaneous and neutron-induced fission, heavy ion reactions, and high energy proton reactions. The status of theoretical research is also discussed. (U.S.)

Checkpoint independence of most DNA replication origins in fission yeast.

Science.gov (United States)

Mickle, Katie L; Ramanathan, Sunita; Rosebrock, Adam; Oliva, Anna; Chaudari, Amna; Yompakdee, Chulee; Scott, Donna; Leatherwood, Janet; Huberman, Joel A

2007-12-19

In budding yeast, the replication checkpoint slows progress through S phase by inhibiting replication origin firing. In mammals, the replication checkpoint inhibits both origin firing and replication fork movement. To find out which strategy is employed in the fission yeast, Schizosaccharomyces pombe, we used microarrays to investigate the use of origins by wild-type and checkpoint-mutant strains in the presence of hydroxyurea (HU), which limits the pool of deoxyribonucleoside triphosphates (dNTPs) and activates the replication checkpoint. The checkpoint-mutant cells carried deletions either of rad3 (which encodes the fission yeast homologue of ATR) or cds1 (which encodes the fission yeast homologue of Chk2). Our microarray results proved to be largely consistent with those independently obtained and recently published by three other laboratories. However, we were able to reconcile differences between the previous studies regarding the extent to which fission yeast replication origins are affected by the replication checkpoint. We found (consistent with the three previous studies after appropriate interpretation) that, in surprising contrast to budding yeast, most fission yeast origins, including both early- and late-firing origins, are not significantly affected by checkpoint mutations during replication in the presence of HU. A few origins (approximately 3%) behaved like those in budding yeast: they replicated earlier in the checkpoint mutants than in wild type. These were located primarily in the heterochromatic subtelomeric regions of chromosomes 1 and 2. Indeed, the subtelomeric regions defined by the strongest checkpoint restraint correspond precisely to previously mapped subtelomeric heterochromatin. This observation implies that subtelomeric heterochromatin in fission yeast differs from heterochromatin at centromeres, in the mating type region, and in ribosomal DNA, since these regions replicated at least as efficiently in wild-type cells as in checkpoint

Checkpoint independence of most DNA replication origins in fission yeast

Science.gov (United States)

Mickle, Katie L; Ramanathan, Sunita; Rosebrock, Adam; Oliva, Anna; Chaudari, Amna; Yompakdee, Chulee; Scott, Donna; Leatherwood, Janet; Huberman, Joel A

2007-01-01

Background In budding yeast, the replication checkpoint slows progress through S phase by inhibiting replication origin firing. In mammals, the replication checkpoint inhibits both origin firing and replication fork movement. To find out which strategy is employed in the fission yeast, Schizosaccharomyces pombe, we used microarrays to investigate the use of origins by wild-type and checkpoint-mutant strains in the presence of hydroxyurea (HU), which limits the pool of deoxyribonucleoside triphosphates (dNTPs) and activates the replication checkpoint. The checkpoint-mutant cells carried deletions either of rad3 (which encodes the fission yeast homologue of ATR) or cds1 (which encodes the fission yeast homologue of Chk2). Results Our microarray results proved to be largely consistent with those independently obtained and recently published by three other laboratories. However, we were able to reconcile differences between the previous studies regarding the extent to which fission yeast replication origins are affected by the replication checkpoint. We found (consistent with the three previous studies after appropriate interpretation) that, in surprising contrast to budding yeast, most fission yeast origins, including both early- and late-firing origins, are not significantly affected by checkpoint mutations during replication in the presence of HU. A few origins (~3%) behaved like those in budding yeast: they replicated earlier in the checkpoint mutants than in wild type. These were located primarily in the heterochromatic subtelomeric regions of chromosomes 1 and 2. Indeed, the subtelomeric regions defined by the strongest checkpoint restraint correspond precisely to previously mapped subtelomeric heterochromatin. This observation implies that subtelomeric heterochromatin in fission yeast differs from heterochromatin at centromeres, in the mating type region, and in ribosomal DNA, since these regions replicated at least as efficiently in wild-type cells as in

Checkpoint independence of most DNA replication origins in fission yeast

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Scott Donna

2007-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background In budding yeast, the replication checkpoint slows progress through S phase by inhibiting replication origin firing. In mammals, the replication checkpoint inhibits both origin firing and replication fork movement. To find out which strategy is employed in the fission yeast, Schizosaccharomyces pombe, we used microarrays to investigate the use of origins by wild-type and checkpoint-mutant strains in the presence of hydroxyurea (HU, which limits the pool of deoxyribonucleoside triphosphates (dNTPs and activates the replication checkpoint. The checkpoint-mutant cells carried deletions either of rad3 (which encodes the fission yeast homologue of ATR or cds1 (which encodes the fission yeast homologue of Chk2. Results Our microarray results proved to be largely consistent with those independently obtained and recently published by three other laboratories. However, we were able to reconcile differences between the previous studies regarding the extent to which fission yeast replication origins are affected by the replication checkpoint. We found (consistent with the three previous studies after appropriate interpretation that, in surprising contrast to budding yeast, most fission yeast origins, including both early- and late-firing origins, are not significantly affected by checkpoint mutations during replication in the presence of HU. A few origins (~3% behaved like those in budding yeast: they replicated earlier in the checkpoint mutants than in wild type. These were located primarily in the heterochromatic subtelomeric regions of chromosomes 1 and 2. Indeed, the subtelomeric regions defined by the strongest checkpoint restraint correspond precisely to previously mapped subtelomeric heterochromatin. This observation implies that subtelomeric heterochromatin in fission yeast differs from heterochromatin at centromeres, in the mating type region, and in ribosomal DNA, since these regions replicated at least as efficiently in wild

Low Cost Radiator for Fission Power Thermal Control, Phase I

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — NASA Glenn Research Center (GRC) is developing fission power system technology for future space transportation and surface power applications. The early systems are...

Study of ternary and quaternary spontaneous fission of 252Cf with the NESSI detector

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tishchenko, V.G.; Jahnke, U.; Herbach, C.M.; Hilscher, D.

2002-11-01

Ternary and quaternary spontaneous decay of 252 Cf was studied with the NESSI detector, a combination of two 4π detectors for charged particles, neutrons and γ-rays. The applied method of particle identification by measuring the energies and relative time-of-flights of the decay products is shown to be very effective for the study of rare decay modes. The energy and angular distributions of the decay products, the associated neutron multiplicities, the total energy of the prompt γ-radiation as well as correlations between the various observables were measured for the first time in a single full-scale experiment. The characteristics of ternary fission known from previous investigations are confirmed in the frame of a methodically independent experiment. Preliminary estimates of the quaternary fission yield are presented. An attempt is made to determine the mechanism of quaternary fission. (orig.)

Fission-product yields for thermal-neutron fission of curium-243

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Breederland, D.G.

1982-01-01

Cumulative fission yields for 25 gamma rays emitted during the decay of 23 fission products produced by thermal-neutron fission of 243 Cm have been determined. Using Ge(Li) spectroscopy, 33 successive pulse-height spectra of gamma rays emitted from a 77-ng sample of 243 Cm over a period of approximately two and one-half months were analyzed. Reduction of these spectra resulted in the identification and matching of gamma-ray energies and half-lives to specific radionuclides. Using these results, 23 cumulative fission-product yields were calculated. Only those radionuclides having half-lives between 6 hours and 65 days were observed. Prior to this experiment, no fission-product yields had been recorded for 243 Cm

Pulsed fission/fusion hybrid engines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hudson, G.C.

1979-01-01

Research into high-thrust, high-specific impulse rocket engines using energy from nuclear reactions which has been conducted at this organization will be discussed. The engines are all conceptual in nature, yet are within the realization of conventional or near-term technology. The engine concepts under study at Foundation, Inc. are designed to obviate or minimize these negative effects of the ORION scheme. By using non-chemical triggers to initiate a non-breakeven fusion reaction at the core of a target composed of both fission and fusion fuel, it should be possible to employ the fusion neutrons thus produced to begin a fission reaction in U-235 or Pu-239. Since the density of the target can be increased by as much as a factor of 250 through compression of the pellet, the amount of fission material necessary to produce a critical mass can be greatly reduced. (This also means that the amount of fission products produced for a giventhrust level is also reduced from the ORION levels.) Coupling this eeffect to the large number of 14 MeV fusion neutrons produced early in the compression process and subsequently to the heating of some additional fusion fuel surrounding the critical mass leads to the very efficient burnup of the target. This insures both high yield from the target as well as low cost per MJ energy released. Finally, the use of such small pellets allows the scale of the energy released to be tailored to a level usable in rocket engines of a few tens of tons thrust level. (orig.) [de

Low Cost Radiator for Fission Power Thermal Control, Phase II

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — NASA GRC is developing fission power system technology for future space transportation and surface power applications. The early systems are envisioned in the 10 to...

Neutron emission as a probe of fusion-fission and quasi-fission dynamics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hinde, D.J.

1991-01-01

Pre- and post scission neutron yeilds have been measured as a function of projectile mass, compound nucleus fissility, and fission mass-split and total kinetic energy (TKE) for 27 fusion-fission and quasi-fission reactions induced by beams of 16,18 O, 40 Ar and 64 Ni. A new method of interpretation of experimental pre-scission neutron multiplicities ν-pre and mean kinetic energies ε ν allows the extraction of fission time scales with much less uncertainty than previously, all fusion-fission results being consistent with a dynamical time scale of (35±15) x 10 -21 s for symmetric fission. All reactions show that ν-pre falls quite rapidly with increasing mass-asymmetry; evidence is presented that for fusion-fission reactions this is partly due to a reduction of the dynamical fission time scale with mass-asymmetry. For quasi-fission, the data indicate that the pre-scission multiplicity and mean neutron kinetic energy are very sensitive to the final mass-asymmetry, but that the time scale is virtually independent of mass-asymmetry. It is concluded that for fusion-fission there is no dependence of ν-pre on TKE, whilst for 64 Ni-induced quasi-fission reactions, a strong increase of ν-pre with decreasing TKE is observed, probably largely caused by neutron emission during the acceleration time of the fission fragments in these fast reactions. Interpretation of post-scission multiplicities in terms of fragment excitation energies leads to deduced time scales consistent with those determined from the pre-scission data. 54 refs., 17 tabs., 25 figs

Energy released in fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

James, M.F.

1969-05-01

The effective energy released in and following the fission of U-235, Pu-239 and Pu-241 by thermal neutrons, and of U-238 by fission spectrum neutrons, is discussed. The recommended values are: U-235 ... 192.9 ± 0.5 MeV/fission; U-238 ... 193.9 ± 0.8 MeV/fission; Pu-239 ... 198.5 ± 0.8 MeV/fission; Pu-241 ... 200.3 ± 0.8 MeV/fission. These values include all contributions except from antineutrinos and very long-lived fission products. The detailed contributions are discussed, and inconsistencies in the experimental data are pointed out. In Appendix A, the contribution to the total useful energy release in a reactor from reactions other than fission are discussed briefly, and in Appendix B there is a discussion of the variations in effective energy from fission with incident neutron energy. (author)

The evaluation for reference fission yield of 238U fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liang Qichang; Liu Tingjin

1998-01-01

In the fission yield data evaluation and measurement, the reference yield is very important, good or poor recommended or measurement values depend upon the reference data to a great extent. According to the CRP's requirement, the evaluation of reference fission yields have been and will be carried out in CNDC, as a part of the whole work (contract No.9504/R 0 /Regular Budget Fund), the evaluation for 29 reference fission yields of 15 product nuclides from 238 U fission have been completed

Fission yield covariance generation and uncertainty propagation through fission pulse decay heat calculation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fiorito, L.; Diez, C.J.; Cabellos, O.; Stankovskiy, A.; Van den Eynde, G.; Labeau, P.E.

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Fission yield data and uncertainty comparison between major nuclear data libraries. • Fission yield covariance generation through Bayesian technique. • Study of the effect of fission yield correlations on decay heat calculations. • Covariance information contribute to reduce fission pulse decay heat uncertainty. - Abstract: Fission product yields are fundamental parameters in burnup/activation calculations and the impact of their uncertainties was widely studied in the past. Evaluations of these uncertainties were released, still without covariance data. Therefore, the nuclear community expressed the need of full fission yield covariance matrices to be able to produce inventory calculation results that take into account the complete uncertainty data. State-of-the-art fission yield data and methodologies for fission yield covariance generation were researched in this work. Covariance matrices were generated and compared to the original data stored in the library. Then, we focused on the effect of fission yield covariance information on fission pulse decay heat results for thermal fission of 235 U. Calculations were carried out using different libraries and codes (ACAB and ALEPH-2) after introducing the new covariance values. Results were compared with those obtained with the uncertainty data currently provided by the libraries. The uncertainty quantification was performed first with Monte Carlo sampling and then compared with linear perturbation. Indeed, correlations between fission yields strongly affect the uncertainty of decay heat. Eventually, a sensitivity analysis of fission product yields to fission pulse decay heat was performed in order to provide a full set of the most sensitive nuclides for such a calculation

Computer program FPIP-REV calculates fission product inventory for U-235 fission

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, W. S.; Call, D. W.

1967-01-01

Computer program calculates fission product inventories and source strengths associated with the operation of U-235 fueled nuclear power reactor. It utilizes a fission-product nuclide library of 254 nuclides, and calculates the time dependent behavior of the fission product nuclides formed by fissioning of U-235.

Fission Surface Power System Initial Concept Definition

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

Under the NASA Exploration Technology Development Program (ETDP) and in partnership with the Department of Energy (DOE), NASA has embarked on a project to develop Fission Surface Power (FSP) technology. The primary goals of the project are to 1) develop FSP concepts that meet expected surface power requirements at reasonable cost with added benefits over other options, 2) establish a hardwarebased technical foundation for FSP design concepts and reduce overall development risk, 3) reduce the cost uncertainties for FSP and establish greater credibility for flight system cost estimates, and 4) generate the key products to allow NASA decision-makers to consider FSP as a preferred option for flight development. The FSP project was initiated in 2006 as the Prometheus Program and the Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter (JIMO) mission were phased-out. As a first step, NASA Headquarters commissioned the Affordable Fission Surface Power System Study to evaluate the potential for an affordable FSP development approach. With a cost-effective FSP strategy identified, the FSP team evaluated design options and selected a Preliminary Reference Concept to guide technology development. Since then, the FSP Preliminary Reference Concept has served as a point-of-departure for several NASA mission architecture studies examining the use of nuclear power and has provided the foundation for a series of "Pathfinder" hardware tests. The long-term technology goal is a Technology Demonstration Unit (TDU) integrated system test using full-scale components and a non-nuclear reactor simulator. The FSP team consists of Glenn Research Center (GRC), Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) and the DOE National Laboratories at Los Alamos (LANL), Idaho (INL), Oak Ridge (ORNL), and Sandia (SNL). The project is organized into two main elements: Concept Definition and Risk Reduction. Under Concept Definition, the team performs trade studies, develops analytical tools, and formulates system concepts. Under Risk

Mica fission detectors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wong, C.; Anderson, J.D.; Hansen, L.; Lehn, A.V.; Williamson, M.A.

1977-01-01

The present development status of the mica fission detectors is summarized. It is concluded that the techniques have been refined and developed to a state such that the mica fission counters are a reliable and reproducible detector for fission events

Fission fragment angular distributions and fission cross section validation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leong, Lou Sai

2013-01-01

The present knowledge of angular distributions of neutron-induced fission is limited to a maximal energy of 15 MeV, with large discrepancies around 14 MeV. Only 238 U and 232 Th have been investigated up to 100 MeV in a single experiment. The n-TOF Collaboration performed the fission cross section measurement of several actinides ( 232 Th, 235 U, 238 U, 234 U, 237 Np) at the n-TOF facility using an experimental set-up made of Parallel Plate Avalanche Counters (PPAC), extending the energy domain of the incident neutron above hundreds of MeV. The method based on the detection of the 2 fragments in coincidence allowed to clearly disentangle the fission reactions among other types of reactions occurring in the spallation domain. I will show the methods we used to reconstruct the full angular resolution by the tracking of fission fragments. Below 10 MeV our results are consistent with existing data. For example in the case of 232 Th, below 10 MeV the results show clearly the variation occurring at the first (1 MeV) and second (7 MeV) chance fission, corresponding to transition states of given J and K (total spin and its projection on the fission axis), and a much more accurate energy dependence at the 3. chance threshold (14 MeV) has been obtained. In the spallation domain, above 30 MeV we confirm the high anisotropy revealed in 232 Th by the single existing data set. I'll discuss the implications of this finding, related to the low anisotropy exhibited in proton-induced fission. I also explore the critical experiments which is valuable checks of nuclear data. The 237 Np neutron-induced fission cross section has recently been measured in a large energy range (from eV to GeV) at the n-TOF facility at CERN. When compared to previous measurements, the n-TOF fission cross section appears to be higher by 5-7 % beyond the fission threshold. To check the relevance of n-TOF data, we simulate a criticality experiment performed at Los Alamos with a 6 kg sphere of 237 Np. This

Neutron induced fission cross section ratios for /sup 232/Th, /sup 235,238/U, /sup 237/Np, and /sup 239/Pu from 1 to 400 MeV

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lisowski, P.W.; Ullmann, J.L.; Balestrini, S.J.; Carlson, A.D.; Wasson, O.A.; Hill, N.W.

1988-01-01

Time-of-flight measurements of neutron induced fission cross section ratios for /sup 232/Th, /sup 235,238/U, /sup 237/Np, and /sup 239/Pu, were performed using the WNR high intensity spallation neutron source located at Los Alamos National Laboratory. A multiple-plate gas ionization chamber located at a 20-m flight path was used to simultaneously measure the fission rate for all samples over the energy range from 1 to 400 MeV. Because the measurements were made with nearly identical neutron fluxes, we were able to cancel many systematic uncertainties present in previous measurements. This allows us to resolve discrepancies among different data sets. In addition, these are the first neutron-induced fission cross section values for most of the nuclei at energies above 30 MeV. 8 refs., 3 figs.

Multiplicity and correlated energy of gamma rays emitted in the spontaneous fission of Californium-252

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brunson, G.S. Jr.

1982-06-01

An array of eight high-speed plastic scintillation detectors has been used to infer a mathematical model for the emission multipliciy of prompt gammas in the spontaneous fission of 252 Cf. Exceptional time resolution and coincidence capability permitted the separation of gammas from fast neutrons over a flight path of approximately 10 cm. About 20 different distribution models were tested. The average energy of the prompt gammas is inversely related to the number emitted; however, this inverse relationship is not strong and the total gamma energy does increase with increasing gamma number. An extension of the experiment incorporated a lithium-drifted germanium gamma spectrometer that resolved nearly 100 discrete gammas associated with fission. Of these gammas, some were preferentially associated with fission in which few gammas were emitted. Certain others were more frequent when many gammas were emitted. Results are presented

Radiochemical studies on fission

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None

1973-07-01

Research progress is reported on nuclear chemistry; topics considered include: recoil range and kinetic energy distribution in the thermal neutron ftssion of /sup 245/Cm; mass distribution and recoil range measurements in the reactor neutron-induced fission of /sup 232/U; fission yields in the thermal neutron fission of /sup 241/PU highly asymmetric binary fission of uranium induced by reactor neutrons; and nuclear charge distribution in low energy fission. ( DHM)

Brief review of the fusion-fission hybrid reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tenney, F.H.

1977-01-01

Much of the conceptual framework of present day fusion-fission hybrid reactors is found in the original work of the early 1950's. Present day motivations for development are quite different. The role of the hybrid reactor is discussed as well as the current activities in the development program

Fast fission phenomena

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gregoire, Christian.

1982-03-01

Experimental studies of fast fission phenomena are presented. The paper is divided into three parts. In the first part, problems associated with fast fission processes are examined in terms of interaction potentials and a dynamic model is presented in which highly elastic collisions, the formation of compound nuclei and fast fission appear naturally. In the second part, a description is given of the experimental methods employed, the observations made and the preliminary interpretation of measurements suggesting the occurence of fast fission processes. In the third part, our dynamic model is incorporated in a general theory of the dissipative processes studied. This theory enables fluctuations associated with collective variables to be calculated. It is applied to highly inelastic collisions, to fast fission and to the fission dynamics of compound nuclei (for which a schematic representation is given). It is with these calculations that the main results of the second part can be interpreted [fr

Nuclear fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kodama, T.

1981-01-01

The nuclear fission process is pedagogically reviewed from a macroscopic-microscopic point of view. The Droplet model is considered. The fission dynamics is discussed utilizing path integrals and semiclassical methods. (L.C.) [pt

Prompt fission neutron spectra of n + 235U above the (n, nf) fission threshold

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shu Nengchuan; Chen Yongjing; Liu Tingjin; Jia Min

2015-01-01

Calculations of prompt fission neutron spectra (PFNS) from the 235 U(n, f) reaction were performed with a semi-empirical method for En = 7.0 and 14.7 MeV neutron energies. The total PFNS were obtained as a superposition of (n, xnf) pre-fission neutron spectra and post-fission spectra of neutrons which were evaporated from fission fragments, and these two kinds of spectra were taken as an expression of the evaporation spectrum. The contributions of (n, xnf) fission neutron spectra on the calculated PFNS were discussed. The results show that emission of one or two neutrons in the (n, nf) or (n, 2nf) reactions influences the PFNS shape, and the neutron spectra of the (n, xnf) fission-channel are soft compared with the neutron spectra of the (n, f) fission channel. In addition, analysis of the multiple-chance fission component showed that second-chance fission dominates the PFNS with an incident neutron energy of 14.7 MeV whereas first-chance fission dominates the 7 MeV case. (authors)

Characteristics of the early flight phase in the Olympic ski jumping competition.

Science.gov (United States)

Virmavirta, Mikko; Isolehto, Juha; Komi, Paavo; Brüggemann, Gert-Peter; Müller, Erich; Schwameder, Hermann

2005-11-01

Early flight phase (approximately 40 m) of the athletes participating in the final round of the individual large hill ski jumping competition in Salt Lake City Olympics was filmed with two high-speed pan & tilt video cameras. The results showed that jumpers' steady flight position was almost completed within 0.5s. The most significant correlation with the length of the jump was found in the angle between the skis and body (r=.714, p.001 at 1.1s after the take-off). This particular phase seemed to be important because the ski angle of attack was also related to the jumping distance at the same phase. Although the more upright ski position relative to flight path resulted in longer jumping distance, the winner of the competition had significantly lower ski position as compared to the other good jumpers. This may be due to the high altitude (>2000 m) of the ski jumping stadium in this competition. Because of the low air density, the aerodynamic forces were also low and this probably caused less skillful jumpers to lean too much forward at this phase. Maintenance of speed seemed to be emphasized in this particular competition.

Fission product yields

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Valenta, V.; Hep, J.

1978-01-01

Data are summed up necessary for determining the yields of individual fission products from different fissionable nuclides. Fractional independent yields, cumulative and isobaric yields are presented here for the thermal fission of 235 U, 239 Pu, 241 Pu and for fast fission (approximately 1 MeV) of 235 U, 238 U, 239 Pu, 241 Pu; these values are included into the 5th version of the YIELDS library, supplementing the BIBFP library. A comparison is made of experimental data and possible improvements of calculational methods are suggested. (author)

Double-arm time-of-flight mass-spectrometer of nuclear fragments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ajvazian, G.M.; Astabatyan, R.A.

1995-01-01

A double-arm time-of-flight spectrometer of nuclear fragments for the investigation of heavy nuclei photofission in the intermediate energy range is described. The calibration results and working characteristics of the spectrometer, obtained using 252 Cf as a source of spontaneous fission, are presented. A mass resolution of σ m ∼2-3 a.m.u. was obtained within the registered fragments mass range of 80-160 a.m.u. The spectrometer was tested in the experiment on the investigation of 238 U nuclei fission by Bremsstahlung photons with Eγ max=1.75 GeV

Neutron Time-Of-Flight (n_TOF) experiment

CERN Multimedia

Brugger, M; Kaeppeler, F K; Jericha, E; Cortes rossell, G P; Riego perez, A; Baccomi, R; Laurent, B G; Griesmayer, E; Leeb, H; Dressler, M; Cano ott, D; Variale, V; Ventura, A; Carrillo de albornoz trillo, A; Andrzejewski, J J; Pavlik, A F; Kadi, Y; Zanni vlastou, R; Krticka, M; Kokkoris, M; Praena rodriguez, A J; Cortes giraldo, M A; Perkowski, J; Losito, R; Audouin, L; Weiss, C; Tagliente, G; Wallner, A; Woods, P J; Mengoni, A; Guerrero sanchez, C G; Tain enriquez, J L; Vlachoudis, V; Calviani, M; Junghans, A R; Reifarth, R; Mendoza cembranos, E; Quesada molina, J M; Babiano suarez, V; Schumann, M D; Tsinganis, A; Rauscher, T; Calvino tavares, F; Mingrone, F; Gonzalez romero, E M; Colonna, N; Negret, A L; Chiaveri, E; Milazzo, P M; De almeida carrapico, C A; Castelluccio, D M

The neutron time-of-flight facility n_TOF at CERN, Switzerland, operational since 2001, delivers neutrons using the Proton Synchrotron (PS) 20 GeV/c proton beam impinging on a lead spallation target. The facility combines a very high instantaneous neutron flux, an excellent time of flight resolution due to the distance between the experimental area and the production target (185 meters), a low intrinsic background and a wide range of neutron energies, from thermal to GeV neutrons. These characteristics provide a unique possibility to perform neutron-induced capture and fission cross-section measurements for applications in nuclear astrophysics and in nuclear reactor technology.

Cumulative fission yield of Ce-148 produced by thermal-neutron fission of U-235

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hasan, A.A.

1984-12-01

Cumulative fission yield of 148 cesium isotopes and some other fission products produced by thermal-neutron fission of 235 uranium is determined by Germanium/Lithium spectroscopic methods. The measuremets were done at Tsing-Hua open pool reactor using 3 to 4 mg of 93.15% enriched 235 uranium samples. Gamma rays are assigned to the responsible fission products by matching gamma rays energies and half lives. Fission rate is calculated by fission track method. Cumulative fission yields of 148 cesium, 90 krypton, 130 iodine, 144 lanthanum, 89 krypton, 136 xenon, 137 xenon and 140 cesium are calculated. This values are compared with previously predicted values and showed good agreement. 21 Ref

Fission, fusion and photonuclear physics. Chapter 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Agarwal, S.; Babinet, R.; Cauvin, B.; Galin, J.; Gatty, B.; Girard, J.; Guerreau, D.; Lefort, M.; Nifenecker, H.; Tarrago, X.

Combined ΔE-E and time of flight techniques have been used at the ALICE facility to measure the mass and the charge of all light fragments emitted in heavy ion collisions. The following studies have been undertaken: binary character of the deep inelastic collisions in the 40 Ar (280MeV) + 58 Ni reaction, transition from deep inelastic to quasi-elastic processes in the same reaction, relaxation of the mass asymmetry mode in the 52 Cr (265 MeV) + 56 Fe reaction and equilibration of the charge to mass degree of freedom in the fast quasi-fission process, 40 Ar (220MeV) + Au [fr

HAC and fission reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fujiwara, I.; Moriyama, H.; Tachikawa, E.

1984-01-01

In the fission process, newly formed fission products undergo hot atom reactions due to their energetic recoil and abnormal positive charge. The hot atom reactions of the fission products are usually accompanied by secondary effects such as radiation damage, especially in condensed phase. For reactor safety it is valuable to know the chemical behaviour and the release behaviour of these radioactive fission products. Here, the authors study the chemical behaviour and the release behaviour of the fission products from the viewpoint of hot atom chemistry (HAC). They analyze the experimental results concerning fission product behaviour with the help of the theories in HAC and other neighboring fields such as radiation chemistry. (Auth.)

Measurement of fission cross-section of actinides at n_TOF for advanced nuclear reactors

CERN Document Server

Calviani, Marco; Montagnoli, G; Mastinu, P

2009-01-01

The subject of this thesis is the determination of high accuracy neutron-induced fission cross-sections of various isotopes - all of which radioactive - of interest for emerging nuclear technologies. The measurements had been performed at the CERN neutron time-of-flight facility n TOF. In particular, in this work, fission cross-sections on 233U, the main fissile isotope of the Th/U fuel cycle, and on the minor actinides 241Am, 243Am and 245Cm have been analyzed. Data on these isotopes are requested for the feasibility study of innovative nuclear systems (ADS and Generation IV reactors) currently being considered for energy production and radioactive waste transmutation. The measurements have been performed with a high performance Fast Ionization Chamber (FIC), in conjunction with an innovative data acquisition system based on Flash-ADCs. The first step in the analysis has been the reconstruction of the digitized signals, in order to extract the information required for the discrimination between fission fragm...

Fission cross-section calculations and the multi-modal fission model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hambsch, F.J.

2004-01-01

New, self consistent, neutron-induced reaction cross section calculations for 235,238 U, 237 Np have been performed. The statistical model code STATIS was improved to take into account the multimodality of the fission process. The three most dominant fission modes, the two asymmetric standards I (S1) and standard II (S2) modes and the symmetric superlong (SL) mode have been taken into account. De-convoluted fission cross sections for those modes for 235,238 U(n,f) and 237 Np(n,f) based on experimental branching ratios, were calculated for the first time up to the second chance fission threshold. For 235 U(n,f), the calculations being made up to 28 MeV incident neutron energy, higher fission chances have been considered. This implied the need for additional calculations for the neighbouring isotopes. As a side product also mass yield distributions could be calculated at energies hitherto not accessible by experiment. Experimental validation of the predictions is being envisaged

A brief history of the ''Delayed'' discovery of nuclear fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holden, N.E.

1989-08-01

This year marks the Fiftieth Anniversary of the discovery of Nuclear Fission. In the early 1930's, the neutron was discovered, followed by the discovery of artificial radioactivity and then the use of the neutron to produce artificial radioactivity. The first experiments resulting in the fission of uranium took place in 1934. A paper which speculated on fission as an explanation was almost immediately published, yet no one took it seriously not even the author herself. Why did it take an additional five years before anyone realized what had occurred? This is an abnormally long time in a period when discoveries, particularly in nuclear physics, seemed to be almost a daily occurrence. The events which led up to the discovery are recounted, with an attempt made to put them into their historical perspective. The role played by Mendeleev's Periodic Table, the role of the natural radioactive decay chain of uranium, the discovery of protactinium, the apparent discovery of masurium (technetium) and a speculation on the reason why Irene Curie may have missed the discovery of nuclear fission will all be discussed. 43 refs

Fission Research at IRMM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Al-Adili A.

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Fission Research at JRC-IRMM has a longstanding tradition. The present paper is discussing recent investigations of fission fragment properties of 238 U(n,f, 234 U(n,f, prompt neutron emission in fission of 252 Cf(SF as well as the prompt fission neutron spectrum of 235 U(n,f and is presenting the most important results.

A Practical Approach to Starting Fission Surface Power Development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mason, Lee

2006-01-01

The Prometheus Power and Propulsion Program has been reformulated to address NASA needs relative to lunar and Mars exploration. Emphasis has switched from the Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter (JIMO) flight system development to more generalized technology development addressing Fission Surface Power (FSP) and Nuclear Thermal Propulsion (NTP). Current NASA budget priorities and the deferred mission need date for nuclear systems prohibit a fully funded reactor Flight Development Program. However, a modestly funded Advanced Technology Program can and should be conducted to reduce the risk and cost of future flight systems. A potential road-map for FSP technology development leading to possible flight applications could include three elements: 1) Conceptual Design Studies, 2) Advanced Component Technology, and 3) Non-Nuclear System Testing. The Conceptual Design Studies would expand on recent NASA and DOE analyses while increasing the depth of study in areas of greatest uncertainty such as reactor integration and human-rated shielding. The Advanced Component Technology element would address the major technology risks through development and testing of reactor fuels, structural materials, primary loop components, shielding, power conversion, heat rejection, and power management and distribution (PMAD). The Non-Nuclear System Testing would provide a modular, technology test-bed to investigate and resolve system integration issues. (author)

Experimental study of the thermal fission of uranium 235 in the region of symmetrical masses; Contribution a l'etude experimentale de la fission thermique de l'uranium 235 dans la region des masses symetriques

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ribrag, M [Commissariat a l' Energie Atomique, Saclay (France). Centre d' Etudes Nucleaires

1967-03-15

Energy correlation experiments with fission fragments are strongly perturbed, in the symmetric region, by the detection of spurious events caused by the apparatus. We show that the measurement of an additional parameter, namely the difference in time-of-flight between the fragments, enables us to eliminate these difficulties. In this work we show also an original method of calibration of the time-of-flight set-up. For thermal fission of {sup 235}U, values of mass yields in the symmetric region are found to agree quantitatively with radiochemical values. Moreover, the average total kinetic energy distribution as a function of the pre-neutron emission masses of the fragments has been calculated. This curve presents in the symmetric region a large dip, the value of which takes on the value 21.2 {+-} 0.8 MeV. This value is smaller than previously published results. (author) [French] Les mesures correlees des energies cinetiques des fragments de fission sont fortement perturbees, dans la region symetrique, par la detection d'evenements aberrants d'origine instrumentale. Nous montrons que la mesure d'un parametre supplementaire, a savoir, la difference des temps de vol des deux fragments, nous permet d'eliminer ces difficultes. Dans ce travail, nous indiquons egalement une methode originale de calibration du dispositif de mesure des temps de vol. Dans le cas de la fission thermique de {sup 235}U, nous avons trouve, dans la region symetrique, une courbe de rendement des masses, en accord quantitatif avec les donnees radiochimiques. De plus, nous avons calcule la distribution de l'energie cinetique totale moyenne en fonction de la masse des fragments, avant emission neutronique. Cette courbe presente, dans la region symetrique, un creux important, dont la valeur atteint 21,2 {+-} 0,8 MeV. Cette valeur est inferieure aux resultats precedemment publies. (auteur)

Study on the effect factor of the absolute fission rates measured by depleted uranium fission chamber

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jiang Li; Liu Rong; Wang Dalun; Wang Mei; Lin Jufang; Wen Zhongwei

2003-01-01

The absolute fission rates was measured by the depleted uranium fission chamber. The efficiency of the fission fragments recorded in the fission chamber was analyzed. The factor influencing absolute fission rates was studied in the experiment, including the disturbing effect between detectors and the effect of the structural of the fission chamber, etc

Investigation of short-living fission products from the spontaneous fission of Cf-252

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Klonk, H.

1976-01-01

In this paper, a method of separating and measuring fission products of Cf-252 is presented. The measurement was achieved by means of γ-spectrometry and thus provides a quantitative analysis with a good separation of the fission products with respect to both atomic number Z and mass number A. The separation of the fission products from the fission source was achieved by means of solid traps. An automatic changing apparatus made it possible to keep irradiation and measuring times short, so even very short-lived fission products could be registered. The quantitative evaluation of primary fission products was made possible by correction according to Bateman equations. With that, the yields of single nuclides and the dispersion of charge can be determined. (orig./WL) [de

Training Early Career Scientists in Flight Instrument Design Through Experiential Learning: NASA Goddard's Planetary Science Winter School.

Science.gov (United States)

Bleacher, L. V.; Lakew, B.; Bracken, J.; Brown, T.; Rivera, R.

2017-01-01

The NASA Goddard Planetary Science Winter School (PSWS) is a Goddard Space Flight Center-sponsored training program, managed by Goddard's Solar System Exploration Division (SSED), for Goddard-based postdoctoral fellows and early career planetary scientists. Currently in its third year, the PSWS is an experiential training program for scientists interested in participating on future planetary science instrument teams. Inspired by the NASA Planetary Science Summer School, Goddard's PSWS is unique in that participants learn the flight instrument lifecycle by designing a planetary flight instrument under actual consideration by Goddard for proposal and development. They work alongside the instrument Principal Investigator (PI) and engineers in Goddard's Instrument Design Laboratory (IDL; idc.nasa.gov), to develop a science traceability matrix and design the instrument, culminating in a conceptual design and presentation to the PI, the IDL team and Goddard management. By shadowing and working alongside IDL discipline engineers, participants experience firsthand the science and cost constraints, trade-offs, and teamwork that are required for optimal instrument design. Each PSWS is collaboratively designed with representatives from SSED, IDL, and the instrument PI, to ensure value added for all stakeholders. The pilot PSWS was held in early 2015, with a second implementation in early 2016. Feedback from past participants was used to design the 2017 PSWS, which is underway as of the writing of this abstract.

Axisymmetric Magnetic Mirror Fusion-Fission Hybrid

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moir, R. W. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Martovetsky, N. N. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Molvik, A. W. [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Ryutov, D. D. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Simonen, T. C. [Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States)

2011-05-13

The achieved performance of the gas dynamic trap version of magnetic mirrors and today’s technology we believe are sufficient with modest further efforts for a neutron source for material testing (Q=P_fusion/P_input~0.1). The performance needed for commercial power production requires considerable further advances to achieve the necessary high Q>>10. An early application of the mirror, requiring intermediate performance and intermediate values of Q~1 are the hybrid applications. The Axisymmetric Mirror has a number of attractive features as a driver for a fusion-fission hybrid system: geometrical simplicity, inherently steady-state operation, and the presence of the natural divertors in the form of end tanks. This level of physics performance has the virtue of low risk and only modest R&D needed and its simplicity promises economy advantages. Operation at Q~1 allows for relatively low electron temperatures, in the range of 4 keV, for the DT injection energy ~ 80 keV. A simple mirror with the plasma diameter of 1 m and mirror-to-mirror length of 35 m is discussed. Simple circular superconducting coils are based on today’s technology. The positive ion neutral beams are similar to existing units but designed for steady state. A brief qualitative discussion of three groups of physics issues is presented: axial heat loss, MHD stability in the axisymmetric geometry, microstability of sloshing ions. Burning fission reactor wastes by fissioning actinides (transuranics: Pu, Np, Am, Cm, .. or just minor actinides: Np, Am, Cm, …) in the hybrid will multiply fusion’s energy by a factor of ~10 or more and diminish the Q needed to less than 1 to overcome the cost of recirculating power for good economics. The economic value of destroying actinides by fissioning is rather low based on either the cost of long-term storage or even deep geologic disposal so most of the revenues of hybrids will come from electrical power. Hybrids that obtain revenues from

The nuclear fission process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wagemans, C.

1991-01-01

Fifty years after its discovery, the nuclear fission phenomenon is of recurring interest. When its fundamental physics aspects are considered, fission is viewed in a very positive way, which is reflected in the great interest generated by the meetings and large conferences organized for the 50th anniversary of its discovery. From a purely scientific and practical point of view, a new book devoted to the (low energy) nuclear fission phenomenon was highly desirable considering the tremendous amount of new results obtained since the publication of the book Nuclear Fission by Vandenbosch and Huizenga in 1973 (Academic Press). These new results could be obtained thanks to the growth of technology, which enabled the construction of powerful new neutron sources, particle and heavy ion accelerators, and very performant data-acquisition and computer systems. The re-invention of the ionization chamber, the development of large fission fragment spectrometers and sophisticated multiparameter devices, and the production of exotic isotopes also contributed significantly to an improved understanding of nuclear fission. This book is written at a level to introduce graduate students to the exciting subject of nuclear fission. The very complete list of references following each chapter also makes the book very useful for scientists, especially nuclear physicists. The book has 12 chapters covering the fission barrier and the various processes leading to fission as well as the characteristics of the various fission reaction products. In order to guarantee adequate treatment of the very specialized research fields covered, several distinguished scientists actively involved in some of these fields were invited to contribute their expertise as authors or co-authors of the different chapters

Intermediate energy nuclear fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hylten, G.

1982-01-01

Nuclear fission has been investigated with the double-kinetic-energy method using silicon surface barrier detectors. Fragment energy correlation measurements have been made for U, Th and Bi with bremsstrahlung of 600 MeV maximum energy. Distributions of kinetic energy as a function of fragment mass are presented. The results are compared with earlier photofission data and in the case of bismuth, with calculations based on the liquid drop model. The binary fission process in U, Yb, Tb, Ce, La, Sb, Ag and Y induced by 600 MeV protons has been investigated yielding fission cross sections, fragment kinetic energies, angular correlations and mass distributions. Fission-spallation competition calculations are used to deduce values of macroscopic fission barrier heights and nuclear level density parameter values at deformations corresponding to the saddle point shapes. We find macroscopic fission barriers lower than those predicted by macroscopic theories. No indication is found of the Businaro Gallone limit expected to occur somewhere in the mass range A = 100 to A = 140. For Ce and La asymmetric mass distributions similar to those in the actinide region are found. A method is described for the analysis of angular correlations between complementary fission products. The description is mainly concerned with fission induced by medium-energy protons but is applicable also to other projectiles and energies. It is shown that the momentum and excitation energy distributions of cascade residuals leading to fission can be extracted. (Author)

Measurement of the neutron-induced fission cross section of 232Th relative to 235U from 0.7 to 30 MeV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Behzens, T.W.; Ables, E.; Browne, T.C.

1982-01-01

The authors have measured the fission cross-section ratio 232 Th: 235 U as a function of neutron energy from 0.7 to 30 MeV using ionization fission chambers, the threshold cross-section method, and the time-of-flight technique at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory 100-MeV electron linear accelerator. The measured cross-section ratio, averaged over the neutron energy interval from 1.75 to 4.00 MeV, was 0.1086 + 0.0024

Features of the neutron spectra accompanying the fission of actinide nuclei

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lovchikova, G.N.; Trufanov, A.M.; Svirin, M.I.; Polyakov, A.V.; Vinogradov, V.A.; Dmitriev, V.D.; Boykov, G.S.

2000-01-01

The spectra of fission neutrons from 238 U are measured by the time-of-flight technique at incident-neutron energies E n = 5.0 and 13.2 MeV. The data are compared with those obtained in the previous studies for 232 Th, 235,238 U, 237 Np at E n = 2.9 and 14.7 MeV; for 232 Th at E n = 14.6 and 17.7 MeV; for 238 U at 16.0 and 17.7 MeV. An excess of soft neutrons, which is observed in comparing experimental spectra for E n 13.2, 14.7, 16.0 and 17.7 MeV with the results of traditional theoretical calculations, is reproduced fairly well under the assumption that, at high excitation energies of a compound system, some part of post-fission neutrons can be emitted by nonaccelerated fragments [ru

Coulex fission of 234U, 235U, 237Np, and 238Np studied within the SOFIA experimental program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martin, Julie-Fiona

2014-01-01

SOFIA (Studies On FIssion with Aladin) is an experimental project which aims at systematically measuring the fission fragments' isotopic yields as well as their total kinetic energy, for a wide variety of fissioning nuclei. The PhD work presented in this dissertation takes part in the SOFIA project, and covers the fission of nuclei in the region of the actinides: 234 U, 235 U, 237 Np and 238 Np. The experiment is led at the heavy-ion accelerator GSI in Darmstadt, Germany. This facility provides intense relativistic primary beam of 238 U. A fragmentation reaction of the primary beam permits to create a secondary beam of radioactive ions, some of which the fission is studied. The ions of the secondary beam are sorted and identified through the FR-S (Fragment Separator), a high resolution recoil spectrometer which is tuned to select the ions of interest.The selected - fissile - ions then fly further to Cave-C, an experimental area where the fission experiment itself takes place. At the entrance of the cave, the secondary beam is excited by Coulomb interaction when flying through an target; the de-excitation process involves low-energy fission. Both fission fragments fly forward in the laboratory frame, due to the relativistic boost inferred from the fissioning nucleus.A complete recoil spectrometer has been designed and built by the SOFIA collaboration in the path of the fission fragments, around the existing ALADIN magnet. The identification of the fragments is performed by means of energy loss, time of flight and deviation in the magnet measurements. Both fission fragments are fully (in mass and charge) and simultaneously identified.This document reports on the analysis performed for (1) the identification of the fissioning system, (2) the identification of both fission fragments, on an event-by-event basis, and (3) the extraction of fission observables: yields, TKE, total prompt neutron multiplicity. These results, concerning the actinides, are discussed, and

Progress in fission product nuclear data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lammer, M.

1984-09-01

This is the tenth issue of a report series on Fission Product Data, which informs us about all the activities in this field, which are planned, ongoing, or have recently been completed. The types of activities included are measurements, compilations and evaluations of: fission product yields (neutron induced and spontaneous fission), neutron reaction cross sections of fission products, data related to the radioactive decay of fission products, delayed neutron data of fission products, lumped fission product data (decay heat, absorption, etc.). There is also a section with recent references relative to fission product nuclear data

Effects of fissioning nuclei distributions on fragment mass distributions for high energy fission

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rossi P C R

2012-02-01

Full Text Available We study the effects of fissioning nuclei mass- and energy-distributions on the formation of fragments for fission induced by high energy probes. A Monte Carlo code called CRISP was used for obtaining mass distributions and spectra of the fissioning nuclei for reactions induced by 660 MeV protons on 241Am and on 239Np, by 500 MeV protons on 208Pb, and by Bremsstrahlung photons with end-point energies at 50 MeV and 3500 MeV on 238U. The results show that even at high excitation energies, asymmetric fission may still contribute significantly to the fission cross section of actinide nuclei, while it is the dominante mode in the case of lead. However, more precise data for high energy fission on actinide are necessary in order to allow definite conclusions.

Nuclear data and measurements series: Ratio of the prompt-fission-neutron spectrum of plutonium 239 to that of uranium 235

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sugimoto, M.; Smith, A.B.; Guenther, P.T.

1986-09-01

The prompt-fission-neutron spectrum resulting from 239 Pu fission induced by 0.55 MeV incident neutrons is measured from 1.0 to 10.0 MeV relative to that of 235 U fission induced by the same incident-energy neutrons. The measurements employ the time-of-flight technique. Energy-dependent ratios of the two spectra are deduced from the measured values over the energy range 1.0 to 10.0 MeV. The experimentally-derived ratio results are compared with those calculated from ENDF/B-V, revision-2, and with results of recent microscopic measurements. Using the ENDF/B-V 235 U Watt parameters for the 235 U spectrum, the experimental measurements imply a ratio of average fission-spectrum energies of 239 Pu/ 235 U = 1.045 +- 0.003, compared to the value 1.046 calculated from ENDF/B-V, revision 2. 12 refs., 2 figs., 2 tabs

Fission product release from TRIGA-LEU reactor fuels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baldwin, N.L.; Foushee, F.C.; Greenwood, J.S.

1980-01-01

Due to present international concerns over nuclear proliferation, TRIGA reactor fuels will utilize only low-enriched uranium (LEU) (enrichment <20%). This requires increased total uranium loading per unit volume of fuel in order to maintain the appropriate fissile loading. Tests were conducted to determine the fractional release of gaseous and metallic fission products from typical uranium-zirconium hydride TRIGA fuels containing up to 45 wt-% uranium. These tests, performed in late 1977 and early 1978, were similar to those conducted earlier on TRIGA fuels with 8.5 wt-% U. Fission gas release measurements were made on prototypic specimens from room temperature to 1100 deg. C in the TRIGA King Furnace Facility. The fuel specimens were irradiated in the TRIGA reactor at a low power level. The fractional releases of the gaseous nuclides of krypton and xenon were measured under steady-state operating conditions. Clean helium was used to sweep the fission gases released during irradiation from the furnace into a standard gas collection trap for gamma counting. The results of these tests on TRIGA-LEU fuel agree well with data from the similar, earlier tests on TRIGA fuel. The correlation used to calculate the release of fission products from 8.5 wt-% U TRIGA fuel applies equally well for U contents up to 45 wt-%. (author)

Angular momenta of fission fragments in the {alpha}-accompanied fission of {sup 252}Cf

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jandel, M.; Kliman, J.; Krupa, L.; Morhac, M. [Slovak Academy of Sciences, Department of Nuclear Physics, Bratislava (Slovakia); Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, Flerov Laboratory for Nuclear Reactions, Dubna (Russian Federation); Hamilton, J.H.; Kormicki, J.; Ramayya, A.V.; Hwang, J.K.; Luo, Y.X.; Fong, D.; Gore, P. [Vanderbilt University, Department of Physics, Nashville, TN (United States); Ter-Akopian, G.M.; Oganessian, Yu.Ts.; Rodin, A.M.; Fomichev, A.S.; Popeko, G.S. [Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, Flerov Laboratory for Nuclear Reactions, Dubna (Russian Federation); Daniel, A.V. [Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA (United States); Rasmussen, J.O.; Macchiavelli, A.O.; Stoyer, M.A. [Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA (United States); Donangelo, R.; Cole, J.D.

2005-06-01

For the first time, average angular momenta of the ternary fission fragments {sup 100,102}Zr, {sup 106}Mo, {sup 144,146}Ba and {sup 138,140,142}Xe from the {alpha}-accompanied fission of {sup 252}Cf were obtained from relative intensities of prompt {gamma}-ray transitions with the use of the statistical model calculation. Average values of the angular momenta were compared with the corresponding values for the same fission fragments from the binary fission of {sup 252}Cf. Results indicate the presence of a decreasing trend in the average values of angular momenta induced in ternary fission fragments compared to the same binary fission fragments. On the average, the total angular momentum extracted for ternary fission fragments is {proportional_to}1.4{Dirac_h} lower than in binary fission. Consequently, results indicate that the mechanism of the ternary {alpha}-particles emission may directly effect an induction of angular momenta of fission fragments, and possible scenarios of such mechanisms are discussed. Further, the dependence of the angular momenta of {sup 106}Mo and {sup 140}Xe on the number of emitted neutrons from correlated pairs of primary fragments was obtained also showing a decreasing dependence of average angular momenta with increasing number of emitted neutrons. Consequences are briefly discussed. (orig.)

Specific fission J-window and angular momentum dependence of the fission barrier

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Baba, Hiroshi; Saito, Tadashi; Takahashi, Naruto; Yokoyama, Akihiko [Osaka Univ., Suita (Japan); Shinohara, Atsushi

1997-04-01

A method to determine a unique J-window in the fission process was devised and the fissioning nuclide associated with thus extracted J-window was identified for each of the heavy-ion reaction systems. Obtained fission barriers at the resulting J-window were compared with the calculated values by the rotating finite range model (RFRM). The deduced barriers for individual nuclides were compared with the RFRM barriers to reproduce more or less the angular momentum dependence the RFRM prediction. The deduced systematic behavior of the fission barrier indicates no even-odd and shell corrections are necessary. The nuclear dissipation effect based on Kramer`s model revealed substantial reduction of the statistically deduced barrier heights and brought a fairly large scattering from the RFRM J-dependence. However, introduction of the temperature-dependent friction coefficient ({gamma} = 2 for T {>=} 1.0 MeV and 0.5 for T < 1.0 MeV) was found to bring about satisfactory agreement with both RFRM fission barriers and the pre-fission neutron multiplicity systematics. (author). 81 refs.

Correlation of errors in the Monte Carlo fission source and the fission matrix fundamental-mode eigenvector

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dufek, Jan; Holst, Gustaf

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Errors in the fission matrix eigenvector and fission source are correlated. • The error correlations depend on coarseness of the spatial mesh. • The error correlations are negligible when the mesh is very fine. - Abstract: Previous studies raised a question about the level of a possible correlation of errors in the cumulative Monte Carlo fission source and the fundamental-mode eigenvector of the fission matrix. A number of new methods tally the fission matrix during the actual Monte Carlo criticality calculation, and use its fundamental-mode eigenvector for various tasks. The methods assume the fission matrix eigenvector is a better representation of the fission source distribution than the actual Monte Carlo fission source, although the fission matrix and its eigenvectors do contain statistical and other errors. A recent study showed that the eigenvector could be used for an unbiased estimation of errors in the cumulative fission source if the errors in the eigenvector and the cumulative fission source were not correlated. Here we present new numerical study results that answer the question about the level of the possible error correlation. The results may be of importance to all methods that use the fission matrix. New numerical tests show that the error correlation is present at a level which strongly depends on properties of the spatial mesh used for tallying the fission matrix. The error correlation is relatively strong when the mesh is coarse, while the correlation weakens as the mesh gets finer. We suggest that the coarseness of the mesh is measured in terms of the value of the largest element in the tallied fission matrix as that way accounts for the mesh as well as system properties. In our test simulations, we observe only negligible error correlations when the value of the largest element in the fission matrix is about 0.1. Relatively strong error correlations appear when the value of the largest element in the fission matrix raises

Fission cross section of 235U from 1 to 6 MeV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barton, D.M.; Diven, B.C.; Hansen, G.E.; Jarvis, G.A.; Koontz, P.G.; Smith, R.K.

1976-01-01

The ratio of the neutron-induced fission cross section of 235 U to the neutron-proton scattering cross section was measured in the neutron energy region from 1 to 6 MeV. The neutron source was the T(p,n) reaction produced by a pulsed Van de Graaff proton beam on a thin tritium gas target. The use of monoenergetic neutrons allowed time-of-flight methods to be used to study carefully backgrounds and source characteristics

Radiochemistry and the Study of Fission

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rundberg, Robert S. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

2016-11-14

These are slides from a lecture given at UC Berkeley. Radiochemistry has been used to study fission since its discovery. Radiochemical methods are used to determine cumulative mass yields. These measurements have led to the two-mode fission hypothesis to model the neutron energy dependence of fission product yields. Fission product yields can be used for the nuclear forensics of nuclear explosions. The mass yield curve depends on both the fuel and the neutron spectrum of a device. Recent studies have shown that the nuclear structure of the compound nucleus can affect the mass yield distribution. The following topics are covered: In the beginning: the discovery of fission; forensics using fission products: what can be learned from fission products, definitions of R-values and Q-values, fission bases, K-factors and fission chambers, limitations; the neutron energy dependence of the mass yield distribution (the two mode fission hypothesis); the influence of nuclear structure on the mass yield distribution. In summary: Radiochemistry has been used to study fission since its discovery. Radiochemical measurement of fission product yields have provided the highest precision data for developing fission models and for nuclear forensics. The two-mode fission hypothesis provides a description of the neutron energy dependence of the mass yield curve. However, data is still rather sparse and more work is needed near second and third chance fission. Radiochemical measurements have provided evidence for the importance of nuclear states in the compound nucleus in predicting the mass yield curve in the resonance region.

Radiochemistry and the Study of Fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rundberg, Robert S.

2016-01-01

These are slides from a lecture given at UC Berkeley. Radiochemistry has been used to study fission since its discovery. Radiochemical methods are used to determine cumulative mass yields. These measurements have led to the two-mode fission hypothesis to model the neutron energy dependence of fission product yields. Fission product yields can be used for the nuclear forensics of nuclear explosions. The mass yield curve depends on both the fuel and the neutron spectrum of a device. Recent studies have shown that the nuclear structure of the compound nucleus can affect the mass yield distribution. The following topics are covered: In the beginning: the discovery of fission; forensics using fission products: what can be learned from fission products, definitions of R-values and Q-values, fission bases, K-factors and fission chambers, limitations; the neutron energy dependence of the mass yield distribution (the two mode fission hypothesis); the influence of nuclear structure on the mass yield distribution. In summary: Radiochemistry has been used to study fission since its discovery. Radiochemical measurement of fission product yields have provided the highest precision data for developing fission models and for nuclear forensics. The two-mode fission hypothesis provides a description of the neutron energy dependence of the mass yield curve. However, data is still rather sparse and more work is needed near second and third chance fission. Radiochemical measurements have provided evidence for the importance of nuclear states in the compound nucleus in predicting the mass yield curve in the resonance region.

The Growth of Sea cucumber Stichopus herrmanni After Transverse Induced Fission in Two and Three Fission Plane

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Retno Hartati

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Transverse induced fission proven could be done in Teripang Tril, Stichopus herrmanni. This present works aimed to analyze wound recovery, regeneration period and growth of Teripang Trill  after asexual reproduction by fission using two and three fission plane. Observations were made every day until the sea cucumber body separated into two or more (depending on treatment and reared for 16 weeks.  The results showed that there are differences in wound recovery, regeneration period and growth of S. herrmanni depend on their different fission plane. The wound recovery and regeneration period (days of anterior, middle and posterior individu S. herrmanni resulted from two and three fission plane were varied but the two fission plane the anterior individu recover for longer period than posterior part and  the wound recover process in both end for thee fission plane was same. Average growth of anterior and posterior fragment were longer for two fission plane than three fission plane.  The middle fragment (M1 and M2 both fission plane was able to grow but very low.  It showed that three fission plane gave very slow growth in every fragment of the body. Keywords: growth, post-fission, fission plane, Stichopus herrmanni

Effect of fission dynamics on the spectra and multiplicities of prompt fission neutrons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nix, J.R.; Madland, D.G.; Sierk, A.J.

1985-01-01

With the goal of examining their effect on the spectra and multiplicities of the prompt neutrons emitted in fission, we discuss recent advances in a unified macroscopic-microscopic description of large-amplitude collective nuclear dynamics. The conversion of collective energy into single-particle excitation energy is calculated for a new surface-plus-window dissipation mechanism. By solving the Hamilton equations of motion for initial conditions appropriate to fission, we obtain the average fission-fragment translational kinetic energy and excitation energy. The spectra and multiplicities of the emitted neutrons, which depend critically upon the average excitation energy, are then calculated on the basis of standard nuclear evaporation theory, taking into account the average motion of the fission fragments, the distribution of fission-fragment residual nuclear temperature, the energy dependence of the cross section for the inverse process of compound-nucleus formation, and the possibility of multiple-chance fission. Some illustrative comparisons of our calculations with experimental data are shown

Equilibrium fission model calculations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beckerman, M.; Blann, M.

1976-01-01

In order to aid in understanding the systematics of heavy ion fission and fission-like reactions in terms of the target-projectile system, bombarding energy and angular momentum, fission widths are calculated using an angular momentum dependent extension of the Bohr-Wheeler theory and particle emission widths using angular momentum coupling

Fusion-fission type collisions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oeschler, H.

1980-01-01

Three examples of fusion-fission type collisions on medium-mass nuclei are investigated whether the fragment properties are consistent with fission from equilibrated compound nuclei. Only in a very narrow band of angular momenta the data fulfill the necessary criteria for this process. Continuous evolutions of this mechnism into fusion fission and into a deep-inelastic process and particle emission prior to fusion have been observed. Based on the widths of the fragment-mass distributions of a great variety of data, a further criterion for the compound-nucleus-fission process is tentatively proposed. (orig.)

Fission neutron multiplicity calculations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maerten, H.; Ruben, A.; Seeliger, D.

1991-01-01

A model for calculating neutron multiplicities in nuclear fission is presented. It is based on the solution of the energy partition problem as function of mass asymmetry within a phenomenological approach including temperature-dependent microscopic energies. Nuclear structure effects on fragment de-excitation, which influence neutron multiplicities, are discussed. Temperature effects on microscopic energy play an important role in induced fission reactions. Calculated results are presented for various fission reactions induced by neutrons. Data cover the incident energy range 0-20 MeV, i.e. multiple chance fission is considered. (author). 28 refs, 13 figs

Fission yield measurements at IGISOL

Science.gov (United States)

Lantz, M.; Al-Adili, A.; Gorelov, D.; Jokinen, A.; Kolhinen, V. S.; Mattera, A.; Moore, I.; Penttilä, H.; Pomp, S.; Prokofiev, A. V.; Rakopoulos, V.; Rinta-Antila, S.; Simutkin, V.; Solders, A.

2016-06-01

The fission product yields are an important characteristic of the fission process. In fundamental physics, knowledge of the yield distributions is needed to better understand the fission process. For nuclear energy applications good knowledge of neutroninduced fission-product yields is important for the safe and efficient operation of nuclear power plants. With the Ion Guide Isotope Separator On-Line (IGISOL) technique, products of nuclear reactions are stopped in a buffer gas and then extracted and separated by mass. Thanks to the high resolving power of the JYFLTRAP Penning trap, at University of Jyväskylä, fission products can be isobarically separated, making it possible to measure relative independent fission yields. In some cases it is even possible to resolve isomeric states from the ground state, permitting measurements of isomeric yield ratios. So far the reactions U(p,f) and Th(p,f) have been studied using the IGISOL-JYFLTRAP facility. Recently, a neutron converter target has been developed utilizing the Be(p,xn) reaction. We here present the IGISOL-technique for fission yield measurements and some of the results from the measurements on proton induced fission. We also present the development of the neutron converter target, the characterization of the neutron field and the first tests with neutron-induced fission.

Fission yield measurements at IGISOL

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lantz M.

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The fission product yields are an important characteristic of the fission process. In fundamental physics, knowledge of the yield distributions is needed to better understand the fission process. For nuclear energy applications good knowledge of neutroninduced fission-product yields is important for the safe and efficient operation of nuclear power plants. With the Ion Guide Isotope Separator On-Line (IGISOL technique, products of nuclear reactions are stopped in a buffer gas and then extracted and separated by mass. Thanks to the high resolving power of the JYFLTRAP Penning trap, at University of Jyväskylä, fission products can be isobarically separated, making it possible to measure relative independent fission yields. In some cases it is even possible to resolve isomeric states from the ground state, permitting measurements of isomeric yield ratios. So far the reactions U(p,f and Th(p,f have been studied using the IGISOL-JYFLTRAP facility. Recently, a neutron converter target has been developed utilizing the Be(p,xn reaction. We here present the IGISOL-technique for fission yield measurements and some of the results from the measurements on proton induced fission. We also present the development of the neutron converter target, the characterization of the neutron field and the first tests with neutron-induced fission.

Study of hypernuclei fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Malek, F.

1990-01-01

This work is about PS177 experience made on LEAR machine at CERN in 1988. The annihilation reaction of anti protons on a target of Bismuth or Uranium is studied. Lambda particles are produced by this reaction, in the nucleus in 2% of cases 7.1 10 -3 hypernuclei by stopped antiproton in the target are produced. The prompt hypernucleus fission probability of uranium is 75% and that of Bismuth 10%. The mass distribution of fission fragments is symmetrical ((≡ the excitation energy of the nucleus is very high). If the nucleus hasn't fissioned, the non-mesonic lambda decay, gives it an energy of 100 MeV, what allows to fission later. This fission is delayed because the hypernucleus lifetime is 1.3 +0.25 -0.21 10 -10 sec for Bismuth [fr

Picosecond resolution on relativistic heavy ions' time-of-flight measurement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ebran, A.; Taieb, J.; Belier, G.; Chatillon, A.; Laurent, B.; Martin, J.-F.; Pellereau, E.

2013-01-01

We developed a time-of-flight measurement system for relativistic heavy ions with a requested resolution of 40 ps Full Width Half Maximum. Such a resolution is mandatory to assign the correct mass number to every fission fragment, identified using the Bρ-ToF-ΔE method with the recoil spectrometer designed for the SOFIA experiment—which hold very recently at GSI. To achieve such a performance, fast plastic scintillators read-out by dedicated photomultiplier tubes were chosen among other possible options. We have led several test-measurements from 2009 to 2011, in order to investigate: the effect of the addition of a quenching molecule in the scintillator's matrix, the influence of the detector's size and the impact of the photomultiplier tube. The contribution of the dedicated electronics is also characterized. Time-of-flight measurements were performed realized with electron pulses and relativistic heavy ions, respectively provided by the LASER driven electron–accelerator (ELSA) at CEA–DAM Ile-de-France and by the SIS18/FRS facility at GSI. The reported results exhibit a time resolution better than 20 ps Full Width Half Maximum reached with the last prototype at GSI with an Uranium beam. These results confirm that the SOFIA experiment should enable the measurement of the relativistic fission fragments' time-of-flight with the requested resolution

Elastocapillary Instability in Mitochondrial Fission

Science.gov (United States)

Gonzalez-Rodriguez, David; Sart, Sébastien; Babataheri, Avin; Tareste, David; Barakat, Abdul I.; Clanet, Christophe; Husson, Julien

2015-08-01

Mitochondria are dynamic cell organelles that constantly undergo fission and fusion events. These dynamical processes, which tightly regulate mitochondrial morphology, are essential for cell physiology. Here we propose an elastocapillary mechanical instability as a mechanism for mitochondrial fission. We experimentally induce mitochondrial fission by rupturing the cell's plasma membrane. We present a stability analysis that successfully explains the observed fission wavelength and the role of mitochondrial morphology in the occurrence of fission events. Our results show that the laws of fluid mechanics can describe mitochondrial morphology and dynamics.

Systematic experimental survey on projectile fragmentation and fission induced in collisions of 238U at 1 A GeV with lead

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Enqvist, T.; Benlliure, J.; Farget, F.; Schmidt, K.H.; Armbruster, P.; Bernas, M.; Tassan-Got, L.; Boeckstiegel, C.; Jong, M. de; Dufour, J.P.

1999-03-01

Projectile fragmentation and fission, induced in collisions of 238 U at 1 A GeV with lead, have systematically been studied. A complete survey on the isotopic production cross sections of all elements between vanadium (Z = 23) and rhenium (Z = 75) down to a cross section of 0.1 mb is given. About 600 isotopes produced in fragmentation and about 600 isotopes produced in fission were identified in the GSI fragment separator FRS from magnetic rigidities, time-of-flight values, and the energy loss in an ionisation chamber. In addition, the velocity distributions of all these reaction products have been mapped, and the products are unambiguously attributed to the different reaction mechanisms due to their kinematical properties. The results are compared with empirical systematics and previous data. The velocity of the fragments obtained in the fission process by the Coulomb repulsion allows to reconstruct the TKE-value of the break-up and to identify the atomic number of the fissioning nucleus in hot fission. The mean velocities of light projectile fragments were found to be higher than the beam velocity. (orig.)

Determination of the fission products yields, lanthanide and yttrium, in the fission of 238U with neutrons of fission spectra

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nicoli, I.G.

1981-06-01

A radiochemical investigation is performed to measure the cumulative fission product yields of several lantanides and yttrium nuclides in the 238 U by fission neutron spectra. Natural and depleted uranium are irradiated under the same experimental conditions in order to find a way to subtract the contribution of the 235 U fission. 235 U percentage in the natural uranium was 3.5 times higher than in the depleted uranium. Uranium oxides samples are irradiated inside the core of the Argonaut Reactor, at the Instituto de Engenharia Nuclear, and the lantanides and yttrium are chemically separated. The fission products gamma activities were detected, counted and analysed in a system constituted by a high resolution Ge(Li) detector, 4096 multichannel analyser and a PDP-11 computer. Cumulative yields for fission products with half-lives between 1 to 33 hours are measured: 93 Y, 141 La, 142 La, 143 Ce and 149 Nd. The chain total yields are calculated. The cumulative fission yields measured for 93 Y, 141 La, 142 La, 143 Ce and 149 Nd are 4,49%, 4,54%, 4,95%, 4,16% and 1,37% respectively and they are in good agreement with the values found in the literature. (Author) [pt

Barium 139 as Fission Indicator

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Broda, E.

1943-07-01

This report is based on a measurement performed at the Cavendish Laboratory (Cambridge) by E. Broda in December 1943 where a technique has been worked out for measuring the fission density in a uranium containing medium in relative units by determining the amount of a suitable fission product formed. Generally a given fission product will be formed in natural uranium by slow neutron fission of U235 or by fast neutron fission of either U235 or U238. It is intended to translate the relative units into absolute units by comparison of the Ba yield with the indication of UF6 fission chamber in the same medium. This has to be done separately for fast and slow neutron fission as the yields may be different. Another application of the technique developed is the measurement of thermal neutron density in an uraniferous medium without using a detector subject to variations of sensitivity according to the properties of the medium. (nowak)

Identification of more than a 100 new isotopes from 238U projectile fission and beams of neutron-rich nuclei at BRENDA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bernas, M.; Donzaud, C.; Dessagne, Ph.

1996-01-01

Projectile fission of 238 U was investigated at a bombarding energy of 750 A MeV using Pb and Be targets. The fully stripped forward emitted fragments from Ti to Cs were analyzed with the Fragment Separator (FRS) and unambiguously identified by their energy-loss and time-of-flight. The magnetic selection of the largest momenta acted as a trigger of the low-energy fission component. More than a hundred new nuclear species were identified including the 78 Ni, for which a cross-section of 300 pb was measured. (author)

Determination of the fission barrier height in fission of heavy radioactive beams induced by the (d,p)-transfer

CERN Multimedia

A theoretical framework is described, allowing to determine the fission barrier height using the observed cross sections of fission induced by the (d,p)-transfer with accuracy, which is not achievable in another type of low-energy fission of neutron-deficient nuclei, the $\\beta$-delayed fission. The primary goal is to directly determine the fission barrier height of proton-rich fissile nuclei, preferably using the radio-active beams of isotopes of odd elements, and thus confirm or exclude the low values of fission barrier heights, typically extracted using statistical calculations in the compound nucleus reactions at higher excitation energies. Calculated fission cross sections in transfer reactions of the radioactive beams show sufficient sensitivity to fission barrier height. In the probable case that fission rates will be high enough, mass asymmetry of fission fragments can be determined. Results will be relevant for nuclear astrophysics and for production of super-heavy nuclei. Transfer induced fission of...

Fission fragment distributions within dynamical approach

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mazurek, K. [Institute of Nuclear, Physics Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow (Poland); Nadtochy, P.N. [Omsk State Technical University, Omsk (Russian Federation); Ryabov, E.G.; Adeev, G.D. [Omsk State University, Physics Department, Omsk (Russian Federation)

2017-04-15

The review covers recent developments and achievements in the dynamical description of fission process at high excitation energy. It is shown that the dynamical approach based on multidimensional Langevin equations combined with the statistical description of nuclear decay by particles evaporation is capable of fairly well describing the formation of fission fragment mass-energy, charge, and angular distributions of fission fragments in coincidence with the pre- and post-scission particle emission. The final yields of fission and evaporation residues channels products could be obtained. The detailed description of fission dynamics allows studying different stages of fission process, indicating the most important ingredients governing fission process and studying in detail such fundamental nuclear properties as nuclear viscosity and fission timescale. The tasks and perspectives of multidimensional dynamical approach are also discussed. (orig.)

Tip model of cold fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goennenwein, F.; Boersig, B.

1991-01-01

Cold fission is defined to be the limiting case of nuclear fission where virtually all of the available energy is converted into the total kinetic energy of the fragments. The fragments have, therefore, to be born in or at least close to their respective ground states. Starting from the viewpoint that cold fission corresponds to most compact scission configurations, energy constraints have been exploited to calculate minimum tip distances between the two nascent fragments in binary fission. Crucial input parameters to this tip model of cold fission are the ground-state deformations of fragment nuclei. It is shown that the minimum tip distances being compatible with energy conservation vary strongly with both the mass and charge fragmentation of the fission prone nucleus. The tip distances refer to nuclei with equivalent sharp surfaces. In keeping with the size of the surface width of leptodermous nuclei, only configurations where the tip distances are smaller than a few fm may be considered as valid scission configurations. From a comparison with experimental data on cold fission this critical tip distance appears to be 3.0 fm for the model parameters chosen. Whenever the model calculation yields tip distances being smaller than the critical value, a necessary condition for attaining cold fission is considered to be fulfilled. It is shown that this criterion allows to understand in fair agreement with experiment which mass fragmentations are susceptible to lead to cold fission and which fragment-charge divisions are the most favored in each isobaric mass chain. Being based merely on energy arguments, the model cannot aim at predicting fragment yields in cold fission. However, the tip model proposed appears well suited to delineate the phase space where cold fission phenomena may come into sight. (orig.)

A threshold for dissipative fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thoennessen, M.; Bertsch, G.F.

1993-01-01

The empirical domain of validity of statistical theory is examined as applied to fission data on pre-fission data on pre-fission neutron, charged particle, and γ-ray multiplicities. Systematics are found of the threshold excitation energy for the appearance of nonstatistical fission. From the data on systems with not too high fissility, the relevant phenomenological parameter is the ratio of the threshold temperature T thresh to the (temperature-dependent) fission barrier height E Bar (T). The statistical model reproduces the data for T thresh /E Bar (T) thresh /E Bar (T) independent of mass and fissility of the systems

Insights into nuclear structure and the fission process from spontaneous fission

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hamilton, J.H.; Butler-Moore, K.; Ramayya, A.V. [Vanderbilt Univ., Nashville, TN (United States)] [and others

1993-12-31

The {gamma}-rays emitted following spontaneous and induced fission are rich sources of information about the structure of neutron-rich nuclei and about the fission process itself. The study of spontaneous fissioning isotopes with large Ge detector arrays are providing a wealth of such information as seen, for example, in recent reports. In this paper we present some of our most recent results on nuclear structure studies and conclusions on the fission process itself. In our work, we have employed in spontaneous fission, a triple gamma coincidence study for the first time and a high resolution, X-ray detector-{gamma}-coincidence study. These data provide powerful ways of separating the gamma rays which belong to a particular nucleus. The triple coincidence technique was used to uniquely identify the levels in {sup 136}Te and higher spin states in its N=84 isotones, {sup 138}Xe and {sup 140}Ba{sup 171}. Some other examples of the level structures observed in the low and high mass partners are presented, including a detailed analysis of the backbending of the moment of inertia in {sup 112,114,116}Pd. Finally, we present the first examples of how our analysis allows one to extract a detailed picture of the dependence of the angular momentum on the mass and atomic numbers of the fission fragments and of the long-sought neutron multiplicity distribution from zero-n to ten-n as a function of the charge and mass asymmetry.

The discovery of nuclear fission and the responsibility of the scientist

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Staab, H.A.

1989-01-01

The history of the discovery of nuclear fission is placed in historical context and the responsibility of the scientists involved for the subsequent military uses is discussed. It is explained that the deep things in science are not found because they are useful; they are found because it is possible to find them. If Otto Hahn and his co-workers had not discovered nuclear fission someone else in the late 1930s or early 1940s would have done so. It was decisions outside science which set the course for the nuclear fission research once the basic principle had been understood. The question how far does the scientists responsibility extend for unknown and unintended consequences of research and for misuses of his findings by others is discussed. Scientists have a duty to understand the applications of their work and to warn of misuse or hazards, as did Otto Hahn. (UK)

Dual-fission chamber and neutron beam characterization for fission product yield measurements using monoenergetic neutrons

Science.gov (United States)

Bhatia, C.; Fallin, B.; Gooden, M. E.; Howell, C. R.; Kelley, J. H.; Tornow, W.; Arnold, C. W.; Bond, E. M.; Bredeweg, T. A.; Fowler, M. M.; Moody, W. A.; Rundberg, R. S.; Rusev, G.; Vieira, D. J.; Wilhelmy, J. B.; Becker, J. A.; Macri, R.; Ryan, C.; Sheets, S. A.; Stoyer, M. A.; Tonchev, A. P.

2014-09-01

A program has been initiated to measure the energy dependence of selected high-yield fission products used in the analysis of nuclear test data. We present out initial work of neutron activation using a dual-fission chamber with quasi-monoenergetic neutrons and gamma-counting method. Quasi-monoenergetic neutrons of energies from 0.5 to 15 MeV using the TUNL 10 MV FM tandem to provide high-precision and self-consistent measurements of fission product yields (FPY). The final FPY results will be coupled with theoretical analysis to provide a more fundamental understanding of the fission process. To accomplish this goal, we have developed and tested a set of dual-fission ionization chambers to provide an accurate determination of the number of fissions occurring in a thick target located in the middle plane of the chamber assembly. Details of the fission chamber and its performance are presented along with neutron beam production and characterization. Also presented are studies on the background issues associated with room-return and off-energy neutron production. We show that the off-energy neutron contribution can be significant, but correctable, while room-return neutron background levels contribute less than <1% to the fission signal.

Towards a mechanistic understanding of transient fission gas release

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matthews, J.R.; Small, G.J.

1989-01-01

Recent experimental results on transient fission gas release from oxide fuels are briefly reviewed. These together with associated microstructural observations are compared with the main models for fission gas behaviour. Single gas atom diffusion, bubble migration, heterogeneous percolation and grain boundary sweeping are examined as possible release mechanisms. The role of gas trapping in bubbles and re-solution by irradiation and thermal processes are included in the comparison. As much of the data, and the main range of interest for light water reactor fuels, is for release during mild transients in fuel with a burn-up below 4%, the role of gas retention on grain boundaries is very important and in some cases dominant. The grain boundaries are found to respond very differently to various gas arrival rates and to local temperature conditions. This can lead to early interlinkage and release in some cases, but retention with accompanying large swelling in others. The role of fission products and the local oxygen content of the fuel are found to be important. The effective fuel stoichiometry is likely to change significantly during transients with substantial effects on the transport processes controlling fission gas behaviour. The results of the evaluation of the models are summarized in mechanism maps for intragranular and grain boundary behaviour. (author). 36 refs, 8 figs

Reexamination of fission fragment angular distributions and the fission process: Formalism

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bond, P.D.

1985-01-01

The theory of fission fragment angular distributions is examined and the universally used expression is found to be valid only under restrictive assumptions. A more general angular distribution formula is derived and applied to recent data of high spin systems. At the same time it is shown that the strong anisotropies observed from such systems can be understood without changing the essential basis of standard fission theory. The effects of reaction mechanisms other than complete fusion on fission fragment angular distributions are discussed and possible angular distribution signatures of noncompound nucleus formation are mentioned

Process for treating fission waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rohrmann, C.A.; Wick, O.J.

1983-01-01

A method is described for the treatment of fission waste. A glass forming agent, a metal oxide, and a reducing agent are mixed with the fission waste and the mixture is heated. After melting, the mixture separates into a glass phase and a metal phase. The glass phase may be used to safely store the fission waste, while the metal phase contains noble metals recovered from the fission waste

Investigation of the heavy nuclei fission with anomalously high values of the fission fragments total kinetic energy

Science.gov (United States)

Khryachkov, Vitaly; Goverdovskii, Andrei; Ketlerov, Vladimir; Mitrofanov, Vecheslav; Sergachev, Alexei

2018-03-01

Binary fission of 232Th and 238U induced by fast neutrons were under intent investigation in the IPPE during recent years. These measurements were performed with a twin ionization chamber with Frisch grids. Signals from the detector were digitized for further processing with a specially developed software. It results in information of kinetic energies, masses, directions and Bragg curves of registered fission fragments. Total statistics of a few million fission events were collected during each experiment. It was discovered that for several combinations of fission fragment masses their total kinetic energy was very close to total free energy of the fissioning system. The probability of such fission events for the fast neutron induced fission was found to be much higher than for spontaneous fission of 252Cf and thermal neutron induced fission of 235U. For experiments with 238U target the energy of incident neutrons were 5 MeV and 6.5 MeV. Close analysis of dependence of fission fragment distribution on compound nucleus excitation energy gave us some explanation of the phenomenon. It could be a process in highly excited compound nucleus which leads the fissioning system from the scission point into the fusion valley with high probability.

Determination of the neutron-induced fission cross section of {sup 242}Pu; Bestimmung des neutroneninduzierten Spaltquerschnitts von {sup 242}Pu

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Koegler, Toni Joerg

2016-04-26

Neutron induced fission cross sections of actinides like the Pu-isotopes are of relevance for the development of nuclear transmutation technologies. For {sup 242}Pu, current uncertainties are of around 21%. Sensitivity studies show that the total uncertainty has to be reduced to below 5% to allow for reliable neutron physics simulations. This challenging task was performed at the neutron time-of-flight facility of the new German National Center for High Power Radiation Sources at HZDR, Dresden. Within the TRAKULA project, thin, large and homogeneous deposits of {sup 235}U and {sup 242}Pu have been produced successfully. Using two consecutively placed fission chambers allowed the determination of the neutron induced fission cross section of {sup 242}Pu relative to {sup 235}U. The areal density of the Plutonium targets was calculated using the measured spontaneous fission rate. Experimental results of the fast neutron induced fission of {sup 242}Pu acquired at nELBE will be presented and compared to recent experiments and evaluated data. Corrections addressing the neutron scattering are discussed by using results of different neutron transport simulations (Geant 4, MCNP 6 and FLUKA).

Muon-induced fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Polikanov, S.

1980-01-01

A review of recent experimental results on negative-muon-induced fission, both of 238 U and 232 Th, is given. Some conclusions drawn by the author are concerned with muonic atoms of fission fragments and muonic atoms of the shape isomer of 238 U. (author)

Formation and distribution of fragments in the spontaneous fission of 240Pu

Science.gov (United States)

Sadhukhan, Jhilam; Zhang, Chunli; Nazarewicz, Witold; Schunck, Nicolas

2017-12-01

Background: Fission is a fundamental decay mode of heavy atomic nuclei. The prevalent theoretical approach is based on mean-field theory and its extensions where fission is modeled as a large amplitude motion of a nucleus in a multidimensional collective space. One of the important observables characterizing fission is the charge and mass distribution of fission fragments. Purpose: The goal of this Rapid Communication is to better understand the structure of fission fragment distributions by investigating the competition between the static structure of the collective manifold and the stochastic dynamics. In particular, we study the characteristics of the tails of yield distributions, which correspond to very asymmetric fission into a very heavy and a very light fragment. Methods: We use the stochastic Langevin framework to simulate the nuclear evolution after the system tunnels through the multidimensional potential barrier. For a representative sample of different initial configurations along the outer turning-point line, we define effective fission paths by computing a large number of Langevin trajectories. We extract the relative contribution of each such path to the fragment distribution. We then use nucleon localization functions along effective fission pathways to analyze the characteristics of prefragments at prescission configurations. Results: We find that non-Newtonian Langevin trajectories, strongly impacted by the random force, produce the tails of the fission fragment distribution of 240Pu. The prefragments deduced from nucleon localizations are formed early and change little as the nucleus evolves towards scission. On the other hand, the system contains many nucleons that are not localized in the prefragments even near the scission point. Such nucleons are distributed rapidly at scission to form the final fragments. Fission prefragments extracted from direct integration of the density and from the localization functions typically differ by more than

Early history of soil contamination with fission products

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nagel, E.

1985-01-01

Underneath a balloon and instrument hut demolished today and on the natural pasture next to it, a series of 2 to 4-layer soil samples was carried out to determine the contents in Cs-137 and Sr-90. The results showed a sudded decrease of the Cs concentration behind the walls of the hut, but no further decrease towards the centre of the hut. As expected, the decrease of Sr-90 concentration was slower, both in a horizontal line and in the depth. The results reveal that the soil underneath the hut has not received further fission products since it was built in 1956 from depositions of later nuclear weapon tests. Furthermore, the radionuclides were not transported much further into lower strata so that by taking into consideration of the half-life of the two nuclides their concentration in the soil can be traced back to the year 1956 for comparison with the results measured at the time. (orig./HP) [de

Contribution to the design, fulfillment, and data analysis of fission fragment yields of the SOFIA experiment at GSI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pellereau, Eric

2013-01-01

The isotopic fission yields of U 238 following the SOFIA experiment, conducted at the GSI facility (Darmstadt), are presented here. This experiment takes advantage of the inverse kinematics technique at relativistic energies. Benefits are several: fission fragments are highly focused (high geometrical efficiency) and are also completely stripped, which greatly simplifies their nuclear charge measurement. The first detector of the SOFIA setup is an active target in which fission occurs via electromagnetic excitation, followed by an ionization chamber to measure the nuclear charge and the horizontal angle of both fission fragments. The masses are deduced by the bending radius measurement of the fragments, deflected by a strong magnet (ALADIN), thanks to two position detectors (MWPC), and also by a highly resolved time-of-flight measurement (40 ps FWHM) so that heavy neighboring isotopes can be separated. The data analysis shows that the main goals are achieved since the isotopic separation is reached over the whole range of the fission fragments. A strong even-odd effect is seen in the charge spectrum, which also exhibits a mean heavy charge close to Z = 54. Surprisingly, the neutron even-odd effect of the light region is seen to be very close to the one in thermal neutron induced fission. The peak-to-valley ratio of the mass spectrum confirms that the mean excitation energy at fission is close to the expected one (14 MeV). The GEF code is used for comparison and always gives results very close to ours. (author) [fr

Neutron Energy Spectra from Neutron Induced Fission of 235U at 0.95 MeV and of 238U at 1.35 and 2.02 MeV

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Almen, E; Holmqvist, B; Wiedling, T

1971-09-15

The shapes of fission neutron spectra are of interest for power reactor calculations. Recently it has been suggested that the neutron induced fission spectrum of 235U may be harder than was earlier assumed. For this reason measurements of the neutron spectra of some fissile isotopes are in progress at our laboratory. This report will present results from studies of the energy spectra of the neutrons emitted in the neutron induced fission of 235U and 238U. The measurements were performed at an incident neutron energy of 0.95 MeV for 235U and at energies of 1.35 and 2.02 MeV for 238U using time-of-flight techniques. The time-of-flight spectra were only analysed at energies higher than those of the incident neutrons and up to about 10 MeV. Corrections for neutron attenuation in the uranium samples were calculated using a Monte Carlo program. The corrected fission neutron spectra were fitted to Maxwellian temperature distributions. For 235U a temperature of 1.27 +- 0.01 MeV gives the best fit to the experimental data and for 238U the corresponding values are 1.29 +- 0.03 MeV at 1.35 MeV and 1.29 +- 0.02 MeV at 2.02 MeV

Energy production using fission fragment rockets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chapline, G.; Matsuda, Y.

1991-08-01

Fission fragment rockets are nuclear reactors with a core consisting of thin fibers in a vacuum, and which use magnetic fields to extract the fission fragments from the reactor core. As an alternative to ordinary nuclear reactors, fission fragment rockets would have the following advantages: Approximately twice as efficient if one can directly convert the fission fragment energy into electricity; by reducing the buildup of a fission fragment inventory in the reactor one could avoid a Chernobyl type disaster; and collecting the fission fragments outside the reactor could simplify the waste disposal problem. 6 refs., 4 figs., 2 tabs

Picosecond resolution on relativistic heavy ions' time-of-flight measurement

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ebran, A., E-mail: adeline.ebran@cea.fr; Taieb, J., E-mail: julien.taieb@cea.fr; Belier, G.; Chatillon, A.; Laurent, B.; Martin, J.-F.; Pellereau, E.

2013-11-11

We developed a time-of-flight measurement system for relativistic heavy ions with a requested resolution of 40 ps Full Width Half Maximum. Such a resolution is mandatory to assign the correct mass number to every fission fragment, identified using the Bρ-ToF-ΔE method with the recoil spectrometer designed for the SOFIA experiment—which hold very recently at GSI. To achieve such a performance, fast plastic scintillators read-out by dedicated photomultiplier tubes were chosen among other possible options. We have led several test-measurements from 2009 to 2011, in order to investigate: the effect of the addition of a quenching molecule in the scintillator's matrix, the influence of the detector's size and the impact of the photomultiplier tube. The contribution of the dedicated electronics is also characterized. Time-of-flight measurements were performed realized with electron pulses and relativistic heavy ions, respectively provided by the LASER driven electron–accelerator (ELSA) at CEA–DAM Ile-de-France and by the SIS18/FRS facility at GSI. The reported results exhibit a time resolution better than 20 ps Full Width Half Maximum reached with the last prototype at GSI with an Uranium beam. These results confirm that the SOFIA experiment should enable the measurement of the relativistic fission fragments' time-of-flight with the requested resolution.

DIRECT ENERGY CONVERSION (DEC) FISSION REACTORS - A U.S. NERI PROJECT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beller, D.; Polansky, G.

2000-01-01

The direct conversion of the electrical energy of charged fission fragments was examined early in the nuclear reactor era, and the first theoretical treatment appeared in the literature in 1957. Most of the experiments conducted during the next ten years to investigate fission fragment direct energy conversion (DEC) were for understanding the nature and control of the charged particles. These experiments verified fundamental physics and identified a number of specific problem areas, but also demonstrated a number of technical challenges that limited DEC performance. Because DEC was insufficient for practical applications, by the late 1960s most R and D ceased in the US. Sporadic interest in the concept appears in the literature until this day, but there have been no recent programs to develop the technology. This has changed with the Nuclear Energy Research Initiative that was funded by the U.S. Congress in 1999. Most of the previous concepts were based on a fission electric cell known as a triode, where a central cathode is coated with a thin layer of nuclear fuel. A fission fragment that leaves the cathode with high kinetic energy and a large positive charge is decelerated as it approaches the anode by a charge differential of several million volts, it then deposits its charge in the anode after its kinetic energy is exhausted. Large numbers of low energy electrons leave the cathode with each fission fragment; they are suppressed by negatively biased on grid wires or by magnetic fields. Other concepts include magnetic collimators and quasi-direct magnetohydrodynamic generation (steady flow or pulsed). We present the basic principles of DEC fission reactors, review the previous research, discuss problem areas in detail and identify technological developments of the last 30 years relevant to overcoming these obstacles. A prognosis for future development of direct energy conversion fission reactors will be presented

Fission dynamics of hot nuclei

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

2014-04-05

Apr 5, 2014 ... across the fission barrier is very small or in other words, the fission barrier is much ... of this shape evolution, the gross features of the fissioning nucleus can be described ..... [7] Y Abe, C Gregoire and H Delagrange, J. Phys.

Study on fission blanket fuel cycling of a fusion-fission hybrid energy generation system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhou, Z.; Yang, Y.; Xu, H.

2011-01-01

This paper presents a preliminary study on neutron physics characteristics of a light water cooled fission blanket for a new type subcritical fusion-fission hybrid reactor aiming at electric power generation with low technical limits of fission fuel. The major objective is to study the fission fuel cycling performance in the blanket, which may possess significant impacts on the feasibility of the new concept of fusion-fission hybrid reactor with a high energy gain (M) and tritium breeding ratio (TBR). The COUPLE2 code developed by the Institute of Nuclear and New Energy Technology of Tsinghua University is employed to simulate the neutronic behaviour in the blanket. COUPLE2 combines the particle transport code MCNPX with the fuel depletion code ORIGEN2. The code calculation results show that soft neutron spectrum can yield M > 20 while maintaining TBR >1.15 and the conversion ratio of fissile materials CR > 1 in a reasonably long refuelling cycle (>five years). The preliminary results also indicate that it is rather promising to design a high-performance light water cooled fission blanket of fusion-fission hybrid reactor for electric power generation by directly loading natural or depleted uranium if an ITER-scale tokamak fusion neutron source is achievable.

Physics and chemistry of fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1979-01-01

Full text: In the pleasant and hospitable atmosphere of the Kernforschungsanlage Juelich in the Federal Republic of Germany, the IAEA symposium on the Physics and Chemistry of Fission took place. Almost 200 scientists attended, 154 abstracts were submitted, and 57 papers presented, but more important than the numbers was the quality of the contributions and the progress reported at the symposium. The neutron was discovered almost 50 years ago; 40 years ago the idea of nuclear fission was born. Since then, a number of laboratories have worked hard to explain the phenomenon of fission One would expect that by now scientists would know exactly what happens in a nucleus before and during the process of fission, particularly as there are hundreds of power and research reactors in operation, and fission of uranium isotopes is the basis of their functioning. At first glance, fission seems a simple process: a neutron hits and penetrates the uranium nucleus which becomes excited, i.e. has a surplus of energy. One way to get rid of this energy is for the nucleus to split into two parts; additional products of this process are energy and more neutrons. Nature, however, seems to dislike such straightforward explanations. In the case of fission, scientists have observed a number of phenomena which disagree with a simple model. Sometimes, a nucleus will split into two parts without being 'attacked' by a neutron; this spontaneous fission opens up a new line of fission research and several contributions at the symposium reported on sophisticated experiments designed to unravel some of its specific details. Sometimes, a fissioning nucleus will emit another particle: ternary fission has become a powerful tool for studying the properties of nuclei during the fission process. For the scientist, it is fascinating to observe how the nucleus behaves during fission. They invent models which are supposed to reproduce the most probable course of events leading to fission. In one of these

Theoretical Description of the Fission Process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nazarewicz, Witold

2009-01-01

Advanced theoretical methods and high-performance computers may finally unlock the secrets of nuclear fission, a fundamental nuclear decay that is of great relevance to society. In this work, we studied the phenomenon of spontaneous fission using the symmetry-unrestricted nuclear density functional theory (DFT). Our results show that many observed properties of fissioning nuclei can be explained in terms of pathways in multidimensional collective space corresponding to different geometries of fission products. From the calculated collective potential and collective mass, we estimated spontaneous fission half-lives, and good agreement with experimental data was found. We also predicted a new phenomenon of trimodal spontaneous fission for some transfermium isotopes. Our calculations demonstrate that fission barriers of excited superheavy nuclei vary rapidly with particle number, pointing to the importance of shell effects even at large excitation energies. The results are consistent with recent experiments where superheavy elements were created by bombarding an actinide target with 48-calcium; yet even at high excitation energies, sizable fission barriers remained. Not only does this reveal clues about the conditions for creating new elements, it also provides a wider context for understanding other types of fission. Understanding of the fission process is crucial for many areas of science and technology. Fission governs existence of many transuranium elements, including the predicted long-lived superheavy species. In nuclear astrophysics, fission influences the formation of heavy elements on the final stages of the r-process in a very high neutron density environment. Fission applications are numerous. Improved understanding of the fission process will enable scientists to enhance the safety and reliability of the nation's nuclear stockpile and nuclear reactors. The deployment of a fleet of safe and efficient advanced reactors, which will also minimize radiotoxic

Experimental approach to fission process of actinides

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Baba, Hiroshi [Osaka Univ., Toyonaka (Japan). Faculty of Science

1997-07-01

From experimental views, it seems likely that the mechanism of nuclear fission process remains unsolved even after the Bohr and Weeler`s study in 1939. Especially, it is marked in respect of mass distribution in unsymmetric nuclear fission. The energy dependency of mass distribution can be explained with an assumption of 2-mode nuclear fission. Further, it was demonstrated that the symmetrical fission components and the unsymmetrical ones have different saddle and fission points. Thus, the presence of the 2-mode fission mechanism was confirmed. Here, transition in the nuclear fission mechanism and its cause were investigated here. As the cause of such transition, plausible four causes; a contribution of multiple-chance fission, disappearance of shell effects, beginning of fission following collective excitation due to GDR and nuclear phase transition were examined in the condition of excitation energy of 14.0 MeV. And it was suggested that the transition in the nuclear fission concerned might be related to phase transition. In addition, the mechanism of nuclear fission at a low energy and multi-mode hypothesis were examined by determination of the energy for thermal neutron fission ({sup 233,235}U and {sup 239}Pu) and spontaneous nuclear fission ({sup 252}Cf). (M.N.)

Dynamic of fission and quasi-fission revealed by pre-scission neutron evaporation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hinde, D.J.

1991-06-01

The dependence of pre-scission neutron multiplicities (ν-pre) on the mass-split and total kinetic energy (TKE) in fusion-fission and quasi-fission has been measured for a wide range of projectile-target combinations. the data indicate that the fusion-fission time scale is shorter for asymmetric splits than for symmetric splits, whilst there is no dependence on TKE. For quasi-fission reactions induced using 64 Ni projectiles, ν-pre falls rapidly with increasing TKE, indicating that these neutrons are emitted near to or after scission. A new interpretation of both neutron multiplicities and mean energies (the neutron clock-thermometer) allows the extraction of time scales with much less uncertainty than previously, and also gives information about the deformation from which the neutrons are emitted. 15 refs., 13 figs

Theory of nuclear fission: a review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mosel, U.

1976-01-01

General properties of nuclear fission are reviewed and related to our present knowledge of fission theory. For this purpose the basic reasons for the shape of the fission barriers are discussed and their consequences compared with experimental results on barrier shapes and structures. Special emphasis is put on the asymmetry of the fission barriers and mass-distributions and its relation to the shells of the nascent fragment shells. Finally the problem of calculating fission cross sections is discussed

An evaluation of nodalization/decay heat/ volatile fission product release models in ISAAC code

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Song, Yong Mann; Park, Soo Yong; Kim, Dong Ha

2003-03-01

An ISAAC computer code, which was developed for a Level-2 PSA during 1995, has developed mainly with fundamental models for CANDU-specific severe accident progression and also the accident-analyzing experiences are limited to Level-2 PSA purposes. Hence the system nodalization model, decay model and volatile fission product release model, which are known to affect fission product behavior directly or indirectly, are evaluated to both enhance understanding for basic models and accumulate accident-analyzing experiences. As a research strategy, sensitivity studies of model parameters and sensitivity coefficients are performed. According to the results from core nodalization sensitivity study, an original 3x3 nodalization (per loop) method which groups horizontal fuel channels into 12 representative channels, is evaluated to be sufficient for an optimal scheme because detailed nodalization methods have no large effect on fuel thermal-hydraulic behavior, total accident progression and fission product behavior. As ANSI/ANS standard model for decay heat prediction after reactor trip has no needs for further model evaluation due to both wide application on accident analysis codes and good comparison results with the ORIGEN code, ISAAC calculational results of decay heat are used as they are. In addition, fission product revaporization in a containment which is caused by the embedded decay heat, is demonstrated. The results for the volatile fission product release model are analyzed. In case of early release, the IDCOR model with an in-vessel Te release option shows the most conservative results and for the late release case, NUREG-0772 model shows the most conservative results. Considering both early and late release, the IDCOR model with an in-vessel Te bound option shows mitigated conservative results.

Micro plate fission chamber development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Mei; Wen Zhongwei; Lin Jufang; Jiang Li; Liu Rong; Wang Dalun

2014-01-01

To conduct the measurement of neutron flux and the fission rate distribution at several position in assemblies, the micro plate fission chamber was designed and fabricated. Since the requirement of smaller volume and less structure material was taken into consideration, it is convinient, commercial and practical to use fission chamber to measure neutron flux in specific condition. In this paper, the structure of fission chamber and process of fabrication were introduced and performance test result was presented. The detection efficiency is 91.7%. (authors)

Nuclear Forensics and Radiochemistry: Fission

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rundberg, Robert S. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

2017-11-07

Radiochemistry has been used to study fission since it’ discovery. Radiochemical methods are used to determine cumulative mass yields. These measurements have led to the two-mode fission hypothesis to model the neutron energy dependence of fission product yields. Fission product yields can be used for the nuclear forensics of nuclear explosions. The mass yield curve depends on both the fuel and the neutron spectrum of a device. Recent studies have shown that the nuclear structure of the compound nucleus can affect the mass yield distribution.

Mechanisms of fission neutron emission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maerten, H.

1991-01-01

The time evolution in fission is the starting point for discussing not only the main mechanism of fission neutron emission, the evaporation from fully accelerated fragments, but also possible secondary ones connected with dynamical features of nuclear fission. ''Asymptotic'' conditions as relevant for describing the particle release from highly excited, rapidly moving fragments are defined. Corresponding statistical model approaches to fission neutron emission, based on the adequate consideration of the intricate fragment occurrence probability, reproduce most of the experimental data. The remarkable influence of fission modes on neutron observables is analyzed in the framework of a macroscopic-microscopic scission point model consistent with energy conservation. Finally, chances and deficiencies for solving the mechanism puzzle are summarized. (author). 87 refs, 21 figs

Fission in a Plasma

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Younes, W. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)

2016-10-26

A three-year theory project was undertaken to study the fission process in extreme astrophysical environments, such as the crust of neutron stars. In the first part of the project, the effect of electron screening on the fission process was explored using a microscopic approach. For the first time, these calculations were carried out to the breaking point of the nucleus. In the second part of the project, the population of the fissioning nucleus was calculated within the same microscopic framework. These types of calculations are extremely computer-intensive and have seldom been applied to heavy deformed nuclei, such as fissioning actinides. The results, tools and methodologies produced in this work will be of interest to both the basic-science and nuclear-data communities.

The thermal history of the Bowen Basin: a comparison of apatite fission track analysis and vitrinite reflectance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marshallsea, S.J.

1987-01-01

Vitrinite reflectance and apatite fission-track analysis (AFTA) are two techiques widely used to assess paleotemperatures of the order of 20-120 deg.C. in sedimentary basins. Whereas vitrinite reflectance is essentially a qualitative technique that gives an integrated measure of the entire thermal history, AFTA can reveal information on the variation of paleotemperatures through time because fission-tracks in apatite are continually produced throughout geological time. An apatite fission track study of the Upper Permian units of the Bowen Basin has offered the opportunity to compare the two paleotemperature indicators and place constraints on the timing of maximum paleotemperatures. The regional pattern of apatite fission-track ages closely coincides with the vitrinite reflectance indicating that maximum paleotemperatures have varied across the Basin with the central region of the Bowen Basin experiencing highest paleotemperatures. The reduction in apatite reflectance fission-track age with increasing reflectance represents the progressive annealing at temperatures around 60-120 deg. C. of those fission-tracks formed prior to the time of maximum temperatures. In those samples giving the youngest apatite fission-track ages all tacks were totally annealed at this time, and the fission-track age in these samples, in the range 90-120 Myr, indicate the time of cooling from the thermal maximum in the Early Cretaceous. 1 ref

Development of a “Fission-proxy” Method for the Measurement of 14-MeV Neutron Fission Yields at CAMS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gharibyan, Narek [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)

2016-10-25

Relative fission yield measurements were made for 50 fission products from 25.6±0.5 MeV alpha-induced fission of Th-232. Quantitative comparison of these experimentally measured fission yields with the evaluated fission yields from 14-MeV neutron-induced fission of U-235 demonstrates the feasibility of the proposed fission-proxy method. This new technique, based on the Bohr-independence hypothesis, permits the measurement of fission yields from an alternate reaction pathway (Th-232 + 25.6 MeV α → U-236* vs. U-235 + 14-MeV n → U-236*) given that the fission process associated with the same compound nucleus is independent of its formation. Other suitable systems that can potentially be investigated in this manner include (but are not limited to) Pu-239 and U-237.

Progress in fission product nuclear data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lammer, M.

1981-06-01

This is the seventh issue of a report series on Fission Product Nuclear Data (FPND) which is published by the Nuclear Data Section (NDS) of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The purpose of this series is to inform scientists working on FPND, or using such data, about all activities in this field which are planned, ongoing, or have recently been completed. The present issue contains also a section with some recent references relative to fission product nuclear data, which were not covered by the contributions submitted. The types of activities being included in this report are measurements, compilations and evaluations of: fission product yields (neutron induced and spontaneous fission); neutron reaction cross sections of fission products; data related to the radioactive decay of fission products; delayed neutron data of fission products; and lumped fission product data (decay heat, absorption etc.). The sixth issue of this series has been published in June 1980 as INDC(NDS)-113/G+P. The present issue includes contributions which were received by NDS between 1 August 1980 and 25 May 1981

Nuclear fission and neutron-induced fission cross-sections

CERN Document Server

James, G D; Michaudon, A; Michaudon, A; Cierjacks, S W; Chrien, R E

2013-01-01

Nuclear Fission and Neutron-Induced Fission Cross-Sections is the first volume in a series on Neutron Physics and Nuclear Data in Science and Technology. This volume serves the purpose of providing a thorough description of the many facets of neutron physics in different fields of nuclear applications. This book also attempts to bridge the communication gap between experts involved in the experimental and theoretical studies of nuclear properties and those involved in the technological applications of nuclear data. This publication will be invaluable to those interested in studying nuclear fis

Experiments at the time-of-flight neutron spectrometer GNEIS in Gatchina

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shcherbakov, O.A.

1990-01-01

A brief description of the Gatchina neutron time-of-flight spectrometer GNEIS at the 1 GeV proton synchrocyclotron and its main characteristics are given. Some results of the nuclear fission experiments and neutron cross section measurements are presented not only to illustrate the facility performance but to outline the basic directions of the researches as well. 28 refs.; 10 figs

Isotopic composition of terrestrial atmospheric xenon and the chain reactions of fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shukolyukov, Yu.A.; Meshick, A.P.

1990-01-01

From the comparison of terrestrial atmospheric Xe with the primordial Xe (solar, AVCC), a strange component with a fine structure at 132 Xe and 131 Xe have been found. It was shown that the isotopic composition of this component can be explained neither by mass fractionation of primordial Xe, nor by an admixture of fission products of known nuclei. An analogous Xe was extracted at a low temperature from substances of the natural nuclear reactor, fine-grain samples from Colorado type deposits, ordinary pitchblendes and samples from the epicenter of a A-bomb explosion. It was proved that the strange Xe is a result of different migration rates of β-radioactive Xe precursors which are fission fragments. It is quite possible that the strange component of atmospheric Xe originated as a result of global neutron-induced fission processes during early stages of geological history of the Earth. (orig.) [de

Fission product behaviour in severe accidents

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jokiniemi, J.; Auvinen, A.; Maekynen, J.; Valmari, T.

1998-01-01

The understanding of fission product (FP) behaviour in severe accidents is important for source term assessment and accident mitigation measures. For example in accident management the operator needs to know the effect of different actions on the behaviour and release of fission products. At VTT fission product behaviour have been studied in different national and international projects. In this presentation the results of projects in EU funded 4th framework programme Nuclear Fission Safety 1994-1998 are reported. The projects are: fission product vapour/aerosol chemistry in the primary circuit (FI4SCT960020), aerosol physics in containment (FI4SCT950016), revaporisation of test samples from Phebus fission products (FI4SCT960019) and assessment of models for fission product revaporisation (FI4SCT960044). Also results from the national project 'aerosol experiments in the Victoria facility' funded by IVO PE and VTT Energy are reported

The nuclear fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fiorentino, J.

1983-01-01

The nuclear fission process considering initially the formation of compound nucleus and finishing with radioactive decay of fission products is studied. The process is divided in three parts which consist of the events associated to the nucleus of intermediate transitional state, the scission configuration, and the phenomenum of post scission. (M.C.K.) [pt

Progress in fission product nuclear data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lammer, G.

1976-05-01

The purpose of this series is to inform scientists working on Fission Product Nuclear Data, or using such data, about all activities in this field which are planned, ongoing, or have recently been completed. This report consists of reproductions of essentially unaltered original contributions which the authors have sent to IAEA/NDS. The types of activities being included in this report are measurements, compilations and evaluations of: fission product yields; neutron cross-section data of fission products; data related to β-, γ-decay of fission products; delayed neutron data; and fission product decay-heat

A brief history of the Delayed'' discovery of nuclear fission

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Holden, N.E.

1989-08-01

This year marks the Fiftieth Anniversary of the discovery of Nuclear Fission. In the early 1930's, the neutron was discovered, followed by the discovery of artificial radioactivity and then the use of the neutron to produce artificial radioactivity. The first experiments resulting in the fission of uranium took place in 1934. A paper which speculated on fission as an explanation was almost immediately published, yet no one took it seriously not even the author herself. Why did it take an additional five years before anyone realized what had occurred This is an abnormally long time in a period when discoveries, particularly in nuclear physics, seemed to be almost a daily occurrence. The events which led up to the discovery are recounted, with an attempt made to put them into their historical perspective. The role played by Mendeleev's Periodic Table, the role of the natural radioactive decay chain of uranium, the discovery of protactinium, the apparent discovery of masurium (technetium) and a speculation on the reason why Irene Curie may have missed the discovery of nuclear fission will all be discussed. 43 refs.

Status of fission yield measurements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maeck, W.J.

1979-01-01

Fission yield measurement and yield compilation activities in the major laboratories of the world are reviewed. In addition to a general review of the effort of each laboratory, a brief summary of yield measurement activities by fissioning nuclide is presented. A new fast reactor fission yield measurement program being conducted in the US is described

A stochastic approach to fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boilley, D.; Suraud, E.; Abe, Yasuhisa

1992-01-01

A microscopically derived Langevin equation is applied to thermally induced nuclear fission. An important memory effect is pointed out. A strong friction coefficient, calculated from microscopic quantities, tends to decrease the stationary limit of the fission rate and to increase the transient time. Fission was described as a diffusion over a barrier of a collective variable, and a Langevin Equation (LE) was used to study the phenomenon. A study of the stationary flow over the saddle point with a Fokker-Planck Equation (FPE), equivalent to the LE was used to give formula for the stationary fission rate (or reaction rate for the chemistry applications). More recently, a complete study of the fission process was performed numerically with both FPE and LE. A long transient time, that could allow more pre-scission neutrons to evaporate, was pointed out. The derivation of this new LE is recalled, followed by the description of the memory dependence and by the effect of a large friction coefficient on the fission rate. (author) 6 refs., 3 figs

Influence of the cosmic-ray induced fission tracks on the fission track of extraterrestric minerals via the 238U spontaneous fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Damm, G.; Thiel, K.

1977-01-01

The age determined by counting fission tracks of lunar and meteorite materials is obviously falsified by additional fission track parts not to be accounted for by the spontaneous fission of uranium 238. For this p and n induced fissions of U, Th and other hreavy elements through the cosmic radiation come into consideration. In order to determine the possible part of such interference factors, a simulation experiment at the proton synchrocycloton (CERN, Geneva) has been carried out and independently of this, the production rates for the p and n induced U, Th, Bi, Pb and Au in the surface-near regolith layers of the moon were calculated. It could be seen that the irradiation age as well as the spacial distribution of the heavy metals in the samples to be dated must be considered. (RB) [de

Progress in fission product nuclear data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lammer, M.

1983-08-01

This is the ninth issue of a report series on Fission Product Nuclear Data (FPND) which is published by the Nuclear Data Section (NDS) of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The purpose of this series is to inform scientists working on FPND, or using such data, about all activities in this field which are planned, ongoing, or have recently been completed. The main part of this report consists of unaltered original contributions which the authors have sent to IAEA/NDS. The present issue contains also a section with some recent references relative to fission product nuclear data, which were not covered by the contributions submitted. The types of activities being included in this report are measurements, compilations and evaluations of: Fission product yields (neutron induced and spontaneous fission); Neutron reaction cross sections of fission products; Data related to the radioactive decay of fission products; Delayed neutron data of fission products; and lumped fission product data (decay heat, absorption etc.). The eighth issue of this series has been published in July 1982 as INDC(NDS)-130. The present issue includes contributions which were received by NDS between 1 August 1982 and 25 June 1983

Properties of Fission-Product decay heat from Minor-Actinide fissioning systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oyamatsu, Kazuhiro; Mori, Hideki

2000-01-01

The aggregate Fission-Product (FP) decay heat after a pulse fission is examined for Minor Actinide (MA) fissiles 237 Np, 241 Am, 243 Am, 242 Cm and 244 Cm. We find that the MA decay heat is comparable but smaller than that of 235 U except for cooling times at about 10 8 s (approx. = 3 y). At these cooling times, either the β or γ component of the FP decay heat for these MA's is substantially larger than the one for 235 U. This difference is found to originate from the cumulative fission yield of 106 Ru (T 1/2 = 3.2x10 7 s). This nuclide is the parent of 106 Rh (T 1/2 = 29.8 s) which is the dominant source of the decay heat at 10 8 s (approx. = 3 y). The fission yield is nearly an increasing function of the fissile mass number so that the FP decay heat is the largest for 244 Cm among the MA's at the cooling time. (author)

Mirror fusion--fission hybrids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, J.D.

1978-01-01

The fusion-fission concept and the mirror fusion-fission hybrid program are outlined. Magnetic mirror fusion drivers and blankets for hybrid reactors are discussed. Results of system analyses are presented and a reference design is described

Detection of fission fragments by secondary emission; Detection des fragments de fission par emission secondaire

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Audias, A [Commissariat a l' Energie Atomique, Saclay (France). Centre d' Etudes Nucleaires

1965-07-01

This fission fragment detecting apparatus is based on the principle that fragments traversing a thin foil will cause emission of secondary electrons. These electrons are then accelerated (10 kV) and directly detected by means of a plastic scintillator and associated photomultiplier. Some of the advantages of such a detector are, its rapidity, its discriminating power between alpha particles and fission fragments, its small energy loss in detecting the fragments and the relatively great amount of fissionable material which it can contain. This paper is subdivided as follows: a) theoretical considerations b) constructional details of apparatus and some experimental details and c) a study of the secondary emission effect itself. (author) [French] Le detecteur de fragments de fission que nous avons realise est base sur le principe de l'emission secondaire produite par les fragments de fission traversant une feuille mince: les electrons secondaires emis sont acceleres a des tensions telles (de l'ordre de 10 kV), qu'ils soient directement detectables par un scintillateur plastique associe a un photomultiplicateur. L'interet d'un tel detecteur reside: dans sa rapidite, sa tres bonne discrimination alpha, fission, la possibilite de detecter les fragments de fission avec une perte d'energie pouvant rester relativement faible, et la possibilite d'introduire des quantites de matiere fissile plus importantes que dans les autres types de detecteurs. Ce travail comporte: -) un apercu bibliographique de la theorie du phenomene, -) realisation et mise au point du detecteur avec etude experimentale de quelques parametres intervenant dans l'emission secondaire, -) etude de l'emission secondaire (sur la face d'emergence des fragments de fission) en fonction de l'energie du fragment et en fonction de l'epaisseur de matiere traversee avant emission secondaire, et -) une etude comparative de l'emission secondaire sur la face d'incidence et sur la face d'emergence des fragments de

Monte carlo sampling of fission multiplicity.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hendricks, J. S. (John S.)

2004-01-01

Two new methods have been developed for fission multiplicity modeling in Monte Carlo calculations. The traditional method of sampling neutron multiplicity from fission is to sample the number of neutrons above or below the average. For example, if there are 2.7 neutrons per fission, three would be chosen 70% of the time and two would be chosen 30% of the time. For many applications, particularly {sup 3}He coincidence counting, a better estimate of the true number of neutrons per fission is required. Generally, this number is estimated by sampling a Gaussian distribution about the average. However, because the tail of the Gaussian distribution is negative and negative neutrons cannot be produced, a slight positive bias can be found in the average value. For criticality calculations, the result of rejecting the negative neutrons is an increase in k{sub eff} of 0.1% in some cases. For spontaneous fission, where the average number of neutrons emitted from fission is low, the error also can be unacceptably large. If the Gaussian width approaches the average number of fissions, 10% too many fission neutrons are produced by not treating the negative Gaussian tail adequately. The first method to treat the Gaussian tail is to determine a correction offset, which then is subtracted from all sampled values of the number of neutrons produced. This offset depends on the average value for any given fission at any energy and must be computed efficiently at each fission from the non-integrable error function. The second method is to determine a corrected zero point so that all neutrons sampled between zero and the corrected zero point are killed to compensate for the negative Gaussian tail bias. Again, the zero point must be computed efficiently at each fission. Both methods give excellent results with a negligible computing time penalty. It is now possible to include the full effects of fission multiplicity without the negative Gaussian tail bias.

Systematic experimental survey on projectile fragmentation and fission induced in collisions of {sup 238}U at 1 A GeV with lead

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Enquist, T.; Benlliure, J.; Farget, F.; Schmidt, K.H.; Armbruster, P. [Gesellschaft fuer Schwerionenforschung mbH, Darmstadt (Germany); Bernas, M.; Tassan-Got, L. [Paris-11 Univ., 91 - Orsay (France). Inst. de Physique Nucleaire; Boudard, A.; Legrain, R.; Volant, C. [CEA Centre d`Etudes Nucleaires de Saclay, 91 - Gif-sur-Yvette (France). Dept. d`Astrophysique, de Physique des Particules, de Physique Nucleaire et de l`Instrumentation Associee (DAPNIA); Boeckstiegel, C.; Jong, M. de [Technische Univ. Darmstadt (Germany); Dufour, J.P. [CEA Centre d`Etudes Nucleaires de Bordeaux-Gradignan, 33 - Gradignan (France)

1999-03-01

Projectile fragmentation and fission, induced in collisions of {sup 238}U at 1 A GeV with lead, have systematically been studied. A complete survey on the isotopic production cross sections of all elements between vanadium (Z = 23) and rhenium (Z = 75) down to a cross section of 0.1 mb is given. About 600 isotopes produced in fragmentation and about 600 isotopes produced in fission were identified in the GSI fragment separator FRS from magnetic rigidities, time-of-flight values, and the energy loss in an ionisation chamber. In addition, the velocity distributions of all these reaction products have been mapped, and the products are unambiguously attributed to the different reaction mechanisms due to their kinematical properties. The results are compared with empirical systematics and previous data. The velocity of the fragments obtained in the fission process by the Coulomb repulsion allows to reconstruct the TKE-value of the break-up and to identify the atomic number of the fissioning nucleus in hot fission. The mean velocities of light projectile fragments were found to be higher than the beam velocity. (orig.) 41 refs.

Yields of fission products produced by thermal-neutron fission of 229Th

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dickens, J.K.; McConnell, J.W.

1983-01-01

Absolute yields have been determined for 47 gamma rays emitted in the decay of 37 fission products representing 25 mass chains created during thermal-neutron fission of 229 Th. Using a Ge(Li) detector, spectra were obtained of gamma rays emitted between 15 min and 0.4 yr after very short irradiations by thermal neutrons of a 15-μg sample of 229 Th. On the basis of measured gamma-ray yields and known nuclear data, yields for cumulative production of 37 fission products were deduced. The absolute overall normalization uncertainty is 235 U, we postulate a simple functional dependence sigma = sigma(Z/sub p/), and using this dependence obtain values of Z/sub p/(A) for 15 mass chains created during fission of 229 Th. Values of Z/sub p/(A) were estimated for other mass chains based upon results of a recent study of Z/sub p/(A). Charge distributions determined using the deduced mass distribution and the deduced sets of Z/sub p/(A) and sigma(Z/sub p/) are in very good agreement with recent measurements, exhibiting a pronounced even-odd effect in elemental yields. These results may be used to predict unmeasured yields for 229 Th fission

Systematics of Fission-Product Yields

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wahl, A.C.

2002-01-01

Empirical equations representing systematics of fission-product yields have been derived from experimental data. The systematics give some insight into nuclear-structure effects on yields, and the equations allow estimation of yields from fission of any nuclide with atomic number Z F = 90 thru 98, mass number A F = 230 thru 252, and precursor excitation energy (projectile kinetic plus binding energies) PE = 0 thru ∼200 MeV--the ranges of these quantities for the fissioning nuclei investigated. Calculations can be made with the computer program CYFP. Estimates of uncertainties in the yield estimates are given by equations, also in CYFP, and range from ∼ 15% for the highest yield values to several orders of magnitude for very small yield values. A summation method is used to calculate weighted average parameter values for fast-neutron (∼ fission spectrum) induced fission reactions

Systematics of Fission-Product Yields

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A.C. Wahl

2002-05-01

Empirical equations representing systematics of fission-product yields have been derived from experimental data. The systematics give some insight into nuclear-structure effects on yields, and the equations allow estimation of yields from fission of any nuclide with atomic number Z{sub F} = 90 thru 98, mass number A{sub F} = 230 thru 252, and precursor excitation energy (projectile kinetic plus binding energies) PE = 0 thru {approx}200 MeV--the ranges of these quantities for the fissioning nuclei investigated. Calculations can be made with the computer program CYFP. Estimates of uncertainties in the yield estimates are given by equations, also in CYFP, and range from {approx} 15% for the highest yield values to several orders of magnitude for very small yield values. A summation method is used to calculate weighted average parameter values for fast-neutron ({approx} fission spectrum) induced fission reactions.

Asymmetry in ternary fission induced by polarized neutrons and fission mechanism

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bunakov, V.E.; Gennenvajn, F.; Dzhessinger, P.; Mutterer, M.; Petrov, G.A.

2003-01-01

The results of measuring the P-odd, P-even (right-left) and T-odd asymmetries of the charged particles emission in the double and ternary fission, induced by the polarized neutrons, are considered. It is shown, what kind of information on the mechanism of the ternary nuclear fission may be obtained from the theoretical analysis of these data [ru

Asymmetrically deformed third minimum in the 231Th and 233Th fission barriers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blons, J.; Mazur, C.; Paya, D.; Ribrag, M.; Weigmann, H.

1981-01-01

Neutron induced fission cross-sections of 230 Th and 232 Th have been measured up to 5 MeV. The electron linear accelerator (GELINA) has been used as a neutron time of flight spectrometer with a nominal resolution of 84 psec/m for 230 Th(n,f) and 42 psec/m for 232 Th(n,f) reaction. The fission fragment detector was a 6 cell gas scintillator filled with xenon. The existence of fine structure peaks, a few keV wide, in both the 230 Th(n,f) and 232 Th(n,f) cross sections, is definitively confirmed. The analysis of the two vibrational resonances located respectively at 720 keV for 230 Th(the figure) and 1.6 MeV for 232 Th, shows clearly that these peaks can be interpreted, in terms of two rotational bands with opposite parities. This parity degeneracy is a consequence of the asymmetric, pear-like deformation of the excited nucleus [ru

Potentials of fissioning plasmas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Karlheinz, Thom.

1979-01-01

Successful experiments with the nuclear pumping of lasers have demonstrated that in gaseous medium the kinetic energy of fission fragments can be converted directly into non-equilibrium optical radiation. This confirms the concept that the fissioning medium in a gas-phase nuclear reactor shows an internal structure such as a plasma in nearly thermal equilibrium varying up to a state of extreme-non-equilibrium. The accompanying variations of temperatures, pressure and radiative spectrum suggest wide ranges of applications. For example, in the gas-phase fission reactor concept enriched uranium hexafluoride or an uranium plasma replaces conventional fuel elements and permits operation above the melting point of solid materials. This potential has been motivation for the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to conduct relevant research for high specific impulse propulsion in space. The need to separate the high temperature gaseous fuel from the surfaces of a containing vessel and to protect them against thermal radiation has led to the concept of an externally moderated reactor in which the fissioning gaseous material is suspended by fluid dynamic means and the flow of opaque buffer gas removes the power. The gaseous nuclear fuel can slowly be circulated through the reactor for continuous on-site reprocessing including the annihilation of transuranium actinides at fission when being fed back into the reactor. An equilibrium of the generation and destruction of such actinides at fission when being fed back into the reactor. An equilibrium of the generation and destruction of such actinides can thus be achieved. These characteristics and the unique radiative properties led to the expectation that the gas-phase fission reactor could feature improved safety, safeguarding and economy, in addition to new technologies such as processing, photochemistry and the transmission of power over large distances in space

Thorium-uranium fission radiography

Science.gov (United States)

Haines, E. L.; Weiss, J. R.; Burnett, D. S.; Woolum, D. S.

1976-01-01

Results are described for studies designed to develop routine methods for in-situ measurement of the abundance of Th and U on a microscale in heterogeneous samples, especially rocks, using the secondary high-energy neutron flux developed when the 650 MeV proton beam of an accelerator is stopped in a 42 x 42 cm diam Cu cylinder. Irradiations were performed at three different locations in a rabbit tube in the beam stop area, and thick metal foils of Bi, Th, and natural U as well as polished silicate glasses of known U and Th contents were used as targets and were placed in contact with mica which served as a fission track detector. In many cases both bare and Cd-covered detectors were exposed. The exposed mica samples were etched in 48% HF and the fission tracks counted by conventional transmitted light microscopy. Relative fission cross sections are examined, along with absolute Th track production rates, interaction tracks, and a comparison of measured and calculated fission rates. The practicality of fast neutron radiography revealed by experiments to data is discussed primarily for Th/U measurements, and mixtures of other fissionable nuclei are briefly considered.

Neutron-neutron angular correlations in spontaneous fission of 252Cf and 240Pu

Science.gov (United States)

Verbeke, J. M.; Nakae, L. F.; Vogt, R.

2018-04-01

Background: Angular anisotropy has been observed between prompt neutrons emitted during the fission process. Such an anisotropy arises because the emitted neutrons are boosted along the direction of the parent fragment. Purpose: To measure the neutron-neutron angular correlations from the spontaneous fission of 252Cf and 240Pu oxide samples using a liquid scintillator array capable of pulse-shape discrimination. To compare these correlations to simulations combining the Monte Carlo radiation transport code MCNPX with the fission event generator FREYA. Method: Two different analysis methods were used to study the neutron-neutron correlations with varying energy thresholds. The first is based on setting a light output threshold while the second imposes a time-of-flight cutoff. The second method has the advantage of being truly detector independent. Results: The neutron-neutron correlation modeled by FREYA depends strongly on the sharing of the excitation energy between the two fragments. The measured asymmetry enabled us to adjust the FREYA parameter x in 240Pu, which controls the energy partition between the fragments and is so far inaccessible in other measurements. The 240Pu data in this analysis was the first available to quantify the energy partition for this isotope. The agreement between data and simulation is overall very good for 252Cf(sf ) and 240Pu(sf ) . Conclusions: The asymmetry in the measured neutron-neutron angular distributions can be predicted by FREYA. The shape of the correlation function depends on how the excitation energy is partitioned between the two fission fragments. Experimental data suggest that the lighter fragment is disproportionately excited.

Relativistic Coulomb Fission

Science.gov (United States)

Norbury, John W.

1992-01-01

Nuclear fission reactions induced by the electromagnetic field of relativistic nuclei are studied for energies relevant to present and future relativistic heavy ion accelerators. Cross sections are calculated for U-238 and Pu-239 fission induced by C-12, Si-28, Au-197, and U-238 projectiles. It is found that some of the cross sections can exceed 10 b.

Fission-product source terms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lorenz, R.A.

1981-01-01

This presentation consists of a review of fission-product source terms for light water reactor (LWR) fuel. A source term is the quantity of fission products released under specified conditions that can be used to calculate the consequences of the release. The source term usually defines release from breached fuel-rod cladding but could also describe release from the primary coolant system, the reactor containment shell, or the site boundary. The source term would be different for each locality, and the chemical and physical forms of the fission products could also differ

Neutron capture and fission cross section of Americium-243 in the energy range from 5 to 250 keV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wisshak, K.; Kaeppeler, F.

1983-04-01

The neutron capture and subthreshold fission cross section of 243 Am was measured in the energy range from 5 to 250 keV using 197 Au and 235 U as the respective standards. Neutrons were produced via the 7 Li(p,n) and the T(p,n) reaction with the Karlsruhe 3-MV pulsed Van de Graaff accelerator. Capture events were detected by two MoxonRae detectors with graphite and bismuthgraphite converters, respectively. Fission events were registered by a NE-213 liquid scintillator with pulse-shape discriminator equipment. Flight paths as short as 50-70 mm were used to obtain optimum signal-to-background ratio. After correction for the different efficiency of the individual converter materials the capture cross section could be determined with a total uncertainty of 3-6%. The respective values for the fission cross section are 8-12%. The results are compared to predictions of recent evaluations, which in some cases are severely discrepant. (orig.)

Nuclear fission studies: from LOHENGRIN to FIPPS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chebboubi, Abdelaziz

2015-01-01

Nuclear fission consists in splitting a nucleus, in general an actinide, into smaller nuclei. Despite nuclear fission was discovered in 1939 by Hahn and Strassman, fission models cannot predict the fission observables with an acceptable accuracy for nuclear fuel cycle studies for instance. Improvement of fission models is an important issue for the knowledge of the process itself and for the applications. To reduce uncertainties of the nuclear data used in a nuclear reactor simulation, a validation of the models hypothesis is mandatory. In this work, two features of the nuclear fission were investigated in order to test the resistance of the theories. One aspect is the study of the symmetric fission fragments through the measurement of their yield and kinetic energy distribution. The other aspect is the study of the fission fragment angular momentum.Two techniques are available to assess the angular momentum of a fission fragment. The first one is to look at the properties of the prompt gamma. The new spectrometer FIPPS (Fission Product Prompt gamma-ray Spectrometer), is currently under development at the ILL and will combine a fission filter with a large array of gamma and neutron detectors in order to respond to these issues. The first part of this work is dedicated to the study of the properties of a Gas Filled Magnet (GFM) which is the type of fission filter considered for the FIPPS project.The second part of this work deals with the measurement of isomeric yields and evaluations of the angular momentum distribution of fission fragments. The study of the spherical nucleus 132 Sn shed the light on the current limits of fission models. Finally, the last part of this work is about the measurement of the yields and kinetic energy distributions of symmetric fission fragments. Since models predict the existence of fission modes, the symmetry region is a suitable choice to investigate this kind of prediction. In parallel with all these studies, an emphasis on the

Generalized Energy-Dependent Q Values for Fission

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vogt, R

2010-03-31

We extend Madland's parameterization of the energy release in fission to obtain the dependence of the fission Q value for major and minor actinides on the incident neutron energies in the range 0 {le} E{sub n} {le} 20 MeV. Our parameterization is based on the actinide evaluations recommended for the ENDF/B-VII.1 release. This paper describes the calculation of energydependent fission Q values based on the calculation of the prompt energy release in fission by Madland. This calculation was adopted for use in the LLNL ENDL database and then generalized to obtain the prompt fission energy release for all actinides. Here the calculation is further generalized to the total energy release in fission. There are several stages in a fission event, depending on the time scale. Neutrons and gammas may be emitted at any time during the fission event.While our discussion here is focussed on compound nucleus creation by an incident neutron, similar parameterizations could be obtained for incident gammas or spontaneous fission.

New fission-neutron-spectrum representation for ENDF

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Madland, D.G.

1982-04-01

A new representation of the prompt fission neutron spectrum is proposed for use in the Evaluated Nuclear Data File (ENDF). The proposal is made because a new theory exists by which the spectrum can be accurately predicted as a function of the fissioning nucleus and its excitation energy. Thus, prompt fission neutron spectra can be calculated for cases where no measurements exist or where measurements are not possible. The mathematical formalism necessary for application of the new theory within ENDF is presented and discussed for neutron-induced fission and spontaneous fission. In the case of neutron-induced fission, expressions are given for the first-chance, second-chance, third-chance, and fourth-chance fission components of the spectrum together with that for the total spectrum. An ENDF format is proposed for the new fission spectrum representation, and an example of the use of the format is given

Device for measuring fission product density

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaneda, Mitsunori.

1980-01-01

Purpose: To determine the fission product density of xenon or the like and enable measurement of real time of fission product density in a reactor by calculating the disintegration and annihilation of the fission product on the basis of neutron detected output. Constitution: The neutron flux in a reactor is detected by a detector, and applied to first and second density calculators. Second fission product density signal of xenon or the like outputted from first device is again inputted to the device to form an annihilation signal due to disintegration to determine the present density of the second fission product of xenon or the like corresponding to the decrease of the neutron due to the poison of xeron or the like. Similarly, second device determines the first fission product density of iodine or the like. (Sekiya, K.)

Fission cross section and fission fragment angular distribution for oriented nucleus fission by intermediate energy neutrons (epsilon < or approximately 1 Mev)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barabanov, A.L.; Grechukhin, D.P.

1985-01-01

General analysis is conducted, and formulae for fission cross section and angular distribution of fission fragments of oriented nuclei by fast neutrons are presented. Geometrical coefficients making up the formulae permitting to carry out calculations for target nuclei with spins I=3/2, 5/2, 7/2 at interaction energies epsilon < or approximately 1 MeV are tabulated. Results of demonstrative calculation of fission fragment angular distribution of oriented sup(235)U nuclei by 0.1 <= epsilon <= 1.0 MeV neutrons reveal that angular distribution weakly depends on the set of permeability factors of neutron waves applied in the calculations

Contribution to the study of nuclear fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Serot, O.

2009-09-01

The author proposes an overview of his research activity during the past fifteen years and more particularly that dealing with nuclear fission. The first part reports works on nucleus physics at the scission via the investigation of ternary fission (experimental procedure, influence of fission modes, influence of resonance spin, influence of excitation energy of the fissioning nucleus, emission probabilities, energy spectra of ternary alphas and tritons, emission mechanism). The second part reports measurements and assessments of neutron-induced fission cross sections. The third part reports the investigation of some properties of fission products (efficiencies, branching ratios of the main delayed neutron precursors)

A small flat fission chamber

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Yijun; Wang Dalun; Chen Suhe

1999-01-01

With fission materials of depleted uranium, natural uranium, enriched uranium, 239 Pu, and 237 Np, the authors have designed and made a series of small flat fission chamber. The authors narrated the construction of the fission chamber and its technological process of manufacture, and furthermore, the authors have measured and discussed the follow correct factor, self-absorption, boundary effect, threshold loss factor, bottom scatter and or so

50 years of nuclear fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hilscher, D.

1989-01-01

The article tells the story of the discovery of nuclear fission in Berlin 50 years ago by Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann in cooperation with Lise Meitner. 50 years later nuclear fission is still a subject of research. Some question remain unanswered. Selected new research results are used to discuss the dynamics of the collective movement of the elementary nuclear fission process. (orig.) [de

Fission modelling with FIFRELIN

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Litaize, Olivier; Serot, Olivier; Berge, Leonie

2015-01-01

The nuclear fission process gives rise to the formation of fission fragments and emission of particles (n,γ, e - ). The particle emission from fragments can be prompt and delayed. We present here the methods used in the FIFRELIN code, which simulates the prompt component of the de-excitation process. The methods are based on phenomenological models associated with macroscopic and/or microscopic ingredients. Input data can be provided by experiment as well as by theory. The fission fragment de-excitation can be performed within Weisskopf (uncoupled neutron and gamma emission) or a Hauser-Feshbach (coupled neutron/gamma emission) statistical theory. We usually consider five free parameters that cannot be provided by theory or experiments in order to describe the initial distributions required by the code. In a first step this set of parameters is chosen to reproduce a very limited set of target observables. In a second step we can increase the statistics to predict all other fission observables such as prompt neutron, gamma and conversion electron spectra but also their distributions as a function of any kind of parameters such as, for instance, the neutron, gamma and electron number distributions, the average prompt neutron multiplicity as a function of fission fragment mass, charge or kinetic energy, and so on. Several results related to different fissioning systems are presented in this work. The goal in the next decade will be i) to replace some macroscopic ingredients or phenomenological models by microscopic calculations when available and reliable, ii) to be a support for experimentalists in the design of detection systems or in the prediction of necessary beam time or count rates with associated statistics when measuring fragments and emitted particle in coincidence iii) extend the model to be able to run a calculation when no experimental input data are available, iv) account for multiple chance fission and gamma emission before fission, v) account for the

An early cretaceous phase of accelerated erosion on the south-western margin of Africa: evidence from apatite fission track analysis and the offshore sedimentary record

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brown, R.W.; Gleadow, A.J.W.; Rust, D.J.; Summerfield, M.A.; De Wit, M.C.J.

1990-01-01

Apatite fission track ages and confined track length distributions have been determined for rock samples from the south-western continental margin of Africa. The apatite ages fall into two groups, one having early Cretaceous ages and mean confined track lengths of ∼ 14 μm with very few short tracks, and the other having older ages with confined track length distributions containing a significant proportion of strongly annealed tracks (<10 μm). In any particular area the older apatite ages only occur above a critical threshold elevation, forming a regional pattern in the data and indicating cooling of the upper few kilometres of the crust during the early cretaceous. This episode of cooling is shown to have been the consequence of an accelerated phase of erosion associated with the early stages of rifting and break-up of Gondwana, and correlates with sedimentation patterns derived from borehole data for the adjacent offshore basin. (author)

An early cretaceous phase of accelerated erosion on the south-western margin of Africa: evidence from apatite fission track analysis and the offshore sedimentary record

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brown, R.W.; Gleadow, A.J.W. (La Trobe Univ., Bundoora (Australia)); Rust, D.J.; Summerfield, M.A. (Edinburgh Univ. (UK)); De Wit, M.C.J. (De Beers Consolidated Mines Ltd., Kimberley (South Africa))

1990-01-01

Apatite fission track ages and confined track length distributions have been determined for rock samples from the south-western continental margin of Africa. The apatite ages fall into two groups, one having early Cretaceous ages and mean confined track lengths of {approx} 14 {mu}m with very few short tracks, and the other having older ages with confined track length distributions containing a significant proportion of strongly annealed tracks (<10 {mu}m). In any particular area the older apatite ages only occur above a critical threshold elevation, forming a regional pattern in the data and indicating cooling of the upper few kilometres of the crust during the early cretaceous. This episode of cooling is shown to have been the consequence of an accelerated phase of erosion associated with the early stages of rifting and break-up of Gondwana, and correlates with sedimentation patterns derived from borehole data for the adjacent offshore basin. (author).

Fission gas detection system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Colburn, R.P.

1984-01-01

A device for collecting fission gas released by failed fuel rods which device uses a filter adapted to pass coolant but to block passage of fission gas bubbles due to the surface tension of the bubbles. The coolant may be liquid metal. (author)

Fission Product Yield Study of 235U, 238U and 239Pu Using Dual-Fission Ionization Chambers

Science.gov (United States)

Bhatia, C.; Fallin, B.; Howell, C.; Tornow, W.; Gooden, M.; Kelley, J.; Arnold, C.; Bond, E.; Bredeweg, T.; Fowler, M.; Moody, W.; Rundberg, R.; Rusev, G.; Vieira, D.; Wilhelmy, J.; Becker, J.; Macri, R.; Ryan, C.; Sheets, S.; Stoyer, M.; Tonchev, A.

2014-05-01

To resolve long-standing differences between LANL and LLNL regarding the correct fission basis for analysis of nuclear test data [M.B. Chadwick et al., Nucl. Data Sheets 111, 2891 (2010); H. Selby et al., Nucl. Data Sheets 111, 2891 (2010)], a collaboration between TUNL/LANL/LLNL has been established to perform high-precision measurements of neutron induced fission product yields. The main goal is to make a definitive statement about the energy dependence of the fission yields to an accuracy better than 2-3% between 1 and 15 MeV, where experimental data are very scarce. At TUNL, we have completed the design, fabrication and testing of three dual-fission chambers dedicated to 235U, 238U, and 239Pu. The dual-fission chambers were used to make measurements of the fission product activity relative to the total fission rate, as well as for high-precision absolute fission yield measurements. The activation method was employed, utilizing the mono-energetic neutron beams available at TUNL. Neutrons of 4.6, 9.0, and 14.5 MeV were produced via the 2H(d,n)3He reaction, and for neutrons at 14.8 MeV, the 3H(d,n)4He reaction was used. After activation, the induced γ-ray activity of the fission products was measured for two months using high-resolution HPGe detectors in a low-background environment. Results for the yield of seven fission fragments of 235U, 238U, and 239Pu and a comparison to available data at other energies are reported. For the first time results are available for neutron energies between 2 and 14 MeV.

Feasibility study of applying the passive safety system concept to fusion–fission hybrid reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yu, Zhang-cheng; Xie, Heng

2014-01-01

The fusion–fission hybrid reactor can produce energy, breed nuclear fuel, and handle the nuclear waste, etc., with the fusion neutron source striking the subcritical blanket. The passive safety system consists of passive residual heat removal system, passive safety injection system and automatic depressurization system was adopted into the fusion–fission hybrid reactor in this paper. Modeling and nodalization of primary loop, partial secondary loop and passive core cooling system for the fusion–fission hybrid reactor using relap5 were conducted and small break LOCA on cold leg was analyzed. The results of key transient parameters indicated that the actuation of passive safety system could mitigate the accidental consequence of the 4-inch cold leg small break LOCA on cold leg in the early time effectively. It is feasible to apply the passive safety system concept to fusion–fission hybrid reactor. The minimum collapsed liquid level had great increase if doubling the volume of CMTs to increase its coolant injection and had no increase if doubling the volume of ACCs

Specialists' meeting on role of fission products in whole core accidents

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1977-07-01

Safety of nuclear reactors has been a central concern of the nuclear energy industry from the very beginning. This concern, and the resultant excellence of design, fabrication, and operation, aided by extensive engineered safety features, has given nuclear energy its superior record of protection of the environment and of the public health and safety. With respect to the fast reactor, it was recognized early in the program that there exists a theoretical possibility of a core compaction leading to significant energy release. The considerations of fission product effects are primarily on of the main concerns in evaluation of safety issues. Since fission products have the potential for dispersing fuel from the core region and thereby producing reactor shutdown, knowledge of their effects can contribute to demonstrating that there is a low probability producing whole-core involvement. Similarly, knowledge of fission product effects can contribute to demonstrating that there is a low probability of a whole-core disruptive accident leading to sufficient energy release to challenge the containment capability.

Direct energy conversion in fission reactors: A U.S. NERI project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Slutz, Stephen A.; Seidel, David B.; Polansky, Gary F.; Rochau, Gary E.; Lipinski, Ronald J.; Besenbruch, G.; Brown, L.C.; Parish, T.A.; Anghaie, S.; Beller, D.E.

2000-01-01

In principle, the energy released by a fission can be converted directly into electricity by using the charged fission fragments. The first theoretical treatment of direct energy conversion (DEC) appeared in the literature in 1957. Experiments were conducted over the next ten years, which identified a number of problem areas. Research declined by the late 1960's due to technical challenges that limited performance. Under the Nuclear Energy Research Initiative the authors are determining if these technical challenges can be overcome with todays technology. The authors present the basic principles of DEC reactors, review previous research, discuss problem areas in detail, and identify technological developments of the last 30 years that can overcome these obstacles. As an example, the fission electric cell must be insulated to avoid electrons crossing the cell. This insulation could be provided by a magnetic field as attempted in the early experiments. However, from work on magnetically insulated ion diodes they know how to significantly improve the field geometry. Finally, a prognosis for future development of DEC reactors will be presented

Specialists' meeting on role of fission products in whole core accidents

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1977-01-01

Safety of nuclear reactors has been a central concern of the nuclear energy industry from the very beginning. This concern, and the resultant excellence of design, fabrication, and operation, aided by extensive engineered safety features, has given nuclear energy its superior record of protection of the environment and of the public health and safety. With respect to the fast reactor, it was recognized early in the program that there exists a theoretical possibility of a core compaction leading to significant energy release. The considerations of fission product effects are primarily on of the main concerns in evaluation of safety issues. Since fission products have the potential for dispersing fuel from the core region and thereby producing reactor shutdown, knowledge of their effects can contribute to demonstrating that there is a low probability producing whole-core involvement. Similarly, knowledge of fission product effects can contribute to demonstrating that there is a low probability of a whole-core disruptive accident leading to sufficient energy release to challenge the containment capability

Independent fission yields of Rb and Cs from thermal-neutron-induced fission of 239Pu

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Balestrini, S.J.; Forman, L.

1975-01-01

The relative independent fission yields of Rb and Cs from thermal-neutron-induced fission of 239 Pu have been measured on line using a mass spectrograph and thermalized neutrons from a burst reactor. Independent yields were derived by normalizing the measurements to products of chain yields and fractional independent yields, estimating the latter from measured cumulative yields of Kr and Xe. Comparing the independent yields with those from 238 U fission, the 239 Pu results show shifts in isotopic yield distribution toward lower mass for both Rb and Cs and also toward the production of more Cs and less Rb when 239 Pu is fissioned

A position sensitive parallel plate avalanche fission detector for use in particle induced fission coincidence measurements

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Plicht, J. van der

1980-01-01

A parallel plate avalanche detector developed for the detection of fission fragments in particle induced fission reactions is described. The active area is 6 × 10 cm2; it is position sensitive in one dimension with a resolution of 2.5 mm. The detector can withstand a count rate of 25000 fission

Physics of neutron emission in fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lemmel, H.D.

1989-06-01

The document contains the proceedings of the IAEA Consultants' Meeting on the Physics of Neutron Emission in Fission, Mito City (Japan), 24-27 May 1988. Included are the conclusions and recommendations reached at the meeting and the papers presented by the meeting participants. These papers cover the following topics: Energy dependence of the number of fission neutrons ν-bar (3 papers), multiplicity distribution of fission neutrons (3 papers), competition between neutron and γ-ray emission (4 papers), the fission neutron yield in resonances (2 papers) and the energy spectrum of fission neutrons in experiment (9 papers), theory (4 papers) and evaluation (1 paper). A separate abstract was prepared for each of these papers. Refs, figs and tabs

Progress in fission product nuclear data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lammer, G.

1975-01-01

This is the first issue of a report series on Fission Product Nuclear Data (FPND), published every six months by the Nuclear Data Section (NDS) of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Its purpose is to inform scientists working on FPND, or using such data, about all activities in this field which are planned, ongoing, or have recently been completed. The types of activities being included in this report are measurements, compilations and evaluations of: fission product yields; neutron cross-section data of fission products; data related to β-, γ-decay of fission products; delayed neutron data; and fission product decay-heat. The present issue includes contributions which were received by NDS before 1 November 1975

Fission dynamics with systems of intermediate fissility

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

results concerning nuclear dissipation and fission time-scale obtained from several of these studies. In particular ... alent to the assumption that fission is delayed, namely, that the fission probability is not .... parameters to be adjusted on the experimental data. ..... (b) Time distribution of all fission events for the 132Ce nucleus.

Progress in fission product nuclear data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lammer, M.

1982-07-01

This is the eighth issue of a report series on Fission Product Nuclear Data (FPND) which is published by the Nuclear Data Section (NDS) of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The purpose of this series is to inform scientists working on FPND, or using such data, about all activities in this field which are planned, ongoing, or have recently been completed. The main part of this report consists of unaltered original contributions which the authors have sent to IAEA/NDS. Therefore, the IAEA cannot be held responsible for the information contained nor for any consequences resulting from the use of this information. The present issue contains also a section with some recent references relative to fission product nuclear data, which were not covered by the contributions submitted. The types of activities being included in this report are measurements, compilations and evaluations of: Fission product yields (neutron induced and spontaneous fission); Neutron reaction cross sections of fission products; Data related to the radioactive decay of fission products; Delayed neutron data of fission products; and lumped fission product data (decay heat, absorption etc.). The seventh issue of this series has been published in July 1981 as INDC(NDS)-116. The present issue includes contributions which were received by NDS between 1 August 1981 and 15 June 1982

Induced-Fission Imaging of Nuclear Material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hausladen, Paul; Blackston, Matthew A.; Mullens, James Allen; McConchie, Seth M.; Mihalczo, John T.; Bingham, Philip R.; Ericson, Milton Nance; Fabris, Lorenzo

2010-01-01

This paper presents initial results from development of the induced-fission imaging technique, which can be used for the purpose of measuring or verifying the distribution of fissionable material in an unopened container. The technique is based on stimulating fissions in nuclear material with 14 MeV neutrons from an associated-particle deuterium-tritium (D-T) generator and counting the subsequent induced fast fission neutrons with an array of fast organic scintillation detectors. For each source neutron incident on the container, the neutron creation time and initial trajectory are known from detection of the associated alpha particle of the d + t → α + n reaction. Many induced fissions will lie along (or near) the interrogating neutron path, allowing an image of the spatial distribution of prompt induced fissions, and thereby fissionable material, to be constructed. A variety of induced-fission imaging measurements have been performed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory with a portable, low-dose D-T generator, including single-view radiographic measurements and three-dimensional tomographic measurements. Results from these measurements will be presented along with the neutron transmission images that have been performed simultaneously. This new capability may have applications to a number of areas in which there may be a need to confirm the presence or configuration of nuclear materials, such as nuclear material control and accountability, quality assurance, treaty confirmation, or homeland security applications.

Overview of standards subcommittee 8, fissionable materials outside reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McLaughlin, T.P.

1996-01-01

The American Nuclear Society's Standards Subcommittee 8, titled open-quotes Fissionable Materials Outside Reactors,close quotes has worked for the past 35 yr to prepare and promote standards on nuclear criticality safety for the handling, processing, storing, and transportation of fissionable materials outside reactors. The reader is referred to the Transactions of the American Nuclear Society, Vols. 39 (1981) and 64 (1991), for previous papers associated with ANS-8 poster sessions. In addition to discussions on the then-current standards, the reader will find articles on working group efforts that never materialized into standards, such as proposed 8.13, open-quotes Use of the Solid-Angle Method in Nuclear Criticality Safety,close quotes and on applications and critiques of current standards. The paper by McLendon in Vol. 39 is particularly interesting as an overview of the early history of ANS-8 and its standards

Fission fragment mass and angular distributions

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

2015-07-22

Jul 22, 2015 ... Synthesis of heavy and superheavy elements is severely hindered by fission and fission-like processes. The probability of these fission-like, non-equilibrium processes strongly depends on the entrance channel parameters. This article attempts to summarize the recent experimental findings and classify the ...

How fission was discovered

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fluegge, S.

1989-01-01

After the great survey of neutron induced radioactivity by Fermi and co-workers, the laboratories in Paris and Berlin-Dahlen tried to disentangle the complex results found in uranium. At that time neutron sources were small, activities low, and equipment very simple. Chemistry beyond uranium still was unknown. Hahn and Meitner believed to have observed three transuranic isomeric chains, a doubtful result even then. Early in 1938, Curie and Savic in Paris found an activity interpreted to be actinium, and Hahn and Meitner another to be radium. Both interpretations seemed impossible from energy considerations. Hahn and Strassmann, therefore, continued this work and succeeded to separate the new activity from radium. There remained no doubt that a barium isotope had been produced, the uranium nucleus splitting in the yet-unknown process we now call fission

A fission ionization detector for neutron flux measurements at a spallation source

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wender, S.A. (Los Alamos National Lab., Los Alamos, NM (United States)); Balestrini, S. (Los Alamos National Lab., Los Alamos, NM (United States)); Brown, A. (Los Alamos National Lab., Los Alamos, NM (United States)); Haight, R.C. (Los Alamos National Lab., Los Alamos, NM (United States)); Laymon, C.M. (Los Alamos National Lab., Los Alamos, NM (United States)); Lee, T.M. (Los Alamos National Lab., Los Alamos, NM (United States)); Lisowski, P.W. (Los Alamos National Lab., Los Alamos, NM (United States)); McCorkle, W. (Los Alamos National Lab., Los Alamos, NM (United States)); Nelson, R.O. (Los Alamos National Lab., Los Alamos, NM (United States)); Parker, W. (Los Alamos National Lab., Los Alamos, NM (United States)); Hill, N.W. (Oak Ridge National Lab., Oak Ridge, TN (United States))

1993-11-15

The construction of a neutron flux monitor that can measure absolute neutron intensities in the neutron energy range from below 1 MeV to over 500 MeV is described. The detector consists of an ionization chamber with several thin deposits of fissionable material. The ionization chamber is thin enough that it does not significantly affect the neutron beam and may be left in the neutron flight path during experimental measurements to continuously monitor the beam flux. The use of this monitor at the continuous-energy spallation neutron source at the WNR target area at LAMPF is described. (orig.)

A fission ionization detector for neutron flux measurements at a spallation source

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wender, S.A.; Balestrini, S.; Brown, A.; Haight, R.C.; Laymon, C.M.; Lee, T.M.; Lisowski, P.W.; McCorkle, W.; Nelson, R.O.; Parker, W.; Hill, N.W.

1993-01-01

The construction of a neutron flux monitor that can measure absolute neutron intensities in the neutron energy range from below 1 MeV to over 500 MeV is described. The detector consists of an ionization chamber with several thin deposits of fissionable material. The ionization chamber is thin enough that it does not significantly affect the neutron beam and may be left in the neutron flight path during experimental measurements to continuously monitor the beam flux. The use of this monitor at the continuous-energy spallation neutron source at the WNR target area at LAMPF is described. (orig.)

The resonance neutron fission on heavy nuclei

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kopach, Yu.N.; Popov, A.B.; Furman, V.I.; Alfimenkov, V.P.; Lason', L.; Pikel'ner, L.B.; ); Gonin, N.N.; Kozlovskij, L.K.; Tambovtsev, D.I.; Gagarskij, A.M.; Petrov, G.A.; Sokolov, V.E.

2001-01-01

A new approach to the description of the fission, similar to the well-known reaction theory and based on the helicity representation for the exit fission channels, is briefly summarized. This approach allows one to connect the multimodal fission representation with A. Bohr's concept of the fission transition states and to obtain formulae for the partial and differential fission cross sections. The formulae are used for analysis of the angular anisotropy of fragments in the neutron resonance induced fission of aligned 235 U nuclei and of the P-even angular forward-backward and right-left correlations of fragments oe the P-odd correlations caused by the interference of s- and p-wave neutron resonances [ru

Fission track ages on apatite of Bergell rocks from central Alps and Bergell boulders in Oligocene sediments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wagner, G.A.; Miller, D.S.

1979-01-01

Previous radiometric dating studies indicated that the Bergell region, in contrast to other regions of the Central Alps, experienced an early, rapid uplift, but with decreasing rate. Furthermore, there is also a geological record of the early uplift history of the Bergell granite by the existence of boulders which were derived from this granite and which occur in the Late Oligocene sediments of the Po plain. In this work the uplift history of the Bergell is studied in more detail by fission track dating of additional apatites from the Bergell region. Secondly, by determining apatite fission track ages the granitic boulders of the Po plain can be re-assigned to their original vertical position within the Bergell intrusive before erosion removed them in Late Oligocene time. A rather conservative estimate replaces them 6 km above the present morphology of the Bergell massif. Thus, the thickness of the Bergell granite must have been at least 8 km. Generally, fission track studies on boulders may become an important tool to study the vertical extent of mountain chains during the geological past. (Auth.)

Charged particle-induced nuclear fission reactions

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

The nuclear fission phenomenon continues to be an enigma, even after nearly 75 years of its discovery. Considerable progress has been made towards understanding the fission process. Both light projectiles and heavy ions have been employed to investigate nuclear fission. An extensive database of the properties of ...

What do we learn on the dynamics of fission from α-accompanied fission data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guet, C.; Asghar, M.; Nifenecker, H.; Perrin, P.

1978-01-01

Measurements of the angular distribution of α-particles emitted by thermal fission of 236 U are presented. Also the dependence of the angular distribution on the kinetic energy of the fission products is studied. (WL) [de

Study of transfer induced fission and fusion-fission reactions for 28 Si + 232 Th system at 340 MeV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Prete, G.; Rizzi, V.; Fioretto, E.; Cinausero, M.; Shetty, D.V.; Pesente, S.; Brondi, A.; La Rana, G.; Moro, R.; Vardaci, E.; Boiano, A.; Ordine, A.; Gelli, N.; Lucarelli, F.; Bortignon, P.F.; Saxena, A.; Nayak, B.K.; Biswas, D.C.; Choudhury, R.K.; Kapoor, R.S.

2001-01-01

Full text: Fission induced by nucleons transfer has been investigated in the reaction 28 Si + 232 Th at 340 MeV. Looking at the projectile-like-fragments (PLF), the fission yield increases as the transfer increases, but a decreases is observed for transfers with DZ . Light charged particles in coincidence with PLF and Fission have been detected with large solid angle and show an increasing multiplicity as the Z of PLF is reduced and a constant value when fission is requested. The present results indicate inhibition of transfer induced fission reaction for higher Z transfer and increasing probability for decay through charged particle evaporation. Fission is the dominant decay process in heavy reactions involving fissile systems but the dynamical evolution of the composite system is largely governed by the formation and decay mechanisms. Important insight into the formation and the survival probability of the heavy composite nuclei formed in heavy ion collisions can be gained by simultaneously investigate the fission process and light particle emission over a continuous range of excitation energy, angular momentum and fissility. This can be achieved by studying fission induced by transfer of nucleons between the interacting projectile and the target nucleus. In the present work, we have carried out measurements on multinucleon transfer induced fission reactions in 28 Si + 232 Th system at Elab = 340 MeV. The experiment has been performed at the Laboratori Nazionale di Legnaro (LNL) using the 8pLP detector in its final configuration with 257 DE-E telescopes. The backward detectors were used to measure both light charged particles and fission fragments. The projectile-like fragments were detected using separate DE-E telescopes around the grazing angle. Two neutron detectors were placed at a distance of 115.5 cm from the target to measure neutrons emitted in coincidence with fission fragments. Here we present the results of the data analysis of transfer induced fission

Metastable decay of photoionized niobium clusters: Evaporation vs fission fragmentation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cole, S.K.; Liu, K.; Riley, S.J.

1986-01-01

The metastable decay of photoionized niobium clusters (Nb/sub n/ + ) has been observed in a newly constructed cluster beam machine. The decay manifests itself in the time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrum as an asymmetric broadening of daughter ion peaks. Pulsed ion extraction has been used to measure the decay rate constants and to establish the mechanism of the fragmentation, evaporation and/or fission of the photoionized clusters. It is found that within the experimental time window evaporation dominates for the smaller clusters (n 6 sec -1 . The average kinetic energy release is also determined and is found to be on the order of 5 MeV. 8 refs., 3 figs., 1 tab

Measurements of fission cross-sections. Chapter 4

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

James, G.D.

1981-01-01

The steps involved in the measurement of fission cross sections are summarized and the range of techniques available are considered. Methods of fission detection are described with particular emphasis on the neutron energy dependent properties of the fission process and the details of fragment energy loss which can lead to energy-dependent changes in detector efficiency. Selected examples of fission cross-section measurements are presented and methods of data reduction, storage, analysis and evaluation, are examined. Finally requested accuracies for fission cross section data are compared to estimated available accuracies. (U.K.)

Muon induced fission and fission track dating of minerals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marques, A.

1988-01-01

The effects of muon induced fission on geological dating of samples by the fission track method are evaluated for the case of muscovite minerals. It is found a small but significant effect, greater for the longer ages. Since calculations are developped under the hypothesis of constant atmosphere and primary cosmic ray flux it is suggested that any discrepancy found in ages of very old material that cannot be accounted for by well known environmental influences, be taken as an indication of variation on either the atmospheric stopping power or the intensity of cosmic radiation along the ages. (author) [pt

Fission barriers of light nuclei

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grotowski, K.; Planeta, R.; Blann, M.; Komoto, T.

1989-01-01

Experimental fission excitation functions for compound nuclei /sup 52/Fe, /sup 49/Cr, /sup 46/V, and /sup 44/Ti formed in heavy-ion reactions are analyzed in the Hauser-Feshbach/Bohr-Wheeler formalism using fission barriers based on the rotating liquid drop model of Cohen et al. and on the rotating finite range model of Sierk. We conclude that the rotating finite range approach gives better reproduction of experimental fission yields, consistent with results found for heavier systems

True ternary fission in 310126X

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Banupriya, B.; Vijayaraghavan, K.R.; Balasubramaniam, M.

2015-01-01

All possible combinations are minimized by the two dimensional minimization process and minimized with respect to neutron numbers and proton numbers of the fragments. Potential energy is low and Q - value is high at true ternary fission region. It shows that true ternary mode is the dominant mode in the ternary fission of superheavy nuclei. Also, the results show that the fragments with neutron magic numbers are the dominant one in the ternary fission of superheavy nuclei whereas the fragments with proton magic numbers are the dominant one in the ternary fission of heavy nuclei

Status of fission product yield data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cuninghame, J.G.

1978-01-01

The topics covered in this paper are: (a) cumulative yields in thermal neutron fission and in fast fission up to 14 MeV incident neutron energy, (b) dependence of the yields on incident neutron energy and spectrum, (c) independent yields, (d) charge dispersion and distribution, and (e) yields of light particles from ternary fission. The paper reviews information on these subjects for fission of actinides from 232 Th upwards with special emphasis on data published since the 1973 Bologna FPND Panel, compares data sets, and discusses the gaps still to be found in them. (author)

Uncertainties in fission-product decay-heat calculations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oyamatsu, K.; Ohta, H.; Miyazono, T.; Tasaka, K. [Nagoya Univ. (Japan)

1997-03-01

The present precision of the aggregate decay heat calculations is studied quantitatively for 50 fissioning systems. In this evaluation, nuclear data and their uncertainty data are taken from ENDF/B-VI nuclear data library and those which are not available in this library are supplemented by a theoretical consideration. An approximate method is proposed to simplify the evaluation of the uncertainties in the aggregate decay heat calculations so that we can point out easily nuclei which cause large uncertainties in the calculated decay heat values. In this paper, we attempt to clarify the justification of the approximation which was not very clear at the early stage of the study. We find that the aggregate decay heat uncertainties for minor actinides such as Am and Cm isotopes are 3-5 times as large as those for {sup 235}U and {sup 239}Pu. The recommended values by Atomic Energy Society of Japan (AESJ) were given for 3 major fissioning systems, {sup 235}U(t), {sup 239}Pu(t) and {sup 238}U(f). The present results are consistent with the AESJ values for these systems although the two evaluations used different nuclear data libraries and approximations. Therefore, the present results can also be considered to supplement the uncertainty values for the remaining 17 fissioning systems in JNDC2, which were not treated in the AESJ evaluation. Furthermore, we attempt to list nuclear data which cause large uncertainties in decay heat calculations for the future revision of decay and yield data libraries. (author)

Energy and angular distributions of neutrons from 252Cf spontaneous fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vasil'ev, Yu.A.; Sidorov, L.V.; Vasil'eva, N.K.

1982-01-01

Some results from a first series of measurements of energy and angular distributions of neutrons from 252 Cf spontaneous fission using a spectrometer with high neutron detection efficiency, i.e. a 4π neutron time-of-flight spectrometer, were already presented. Subsequently, a second series of measurements was performed using a more sophisticated technique. For this second series, we used a more intense 252 Cf layer (25,000 spontaneous fissions per second). The angular resolution was improved by a factor of 2-3 by combining the hexahedral counter modules, placed at the same angle with respect to the direction of motion of the fragments, in new panoramic counters. The neutron counters were calibrated against the average 252 Cf neutron spectrum at several positions of the axis of the fragment detector with respect to the neutron counters. In the spectrum measurements and calibration work, the scattered neutron background was not determined theoretically, as in the first series of measurements, but experimentally using four extra scintillation counters with scatter cones; the counters were set up at 60 deg., 80 deg., 100 deg., and 120 deg. to the direction of separation of the fragments

Denudation history of the Snowy Mountains: constraints from apatite fission track thermochronology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kohn, B.P.; Gleadow, A.J.W.; Cox, S.J.D.

1999-01-01

Apatite fission track thermo chronology from Early Palaeozoic granitoids centred around the Kosciuszko massif of the Snowy Mountains, records a denudation history that was episodic and highly variable. The form of the apatite fission track age profile assembled from vertical sections and hydro-electric tunnels traversing the mountains, together with numerical forward modelling, provide strong evidence for two episodes of accelerated denudation, commencing in Late Permian - Early Triassic (ca 270 250 Ma) and mid-Cretaceous (ca 110-100 Ma) times, and a possible third episode in the Cenozoic. Denudation commencing in the Late Permian - Early Triassic wins widespread in the eastern and Central Snowy Mountains area, continued through much of the Triassic, and amounted to at least ∼2.0-2,4 km. This episode was probably the geomorphic response to the Hunter-Bowen Orogeny. Post-Triassic denudation to the present in these areas amounted to ∼2.0-2.2 km. Unambiguous evidence for mid-Cretaceous cooling and possible later cooling is confined to a north-south-trending sinuous belt, up to ∼15km wide by at least 35km long, of major reactivated Palaeozoic faults on the western side of the mountains. This zone is the most deeply exposed area of the Kosciuszko block. Denudation accompanying these later events totalled up to ∼1.8-2.0 km and ∼2.0 2.25 km respectively. Mid-Cretaceous denudation marks the onset of renewed tectonic activity in the south-eastern highlands following a period of relative quiescence since the Late Triassic, and establishes a temporal link with the onset of extension related to the opening of the Tasman Sea. Much of the present day relief of the mountains resulted from surface uplift which disrupted the post-mid-Cretaceous apatite fission track profile by variable offsets on faults. Copyright (1999) Geological Society of Australia

Neutron gamma competition in fast fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Frehaut, J.

1989-01-01

In the present paper we analyse the data we have obtained on the distribution of the gamma-ray energy per fission, as well as on the average energy E-barγ released per fission for the neutron induced fission of several isotopes, in the energy range up to 15 MeV. 6 refs, 9 figs

Fission energy of uranium isotopes and transuranium elements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nemirovskij, P.Eh.; Manevich, L.G.

1981-01-01

A comparison is made between the prompt fission energy, Esub(pr), calculated from the mass and binding energy spectrum and the Esub(pr) value obtained from the experimental data on the kinetic energy of fragments, the energy of prompt neutrons and prompt γ-quanta. Basing on the data on β-decay chains of fission fragments, the energies of neutrinos, γ-quanta and β-electrons are obtained, which permits to calculate the actual energy released during fission. The calculations are performed for thermal neutron-induced fission, fast-neutron induced fission and for fission after bombardment with 14 MeV neutrons. The available experimental data on the fission fragment kinetic energy, prompt γ-quanta energy and fission neutron energy are presented. The comparison of the Esub(pr) values obtained experimentally for the thermal-neutron-induced fission with the calculated Esub(pr) value shows that for 233 U, 239 Pu, 241 Pu the agreement is rather favourable. For 235 U the agreement is within the error limits. As to the Esub(pr) values for the fast-neutron-induced fission, the agreement between the calculated and experimental data for all nuclides is quite good

Fission product induced swelling of U–Mo alloy fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Yeon Soo; Hofman, G.L.

2011-01-01

Highlights: ► We measured fuel swelling of U–Mo alloy by fission products at temperatures below 250 °C. ► We quantified the swelling portion of U–Mo by fission gas bubbles. ► We developed an empirical model as a function of fission density. - Abstract: Fuel swelling of U–Mo alloy was modeled using the measured data from samples irradiated up to a fission density of ∼7 × 10 27 fissions/m 3 at temperatures below ∼250 °C. The overall fuel swelling was measured from U–Mo foils with as-fabricated thickness of 250 μm. Volume fractions occupied by fission gas bubbles were measured and fuel swelling caused by the fission gas bubbles was quantified. The portion of fuel swelling by solid fission products including solid and liquid fission products as well as fission gas atoms not enclosed in the fission gas bubbles is estimated by subtracting the portion of fuel swelling by gas bubbles from the overall fuel swelling. Empirical correlations for overall fuel swelling, swelling by gas bubbles, and swelling by solid fission products were obtained in terms of fission density.

Fusion-fission dynamics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blocki, J.; Planeta, R.; Brzychczyk, J.; Grotowski, K.

1992-01-01

Classical dynamical calculations of the heavy ion induced fission processes have been performed for the reactions 40 Ar+ 141 Pr, 20 Ne+ 165 Ho and 12 C+ 175 Lu leading to the iridium like nucleus. As a result prescission lifetimes were obtained and compared with the experimental values. The comparison between the calculated and experimental lifetimes indicates that the one-body dissipation picture is much more relevant in describing the fusion-fission dynamics than the two-body one. (orig.)

The spectroscopy of fission fragments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Phillips, W.R.

1998-01-01

High-resolution measurements on γ rays from fission fragments have provided a rich source of information, unobtainable at the moment in any other way, on the spectroscopy of neutron-rich nuclei. In recent years important data have been obtained on the yrast- and near yrast-structure of neutron-rich fission fragments. We discuss the scope of measurements which can be made on prompt gamma rays from secondary fission fragments, the techniques used in the experiments and some results recently obtained. (author)

Nuclear Forensics: Measurements of Uranium Oxides Using Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (TOF-SIMS)

Science.gov (United States)

2010-03-01

Isotope Ratio Analysis of Actinides , Fission Products, and Geolocators by High- efficiency Multi-collector Thermal Ionization Mass Spectrometry...Information, 1999. Hou, Xiaolin, and Per Roos. “ Critical Comparison of radiometric and Mass Spectrometric Methods for the Determination of...NUCLEAR FORENSICS: MEASUREMENTS OF URANIUM OXIDES USING TIME-OF-FLIGHT SECONDARY ION MASS

The role of situation assessment and flight experience in pilots' decisions to continue visual flight rules flight into adverse weather.

Science.gov (United States)

Wiegmann, Douglas A; Goh, Juliana; O'Hare, David

2002-01-01

Visual flight rules (VFR) flight into instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) is a major safety hazard in general aviation. In this study we examined pilots' decisions to continue or divert from a VFR flight into IMC during a dynamic simulation of a cross-country flight. Pilots encountered IMC either early or later into the flight, and the amount of time and distance pilots flew into the adverse weather prior to diverting was recorded. Results revealed that pilots who encountered the deteriorating weather earlier in the flight flew longer into the weather prior to diverting and had more optimistic estimates of weather conditions than did pilots who encountered the deteriorating weather later in the flight. Both the time and distance traveled into the weather prior to diverting were negatively correlated with pilots' previous flight experience. These findings suggest that VFR flight into IMC may be attributable, at least in part, to poor situation assessment and experience rather than to motivational judgment that induces risk-taking behavior as more time and effort are invested in a flight. Actual or potential applications of this research include the design of interventions that focus on improving weather evaluation skills in addition to addressing risk-taking attitudes.

Fission fragment angular momentum

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Frenne, D. De

1991-01-01

Most of the energy released in fission is converted into translational kinetic energy of the fragments. The remaining excitation energy will be distributed among neutrons and gammas. An important parameter characterizing the scission configuration is the primary angular momentum of the nascent fragments. Neutron emission is not expected to decrease the spin of the fragments by more than one unit of angular momentum and is as such of less importance in the determination of the initial fragment spins. Gamma emission is a suitable tool in studying initial fragment spins because the emission time, number, energy, and multipolarity of the gammas strongly depend on the value of the primary angular momentum. The main conclusions of experiments on gamma emission were that the initial angular momentum of the fragments is large compared to the ground state spin and oriented perpendicular to the fission axis. Most of the recent information concerning initial fragment spin distributions comes from the measurement of isomeric ratios for isomeric pairs produced in fission. Although in nearly every mass chain isomers are known, only a small number are suitable for initial fission fragment spin studies. Yield and half-life considerations strongly limit the number of candidates. This has the advantage that the behavior of a specific isomeric pair can be investigated for a number of fissioning systems at different excitation energies of the fragments and fissioning nuclei. Because most of the recent information on primary angular momenta comes from measurements of isomeric ratios, the global deexcitation process of the fragments and the calculation of the initial fragment spin distribution from measured isomeric ratios are discussed here. The most important results on primary angular momentum determinations are reviewed and some theoretical approaches are given. 45 refs., 7 figs., 2 tabs

Fission yield data evaluation system FYDES

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu Tingjin

1998-01-01

Taking account of some features of fission yield data, to do the fission yield data evaluation conveniently, a fission yield data evaluation system FYDES has been developed for last two years. Outline of the system, data retrieval and data table standardization, data correction codes, data averaging code, simultaneous evaluation code and data fit programs were introduced

Cold valleys in fusion and fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Misicu, S.

2003-01-01

The cold fission configuration after the preformation of the fragments resembles a short-lived dinuclear or quasi-molecular system. The most conceivable scission configuration is given by two fission fragments in touching with the symmetry axes aligned (pole-pole orientation). This conclusion was based on the simple argument that this configuration offers the optimal tunneling time, i.e. the difference between the Coulomb barrier and the decay energy Q is minimal. Other orientations are apparently precluded in cold spontaneous fission and should be regarded as quasi-fission doorways in the synthesis of superheavy elements by cold fusion. (orig.)

(d,p)-transfer induced fission of heavy radioactive beams

CERN Document Server

Veselsky, Martin

2012-01-01

(d,p)-transfer induced fission is proposed as a tool to study low energy fission of exotic heavy nuclei. Primary goal is to directly determine the fission barrier height of proton-rich fissile nuclei, preferably using the radio-active beams of isotopes of odd elements, and thus confirm or exclude the low values of fission barrier heights, typically extracted using statistical calculations in the compound nucleus reactions at higher excitation energies. Calculated fission cross sections in transfer reactions of the radioactive beams show sufficient sensitivity to fission barrier height. In the probable case that fission rates will be high enough, mass asymmetry of fission fragments can be determined. Results will be relevant for nuclear astrophysics and for production of super-heavy nuclei. Transfer induced fission offers a possibility for systematic study the low energy fission of heavy exotic nuclei at the ISOLDE.

Development of the STEFF detector for the neutron Time Of Flight facility (n_TOF), CERN

CERN Document Server

AUTHOR|(CDS)2092031

Signicant work has been performed on the development of STEFF (SpecTrometer for Exotic Fission Fragments), a 2E2V (2-Energy 2-Velocity) spectrometer built by the University of Manchester Fission Group. The majority of this work was in the development of the time-of-flight systems, in particular the stop detector; with the main goals of improving the timing resolution and the detection eciency of the ssion fragments. Further development of the STEFF spectrometer was done to enable 2E2V measurements of the $^{235}$U(n,f) reaction with coincident measurements using a white neutron spectra of energies ranging from 10 meV to 200 MeV provided by the n_TOF (neutron Time Of Flight) facility, CERN. The STEFF spectrometer was successfully operated twice on the Experimental Area-2 high flux pulsed neutron beam line resulting in 2E2V measurements for ssion events with neutron energies ranging from 20 meV to 10 MeV. The first experiment received 1.36 X 10$^{18}$ POT (Protons On Target) with stable conditions and the seco...

Fusion-fission of heavy systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rivet, M.F.; Alami, R.; Borderie, B.; Fuchs, H.; Gardes, D.; Gauvin, H.

1988-01-01

The influence of the entrance channel on fission processes was studied by forming the same composite system by two different target-projectile combinations ( 40 Ar + 209 Bi and 56 Fe + 187 Re, respectively). Compound nucleus fission and quasi fission were observed and the analysis was performed in the framework of the extra-extra-push model, which provides a qualitative interpretation of the results; limits for the extra-extra-push threshold are given, but problems with quantitative predictions for the extra-push are noted. (orig.)

The spectroscopy of fission fragments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Phillips, W.R. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Manchester, Manchester, M13 9PL (United Kingdom); Collaboration: La Direction des Sciences de la Matiere du CEA (FR); Le Fonds National de la Recherche Scientifique de Belgique (BE)

1998-12-31

High-resolution measurements on {gamma} rays from fission fragments have provided a rich source of information, unobtainable at the moment in any other way, on the spectroscopy of neutron-rich nuclei. In recent years important data have been obtained on the yrast- and near yrast-structure of neutron-rich fission fragments. We discuss the scope of measurements which can be made on prompt gamma rays from secondary fission fragments, the techniques used in the experiments and some results recently obtained. (author) 24 refs., 8 figs., 1 tab.

Determination of procedures for transmutation of fission product wastes by fusion neutrons. Volume 2. Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lang, G.P.

1980-12-01

This study is concerned with the engineering aspects of the transmutation of fission products utilizing neutrons generated in fusion reactors. It is assumed that fusion reactors, although not yet developed, will be available around the turn of the century. Therefore, early studies of this type are appropriate as a guide to the large amount of further investigations that will be needed to fully evaluate this concept. Not all of the radioactive products from light water reactors can be economically transmuted, but it appears that the most hazardous can. This requires that fission-product wastes must first be separated into a number of fractions, and in some instances this must be accomplished with extremely high separation factors. A review of current commercial separation processes and of promising methods that are now in the laboratory stage indicate that the necessary processes can most likely be developed but will require an active and sustained development program. Current fusion reactor concepts were examined as to their suitability for transmuting the separated fission wastes. It was concluded that the long-lived fission products were most amenable to transmutation. The medium-lived fission products, Cs-137 and Sr-90, require higher neutron fluxes than are available in the most developed fusion reactor concepts. Concepts which are less developed may eventually be adaptable as transmuters of these fission products

Progress in fission product nuclear data. No. 14

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lammer, M.

1994-06-01

This is the 14th issue of a report series on Fission Product Nuclear Data published by the Nuclear Data Section of the IAEA. The types of activities included are measurements, compilations and evaluations of fission product yields, neutron reaction cross sections of fission products, data related to the radioactive decay of fission products, delayed neutron data from neutron induced and spontaneous fission, lumped fission product data. The first part of the report consists of unaltered original contributions which the authors have sent to IAEA/NDS. The second part contains some recent references relative to fission product nuclear data, which were not covered by the contributions submitted, and selected papers from conferences. The third part contains requirements for further measurements

Progress in fission product nuclear data. No. 13

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lammer, M.

1990-11-01

This is the 13th issue of a report series published by the Nuclear Data Section of the IAEA. The types of activities included are measurements, compilations and evaluations of: Fission product yields (neutron induced and spontaneous fission), neutron reaction cross-sections of fission products, data related to the radioactive decay of fission products, delayed neutron data of fission products and bumped fission product data (decay heat, absorption, etc.). The first part of the report consists of unaltered original data which the authors have sent to IAEA/NDS. The second part contains some recent references relative to fission product nuclear data, which were not covered by the contributions submitted, and selected papers from conferences. Part 3 contains requirements for further measurements

The role of the dinuclear system in the processes of nuclear fusion, quasi-fission, fission and cluster formation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Volkov, V.V.

1999-01-01

The nuclear fusion, quasi-fission, fission and cluster formation in an excited nucleus are considered as the processes of the formation and evolution of the dinuclear system. This approach allows one to reveal new aspects of nuclear fusion, to show that quasi-fission plays an important role in nuclear reactions used to synthesise superheavy elements. A qualitative picture is given of the fission process of an excited nucleus and an important role of cluster formation in this process is shown

Fission product detection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liatard, E.; Akrouf, S.; Bruandet, J.F

1987-01-01

The response of photovoltaic cells to heavy ions and fission products have been tested on beam. Their main advantages are their extremely low price, their low sensitivity to energetic light ions with respect to fission products, and the possibility to cut and fit them together to any shape without dead zone. The time output signals of a charge sensitive preamplifier connected to these cells allows fast coincidences. A resolution of 12ns (F.W.H.M.) have been measured between two cells [fr

Utilization of fission reactors for fusion engineering testing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Deis, G.A.; Miller, L.G.

1985-01-01

Fission reactors can be used to conduct some of the fusion nuclear engineering tests identified in the FINESSE study. To further define the advantages and disadvantages of fission testing, the technical and programmatic constraints on this type of testing are discussed here. This paper presents and discusses eight key issues affecting fission utilization. Quantitative comparisons with projected fusion operation are made to determine the technical assets and limitations of fission testing. Capabilities of existing fission reactors are summarized and compared with technical needs. Conclusions are then presented on the areas where fission testing can be most useful

Options for development of space fission propulsion systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Houts, Mike; Van Dyke, Melissa; Godfroy, Tom; Pedersen, Kevin; Martin, James; Dickens, Ricky; Salvail, Pat; Hrbud, Ivana

2001-01-01

Fission technology can enable rapid, affordable access to any point in the solar system. Potential fission-based transportation options include high specific power continuous impulse propulsion systems and bimodal nuclear thermal rockets. Despite their tremendous potential for enhancing or enabling deep space and planetary missions, to date space fission systems have only been used in Earth orbit. The first step towards utilizing advanced fission propulsion systems is development of a safe, near-term, affordable fission system that can enhance or enable near-term missions of interest. An evolutionary approach for developing space fission propulsion systems is proposed

Technical Bases to Consider for Performance and Demonstration Testing of Space Fission Reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hixson, Laurie L.; Houts, Michael G.; Clement, Steven D.

2004-01-01

Performance and demonstration testing are critical to the success of a space fission reactor program. However, the type and extent to which testing of space reactors should be performed has been a point of discussion within the industry for many years. With regard to full power ground nuclear tests, questions such as 'Do the benefits outweigh the risks? Are there equivalent alternatives? Can a test facility be constructed (or modified) in a reasonable amount of time? Will the test article accurately represent the flight system? Are the costs too restrictive?' have been debated for decades. There are obvious benefits of full power ground nuclear testing such as obtaining systems integrated reliability data on a full-scale, complete end-to-end system. But these benefits come at some programmatic risk. In addition, this type of testing does not address safety related issues. This paper will discuss and assess these and other technical considerations essential in deciding which type of performance and demonstration testing to conduct on space fission reactor systems. (authors)

Attachment of gaseous fission products to aerosols

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Skyrme, G.

1985-01-01

Accidents may occur in which the integrity of fuel cladding is breached and volatile fission products are released to the containment atmosphere. In order to assess the magnitude of the subsequent radiological hazard it is necessary to know the transport behaviour of such fission products. It is frequently assumed that the fission products remain in the gaseous phase. There is a possibility, however, that they may attach themselves to particles and hence substantially modify their transport properties. This paper provides a theoretical assessment of the conditions under which gaseous fission products may be attached to aerosol particles. Specific topics discussed are: the mass transfer of a gaseous fission product to an isolated aerosol particle in an infinite medium; the rate at which the concentration of fission products in the gas phase diminishes within a container as a result of deposition on a population of particles; and the distribution of deposited fission product between different particle sizes in a log-normal distribution. It is shown that, for a given mass, small particles are more efficient for fission product attachment, and that only small concentrations of such particles may be necessary to achieve rapid attachment. Conditions under which gaseous fission products are not attached to particles are also considered, viz, the competing processes of deposition onto the containment walls and onto aerosol particles, and the possibility of the removal of aerosols from the containment by various deposition processes, or agglomeration, before attachment takes place. (author)

Spontaneous fission of 259Md

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hulet, E.K.; Wild, J.F.; Lougheed, R.W.; Baisden, P.A.; Landrum, J.H.; Dougan, R.J.; Mustafa, M.; Ghiorso, A.; Nitschke, J.M.

1979-01-01

The mass and kinetic energy distributions of fission fragments from the spontaneous fission of th newly discovered nuclide 259 Md were obtained. 259 Md was identified as the E. C. daughter of 259 No, and was found to decay entirely (> 95%) by spontaneous fission with a 95-min half-life. From the kinetic energies measured for 397 pairs of coincident fragments, a mass distribution was derived that is symmetric with sigma = 13 amu. 259 Md, together with 258 Fm and 259 Fm, form a select group of three nuclides whose mass division in spontaneous fission is highly symmetric. Unlike the total-kinetic-energy (TKE) distributions of 258 Fm and 259 Fm, which peak at approx. = to 240 MeV, this distribution for 259 Md is broad and is 50 MeV lower in energy. Analysis of the mass and energy distributions shows that events near mass symmetry also exhibit a broad TKE distribution, with one-third of the symmetric events having TKEs less than 200 MeV. The associated of low TKEs with symmetric mass division in the fission of very heavy actinides is anomalous and inconsistent with theories based upon the emergence of fragment shells near the scission point. Either three-body fragmentation or peculiar fragment shapes are assumed as the cause for the large consumption of Coulomb energy observed for a significant fraction of symmetric fissions in 259 Md. 6 figures

Modelling isothermal fission gas release

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Uffelen, P. van

2002-01-01

The present paper presents a new fission gas release model consisting of two coupled modules. The first module treats the behaviour of the fission gas atoms in spherical grains with a distribution of grain sizes. This module considers single atom diffusion, trapping and fission induced re-solution of gas atoms associated with intragranular bubbles, and re-solution from the grain boundary into a few layers adjacent to the grain face. The second module considers the transport of the fission gas atoms along the grain boundaries. Four mechanisms are incorporated: diffusion controlled precipitation of gas atoms into bubbles, grain boundary bubble sweeping, re-solution of gas atoms into the adjacent grains and gas flow through open porosity when grain boundary bubbles are interconnected. The interconnection of the intergranular bubbles is affected both by the fraction of the grain face occupied by the cavities and by the balance between the bubble internal pressure and the hydrostatic pressure surrounding the bubbles. The model is under validation. In a first step, some numerical routines have been tested by means of analytic solutions. In a second step, the fission gas release model has been coupled with the FTEMP2 code of the Halden Reactor Project for the temperature distribution in the pellets. A parametric study of some steady-state irradiations and one power ramp have been simulated successfully. In particular, the Halden threshold for fission gas release and two simplified FUMEX cases have been computed and are summarised. (author)

Spontaneous fission of superheavy nuclei

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

The fission-like configurations are used for the total deformation energy calculations. A ... oscillator potential for the two fission fragment regions reads as ... Beyond this limit, the contribution of more remote levels is negligible. Once the density ...

Summary of the Manufacture, Testing and Model Validation of a Full-Scale Radiator for Fission Surface Power Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Ellis, David L.; Calder, James; Siamidis, John

2011-01-01

A full-scale radiator for a lunar fission surface power application was manufactured by Material innovations, Inc., for the NASA Glenn Research Center. The radiator was designed to reject 6 kWt with an inlet water temperature of 400 K and a water mass flow rate of 0.5 kg/s. While not flight hardware, the radiator incorporated many potential design features and manufacturing techniques for future flight hardware. The radiator was tested at NASA Glenn Research Center for heat rejection performance. The results showed that the radiator design was capable of rejecting over 6 kWt when operating at the design conditions. The actual performance of the radiator as a function of operational manifolds, inlet water temperature and facility sink temperature was compared to the predictive model developed by NASA Glenn Research Center. The results showed excellent agreement with the model with the actual average face sheet temperature being within 1% of the predicted value. The results will be used in the design and production of NASA s next generation fission power heat rejection systems. The NASA Glenn Research Center s Technology Demonstration Unit will be the first project to take advantage of the newly developed manufacturing techniques and analytical models.

Extraction chromatography of fission products

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bonnevie-Svendsen, M.; Goon, K.

1978-01-01

Various cases of using extraction chromatography during analysis of fission products are reviewed. The use of the extraction chromatography method is considered while analysing reprocessed products of nuclear fuel for quantitative radiochemical analysis and control of fission product and actinoide separation during extraction and their chemical state in production solutions. The method is used to obtain pure fractions of typical burnup monitors (neodymium, molybdenum, cerium, cesium, europium, lanthanides) during determination of nuclear fuel burnup degree. While studying the nature of nuclear reactions the method is used to separate quickly short-life isotopes, to purify β-radiator fractions before measuring their half-life periods, to enrich isotopes forming with low output during fission. Examples of using extraction chromatography are given to separate long half-life or stable fission products from spent solutions, to control environment object contamination

Chemical effects of fission recoils

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Meisels, G.G.; Freeman, J.P.; Gregory, J.P.; Richardson, W.C.; Sroka, G.J.

1978-01-01

The production of nitrogen from nitrous oxide at high density was employed to investigate the energy deposition efficiency of fission recoils produced from fission of U 235 in uranium-palladium foils clad with platinum. Nitrogen production varied linearly with fission recoil dose from 1.1 x 10 20 to 9.0 x 10 20 eV, and was independent of density between 12.5 and 127.5 g l -1 N 2 O. 16.2 +- 0.8% of the fission recoil energy was deposited external to the foil. Electron microprobe analysis showed some unevenness of new foil and polymer buildup on the surface after irradiation of ethylene-oxygen mixtures. Subsequent irradiation in the presence of nitrous oxide restored some of the original efficiency. This is ascribed to chemical oxidation of the polymer induced by reactive intermediates produced from nitrous oxide. (author)

Nuclear fission: a review of experimental advances and phenomenology

Science.gov (United States)

Andreyev, A. N.; Nishio, K.; Schmidt, K.-H.

2018-01-01

In the last two decades, through technological, experimental and theoretical advances, the situation in experimental fission studies has changed dramatically. With the use of advanced production and detection techniques both much more detailed and precise information can now be obtained for the traditional regions of fission research and, crucially, new regions of nuclei have become routinely accessible for fission studies. This work first of all reviews the recent developments in experimental fission techniques, in particular the resurgence of transfer-induced fission reactions with light and heavy ions, the emerging use of inverse-kinematic approaches, both at Coulomb and relativistic energies, and of fission studies with radioactive beams. The emphasis on the fission-fragment mass and charge distributions will be made in this work, though some of the other fission observables, such as prompt neutron and γ-ray emission will also be reviewed. A particular attention will be given to the low-energy fission in the so far scarcely explored nuclei in the very neutron-deficient lead region. They recently became the focus for several complementary experimental studies, such as β-delayed fission with radioactive beams at ISOLDE(CERN), Coulex-induced fission of relativistic secondary beams at FRS(GSI), and several prompt fusion–fission studies. The synergy of these approaches allows a unique insight in the new region of asymmetric fission around {\\hspace{0pt}}180 Hg, recently discovered at ISOLDE. Recent extensive theoretical efforts in this region will also be outlined. The unprecedented high-quality data for fission fragments, completely identified in Z and A, by means of reactions in inverse kinematics at FRS(GSI) and VAMOS(GANIL) will be also reviewed. These experiments explored an extended range of mercury-to-californium elements, spanning from the neutron-deficient to neutron-rich nuclides, and covering both asymmetric, symmetric and transitional fission regions

Fission Product Library and Resource

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Burke, J. T. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Padgett, S. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)

2016-09-29

Fission product yields can be extracted from an irradiated sample by performing gamma ray spectroscopy on the whole sample post irradiation. There are several pitfalls to avoid when trying to determine a specific isotope's fission product yield.

Theory of neutron emission in fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Madland, D.G.

1989-01-01

Following a summary of the observables in neutron emission in fission, a brief history is given of theoretical representations of the prompt fission neutron spectrum N(E) and average prompt neutron multiplicity /bar /nu///sub p/. This is followed by descriptions, together with examples, of modern approaches to the calculation of these quantities including recent advancements. Emphasis will be placed upon the predictability and accuracy of the modern approaches. In particular, the dependence of N(E) and /bar /nu///sub p/ on the fissioning nucleus and its excitation energy will be discussed, as will the effects of and competition between first-, second- and third-chance fission in circumstances of high excitation energy. Finally, properties of neutron-rich (fission-fragment) nuclei are discussed that must be better known to calculate N(E) and /bar /nu///sub p/ with higher accuracy than is currently possible. 17 refs., 11 figs

Calculated apparent yields of rare gas fission products

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Delucchi, A.A.

1975-01-01

The apparent fission yield of the rare gas fission products from four mass chains is calculated as a function of separation time for six different fissioning systems. A plot of the calculated fission yield along with a one standard deviation error band is given for each rare gas fission product and for each fissioning system. Those parameters in the calculation that were major contributors to the calculated standard deviation at each separation time were identified and the results presented on a separate plot. To extend the usefulness of these calculations as new and better values for the input parameters become available, a third plot was generated for each system which shows how sensitive the derived fission yield is to a change in any given parameter used in the calculation. (U.S.)

International conference on fifty years research in nuclear fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1989-02-01

These proceedings contain extended abstracts of the papers presented at the named conference. They deal with static properties of fission, instrumentation for fission studies, fission in compound-nucleus reactions, fission dynamics, fission-like heavy ion reactions, and fusion reactions. See hints under the relevant topics. (HSI)

Theoretical Description of the Fission Process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Witold Nazarewicz

2003-01-01

The main goals of the project can be summarized as follows: Development of effective energy functionals that are appropriate for the description of heavy nuclei. Our goal is to improve the existing energy density (Skyrme) functionals to develop a force that will be used in calculations of fission dynamics. Systematic self-consistent calculations of binding energies and fission barriers of actinide and trans-actinide nuclei using modern density functionals. This will be followed by calculations of spontaneous fission lifetimes and mass and charge divisions using dynamic adiabatic approaches based on the WKB approximation. Investigate novel microscopic (non-adiabatic) methods to study the fission process

Theoretical Description of the Fission Process

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Witold Nazarewicz

2003-07-01

The main goals of the project can be summarized as follows: Development of effective energy functionals that are appropriate for the description of heavy nuclei. Our goal is to improve the existing energy density (Skyrme) functionals to develop a force that will be used in calculations of fission dynamics. Systematic self-consistent calculations of binding energies and fission barriers of actinide and trans-actinide nuclei using modern density functionals. This will be followed by calculations of spontaneous fission lifetimes and mass and charge divisions using dynamic adiabatic approaches based on the WKB approximation. Investigate novel microscopic (non-adiabatic) methods to study the fission process.

Fission of nuclei far from stability

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schmidt, K.H.; Benlliure, J.; Junghans, A.R.

2000-11-01

The secondary-beam facility of GSI provided the technical equipment for a new kind of fission experiment. Fission properties of short-lived neutron-deficient nuclei have been investigated in inverse kinematics. The measured element distributions reveal new kinds of systematics on shell structure and even-odd effects and lead to an improved understanding of structure effects in nuclear fission. Prospects for further experimental studies are discussed. (orig.)

Mass dependence of positive pion-induced fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khan, H.A.; Khan, N.A.; Peterson, R.J.

1991-01-01

Fission cross sections for a range of targets have been measured by solid-state track detectors following 80 and 100 MeV π + bombardment. Fission probabilities have been inferred by comparison to computed reaction cross sections. Fission probabilities for heavy targets agree with those for other probes of comparable energy and with statistical calculations. Probabilities for lighter targets are much above those previously observed or computed. Ternary fission cross sections and multiplicities of light fragments have also been determined

Towards a microscopic description of the fission process

CERN Document Server

Goutte, H; Berger, J F

2010-01-01

One major issue in nuclear physics is to develop a consistent model able to describe on the same footing the different aspects of the fission process, i.e. properties of the fissioning system, fission dynamics and fragment distributions. Microscopic fission studies based on the mean-field approximation are here presented.

Yields of fission products produced by thermal-neutron fission of 245Cm

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dickens, J.K.; McConnell, J.W.

1981-01-01

Absolute yields have been determined for 105 gamma rays emitted in the decay of 95 fission products representing 54 mass chains created during thermal-neutron fission of 245 Cm. These results include 17 mass chains for which no prior yield data exist. Using a Ge(Li) detector, spectra were obtained of gamma rays between 30 sec and 0.3 yr after very short irradiations of thermal neutrons on a 1 μg sample of 245 Cm. On the basis of measured gamma-ray yields and known nuclear data, total chain mass yields and relative uncertainties were obtained for 51 masses between 84 and 156. The absolute overall normalization uncertainty is 239 Pu and for 252 Cf(s.f.); the influences of the closed shells Z=50, N=82 are not as marked as for thermal-neutron fission of 239 Pu but much more apparent than for 252 Cf(s.f.). Information on the charge distribution along several isobaric mass chains was obtained by determining fractional yields for 12 fission products. The charge distribution width parameter, based upon data for the heavy masses, A=128 to 140, is independent of mass to within the uncertainties of the measurements. Gamma-ray assignments were made for decay of short-lived fission products for which absolute gamma-ray transition probabilities are either not known or in doubt. Absolute gamma-ray transition probabilities were determined as (51 +- 8)% for the 374-keV gamma ray from decay of 110 Rh, (35 +- 7)% for the 1096-keV gamma ray from decay of 133 Sb, and (21.2 +- 1.2)% for the 255-keV gamma ray from decay of 142 Ba

Fission in Empire-II version 2.19 beta1, Lodi

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sin, M.

2003-01-01

This is a description of the fission model implemented presently in EMPIRE-II. This package offers two ways to calculate the fission probability selected by parameters in the optional input. Fission barriers, fission transmission coefficients, fission cross sections and fission files are calculated

The study of prompt and delayed muon induced fission III. The ratios of prompt to delayed fission yields

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rösel, Ch.; Hänscheid, H.; Hartfiel, J.; Mutius, von R.; Achard van Enschut, d' J.F.M.; David, P; Janszen, H.; Johansson, T.; Konijn, J.; Krogulski, T.; Laat, de C.T.A.M.; Paganetti, H.; Petitjean, C.; Polikanov, S.M.; Reist, H.W.; Risse, F.; Schaller, L.A.; Schrieder, W.; Sinha, A.K.; Taal, A.; Theobald, J.P.; Tibell, G.; Trautmann, N.

1993-01-01

The ratios of prompt to delayed fission yields for the isotopes U-233, U-234, U-235, U-236, U-238, Np-237, Pu-242, and Pu-244 and the fission probabilities relative to each other have been investigated experimentally. Using the value of the total fission probability for Np-237 the absolute

Fission throughout the periodic table

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moretto, L.G.; Wozniak, G.J.

1989-04-01

The dualistic view of fission and evaporation as two distinct compound nucleus processes is substituted with a unified view in which fission, complex fragment emission, and light particle evaporation are seen as different aspects of a single process. 47 refs., 22 figs

What happens to the fission process above the 2nd- and 3rd-chance fission thresholds

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stewart, L.; Howerton, R.J.

1976-01-01

Although the multiple fission process is important at high neutron energies, most of the evaluations available today do not include these individual fission cross sections or their associated fission spectra. The representations used in the Los Alamos and Livermore libraries are described and calculations compared with 14-MeV integral experiments available on 235 U, 238 U, and 239 Pu. Further work is needed to clearly delineate the specific problems in order to propose unique solutions

Chemical Production using Fission Fragments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dawson, J. K.; Moseley, F.

1960-01-01

Some reactor design considerations of the use of fission recoil fragment energy for the production of chemicals of industrial importance have been discussed previously in a paper given at the Second United Nations International Conference on the Peaceful Uses of Atomic Energy [A/Conf. 15/P.76]. The present paper summarizes more recent progress made on this topic at AERE, Harwell. The range-energy relationship for fission fragments is discussed in the context of the choice of fuel system for a chemical production reactor, and the experimental observation of a variation of chemical effect along the length of a fission fragment track is described for the irradiation of nitrogen-oxygen mixtures. Recent results are given on the effect of fission fragments on carbon monoxide-hydrogen gas mixtures and on water vapour. No system investigated to date shows any outstanding promise for large-scale chemical production. (author) [fr

50 years with nuclear fission, April 25-28, 1989. A prelude to fission: France

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Savic, P.

1989-01-01

A personal account of the events leading to the 1938 discovery, by Irene Joliot-Curie and the author, of the unidentified element R 3.5h will be presented, as well as the experimental methods proving the R 3.5h had chemical properties similar to lanthanum which in turn led Hahn and Strassmann to the discovery of fission in 1939. The author points out that Irene Curie's intuition indicated the path towards the solution of the problem of uranium irradiated by neutrons, which made possible the discovery of fission by Hahn and Strassmann. Further applications of fission became possible by tremendous efforts and excellent contributions of scientists in the USA

Apparatus for measuring the release of fission gases and other fission products by degassing

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stradal, Karl Alfred

1970-10-15

In gas-cooled high-temperature reactors, the fuel is, in general, inserted in the fuel elements in the form of small particles, which are, for example, coated with pyrolytic carbon. The purpose of this coating is to keep the fission products separate from the coolant gas. The further development of these coated particles makes it necessary to check the retention capacity. One possible method of doing this is the degassing test after irradiation in the reactor. An apparatus is described below, which was developed and installed in order to measure to a higher degree of sensitivity and in serial measurements the release of fission gases and sparingly volatile fission products.

Time of flight measurement on the SOFIA experiment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bail, A.; Taieb, J.; Chatillon, A.; Belier, G.; Laurent, B.; Pellereau, E.

2011-01-01

The SOFIA experiment, which will be held at GSI (Darmstadt (Germany)) will allow to completely determine the mass and charge numbers of fragments produced in the fission reaction of radioactive actinides in reverse kinematics. Therefore, a dedicated setup has been developed for the Time of Flight measurement of relativistic heavy ions. The studies, which led to the choice of the adequate plastic scintillators and photomultipliers, are presented. Tests have been undertaken with the ELSA laser and electron beam facility. They shown that a suitable choice would be EJ-232 plastic scintillator for the ToF wall and EJ-232Q for the start detector and Hamamatsu H6533 and H10580 photomultipliers. This was confirmed by two test experiments realized at GSI with relativistic heavy ion beam ( 56 Fe and 238 U), where a time of flight resolution better than 20 ps FWHM was reached. (authors)

Time of flight measurement on the SOFIA experiment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bail, A.; Taieb, J.; Chatillon, A.; Belier, G.; Laurent, B.; Pellereau, E. [CEA/DAM/DIF, Arpajon (France)

2011-07-01

The SOFIA experiment, which will be held at GSI (Darmstadt (Germany)) will allow to completely determine the mass and charge numbers of fragments produced in the fission reaction of radioactive actinides in reverse kinematics. Therefore, a dedicated setup has been developed for the Time of Flight measurement of relativistic heavy ions. The studies, which led to the choice of the adequate plastic scintillators and photomultipliers, are presented. Tests have been undertaken with the ELSA laser and electron beam facility. They shown that a suitable choice would be EJ-232 plastic scintillator for the ToF wall and EJ-232Q for the start detector and Hamamatsu H6533 and H10580 photomultipliers. This was confirmed by two test experiments realized at GSI with relativistic heavy ion beam ({sup 56}Fe and {sup 238}U), where a time of flight resolution better than 20 ps FWHM was reached. (authors)

The fast fission effect in a cylindrical fuel element

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Carlvik, I; Pershagen, B

1959-06-15

A new formula for the fast fission factor is derived, which takes proper account to fast capture. The fission neutron spectrum is divided into two groups with constant fission cross section in one group and zero fission cross section in the other. The average total, elastic, inelastic and capture cross sections in the two groups are calculated. Different assumptions regarding anisotropic and inelastic scattering are investigated. The effects of backscattering from the moderator and fast fission in neighbouring fuel elements are pointed out. Formulas for the fast fission ratio and for the fast conversion ratio are derived. The calculated fast fission ratios are compared with experimental values. Curves are given for the fast fission factor in uranium metal and uranium oxide.

Nuclear fission as a macroscopic quantum tunneling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takigawa, N.

1995-01-01

We discuss nuclear fission from the point of view of a macroscopic quantum tunneling, one of whose major interests is to study the effects of environments on the tunneling rate of a macroscopic variable. We show that a vibrational excitation of the fissioning nucleus significantly enhances the fission rate. We show this effect by two different methods. The one is to treat the vibrational excitation as an environmental degree of freedom, the other treats the fission as a two dimensional quantum tunneling. (author)

Behavior of solid fission products in irradiated fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Song, Ung Sup; Jung, Yang Hong; Kim, Hee Moon; Yoo, Byun Gok; Kim, Do Sik; Choo, Yong Sun; Hong, Kwon Pyo

2004-01-01

Many fission products are generated by fission events in UO 2 fuel under irradiation in nuclear reactor. Concentration of each fission product is changed by conditions of neutron energy spectrum, fissile material, critical thermal power, irradiation period and cooling time. Volatile materials such as Cs and I, the fission products, degrade nuclear fuel rod by the decrease of thermal conductivity in pellet and the stress corrosion cracking in cladding. Metal fission products (white inclusion) make pellet be swelled and decrease volume of pellet by densification. It seems that metal fission products are filled in the pore in pellet and placed between UO 2 lattices as interstitial. In addition, metal oxide state may change structural lattice volume. Considering behavior of fission products mentioned above, concentration of them is important. Fission products could be classified as bellows; solid solution in matrix : Sr, Zr, Nb, Y, La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Pm, Sm - metal precipitates : Mo, Tc, Ru, Rh, Pd, Ag, Cd, In, Sb, Te - oxide precipitates : Ba, Zr, Nb, Mo, (Rb, Cs, Te) - volatile and gases : Kr, Xe, Br, I, (Rb, Cs, Te)

Fission and r-process nucleosynthesis in neutron star mergers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Giuliani, Samuel Andrea

2018-01-01

Fission plays a crucial role for the r-process nucleosynthesis in neutron star mergers. Due to the high neutron densities achieved in this astrophysical scenario the sequence of neutron captures and beta decays that constitutes the r process produces superheavy neutron rich nuclei that become unstable against fission. Fission determines thus the heaviest nuclei that can be produced by the r process and the fission yields shape the abundances of lighter nuclei. But despite the key role of fission the sensitivity of the r-process nucleosynthesis to uncertainties in fission predictions has not been explored. Nowadays there are only few set of fission rates suited for r-process calculations and most of them rely on a simplified treatment of the fission process. In this thesis we go beyond these approximations and compute the fission properties of r-process nuclei using the energy density functional approach. Fission is described as a tunneling process where the nucleus ''moves'' in a collective space characterized by coordinates describing the nuclear shape. Thus fission depends on the evolution of the energy with the deformation but also on the inertia due to the motion in the collective space. This is analogous to the quantum mechanical tunneling of a particle inside a potential well. In our study the relevant quantities for the description of the fission process are consistently computed for 3642 nuclei following the Hartree-Fock-Bogolyubov theory with constraining operators. We perform an extensive benchmark against the available experimental data and explore the variations of the fission properties along the superheavy landscape. We find that while collective inertias have a strong impact in the fission probabilities of light nuclei their role becomes less relevant in r -process nuclei. Within the statistical model we compute the neutron induced stellar reaction rates relevant for the r-process nucleosynthesis. These sets of stellar reaction

New experimental approaches to investigate the fission dynamics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Benlliure, J., E-mail: j.benlliure@usc.es; Rodríguez-Sánchez, J. L.; Alvarez-Pol, H.; Ayyad, Y.; Cortina-Gil, D.; Paradela, C.; Pietras, B.; Ramos, D.; Vargas, J. [Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, 15782 Santiago de Compostela (Spain); Audouin, L.; Boutoux, G. [Institut de Physique Nucléaire d’Orsay, F-91406 Orsay (France); Bélier, G.; Chatillon, A.; Gorbinet, T.; Laurent, B.; Martin, J.-F.; Pellereau, E.; Taïeb, J. [CEA, DAM, DIF, F-91297 Arpajon (France); Casarejos, E. [Universidad de Vigo, E-36200 Vigo (Spain); Heinz, A. [Chalmers University of Technology, SE-412 96 Gothenburg (Sweden); and others

2016-07-07

The first ever achieved full identification of both fission fragments, in atomic and mass number, made it possible to define new observables sensitive to the fission dynamics along the fission path up to the scission point. Moreover, proton-induced fission of {sup 208}Pb at high energies offers optimal conditions for the investigation of dissipative, and transient effects, because of the high-excitation energy of the fissioning nuclei, its low angular momentum, and limited shape distortion by the reaction. In this work we show that the charge distribution of the final fission fragments can constrain the ground-to-saddle dynamics while the mass distribution is sensitive to the dynamics until the scission point.

Fission gas release of MOX with heterogeneous structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nakae, N.; Akiyama, H.; Kamimura, K; Delville, R.; Jutier, F.; Verwerft, M.; Miura, H.; Baba, T.

2015-01-01

It is very useful for fuel integrity evaluation to accumulate knowledge base on fuel behavior of uranium and plutonium mixed oxide (MOX) fuel used in light water reactors (LWRs). Fission gas release is one of fuel behaviors which have an impact on fuel integrity evaluation. Fission gas release behavior of MOX fuels having heterogeneous structure is focused in this study. MOX fuel rods with a heterogeneous fuel microstructure were irradiated in Halden reactor (IFA-702) and the BR-3/BR-2 CALLISTO Loop (CHIPS program). The 85 Kr gamma spectrometry measurements were carried out in specific cycles in order to examine the concerned LHR (Linear Heat Rate) for fission gas release in the CHIPS program. The concerned LHR is defined in this paper to be the LHR at which a certain additional fission gas release thermally occurs. Post-irradiation examination was performed to understand the fission gas release behavior in connection with the pellet microstructure. The followings conclusions can be made from this study. First, the concerned LHR for fission gas release is estimated to be in the range of 20-23 kW/m with burnup over 37 GWd/tM. It is moreover guessed that the concerned LHR for fission gas release tends to decrease with increasing burnup. Secondly It is observed that FGR (fission gas release rate) is positively correlated with LHR when the LHR exceeds the concerned value. Thirdly, when burnup dependence of fission gas release is discussed, effective burnup should be taken into account. The effective burnup is defined as the burnup at which the LHR should be exceed the concerned value at the last time during all the irradiation period. And fourthly, it appears that FGR inside Pu spots is higher than outside and that retained (not released) fission gases mainly exist in the fission gas bubbles. Since fission gases in bubbles are considered to be easily released during fuel temperature increase, this information is very important to estimate fission gas release behavior

Gamma Radiation from Fission Fragments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Higbie, Jack

1969-10-01

The gamma radiation from the fragments of the thermal neutron fission of 235 U has been investigated, and the preliminary data are presented here with suggestions for further lines of research and some possible interpretations of the data. The data have direct bearing on the fission process and the mode of fragment de-excitation. The parameters measured are the radiation decay curve for the time interval (1 - 7) x 10 -10 sec after fission, the photon yield, the total gamma ray energy yield, and the average photon energy. The last three quantities are measured as a function of the fragment mass

Gamma Radiation from Fission Fragments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Higbie, Jack

1969-10-15

The gamma radiation from the fragments of the thermal neutron fission of {sup 235}U has been investigated, and the preliminary data are presented here with suggestions for further lines of research and some possible interpretations of the data. The data have direct bearing on the fission process and the mode of fragment de-excitation. The parameters measured are the radiation decay curve for the time interval (1 - 7) x 10{sup -10} sec after fission, the photon yield, the total gamma ray energy yield, and the average photon energy. The last three quantities are measured as a function of the fragment mass.

Energy partition in nuclear fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ruben, A.; Maerten, H.; Seeliger, D.

1990-01-01

A scission point model (two spheroid model TSM) including semi-empirical temperature-dependent shell correction energies for deformed fragments at scission is presented. It has been used to describe the mass-asymmetry-dependent partition of the total energy release on both fragments from spontaneous and induced fission. Characteristic trends of experimental fragment energy and neutron multiplicity data as function of incidence energy in the Th-Cf region of fissioning nuclei are well reproduced. Based on model applications, information on the energy dissipated during the descent from second saddle of fission barrier to scission point have been deduced. (author). 39 refs, 13 figs

Modelisation of the fission cross section

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morariu, Claudia

2013-03-01

The neutron cross sections of four nuclear systems (n+ 235 U, n+ 233 U, n+ 241 Am and n+ 237 Np) are studied in the present document. The target nuclei of the first case, like 235 U and 239 Pu, have a large fission cross section after the absorption of thermal neutrons. These nuclei are called 'fissile' nuclei. The other type of nuclei, like 237 Np and 241 Am, fission mostly with fast neutrons, which exceed the fission threshold energy. These types of nuclei are called 'fertile'. The compound nuclei of the fertile nuclei have a binding energy higher than the fission barrier, while for the fissile nuclei the binding energy is lower than the fission barrier. In this work, the neutron induced cross sections for both types of nuclei are evaluated in the fast energy range. The total, reaction and shape-elastic cross sections are calculated by the coupled channel method of the optical model code ECIS, while the compound nucleus mechanism are treated by the statistical models implemented in the codes STATIS, GNASH and TALYS. The STATIS code includes a refined model of the fission process. Results from the theoretical calculations are compared with data retrieved from the experimental data base EXFOR. (author) [fr

Fission gas behaviour in water reactor fuels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2002-01-01

During irradiation, nuclear fuel changes volume, primarily through swelling. This swelling is caused by the fission products and in particular by the volatile ones such as krypton and xenon, called fission gas. Fission gas behaviour needs to be reliably predicted in order to make better use of nuclear fuel, a factor which can help to achieve the economic competitiveness required by today's markets. These proceedings communicate the results of an international seminar which reviewed recent progress in the field of fission gas behaviour in light water reactor fuel and sought to improve the models used in computer codes predicting fission gas release. State-of-the-art knowledge is presented for both uranium-oxide and mixed-oxide fuels loaded in water reactors. (author)

Comparative evaluation of solar, fission, fusion, and fossil energy resources. Part 2: Power from nuclear fission

Science.gov (United States)

Clement, J. D.

1973-01-01

Different types of nuclear fission reactors and fissionable materials are compared. Special emphasis is placed upon the environmental impact of such reactors. Graphs and charts comparing reactor facilities in the U. S. are presented.

Measurement of the fission yields of selected prompt and decay fission product gamma-rays of spontaneously fissioning 252Cf and 244Cm

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reber, E.L.; Gehrke, R.J.; Aryaeinejad, R.; Hartwell, J.K.

2005-01-01

Gamma-ray spectrometry measurements have been made of the fission yields of selected γ -rays emitted by the spontaneously fissioning isotopes 252 Cf and 244 Cm. The measured γ-rays were selected based on their relative abundance in the spectrum and their freedom from interference or, in a few instances, ease of interference correction. From these data and the cumulative and independent yield data of England and Rider, those γ-rays that are primarily produced by radioactive decay, as opposed to direct yield, were converted into the decays per spontaneous fission expressed in percent and compared to cumulative yield values of England and Rider. For those γ-rays whose production is dominated by direct (independent) yield, the ratio of γ-rays per spontaneous fission is reported. The γ-ray yield can be compared to the independent yield values of England and Rider when 100% of the direct feeding passes through the γ-ray. In those cases where both cumulative and independent yields contribute to the observed γ-ray emission rate, a direct comparison is not possible but a method to quantify the contribution from each is proposed. (author)

Fission decay properties of nuclear giant multipole resonances

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dias, H.; Arruda Neto, J.D.T.; Hussein, M.S.; Carlson, B.V.

1986-05-01

The statistical fission decay properties of the giant dipole, quadrupole and monopole resonances in 236 U are investigated with the aid of the Hauser-Feshbach model. It is found, contrary to several recent claims, that the GQR fission decay probability is as large as that of the GDR, at energies higher than the fission barrier. At energies close to the f.b., the GQR fission probability is found to be appreciably larger than that of the GDR. The GMR fission probability follows closely that of the GQR. (Author) [pt

Fission times of excited nuclei: An experimental overview

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morjean, M.; Morjean, M.; Jacquet, D.

2009-01-01

An overview of selected recent experimental results on fission times is presented. Evidences for over-damped motion up to saddle point during the fission process of highly excited nuclei have been obtained independently through fission probability, pre-scission multiplicity and direct time measurements. In addition, strong clues have been found for a temperature dependency of friction. Experiments probing transient effects through fission probabilities are presented and the counterbalanced effects of friction and level density parameters are discussed. Promising perspectives for super-heavy stability studies, based on fission time measurements, are presented. (authors)

Angular momentum distribution of primary fission fragments by measurement of the relative yield of isomeric fission products

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dornhoefer, H.

1980-01-01

The fission products 132 I and 136 I produced in the fission reactions 238 U(α,f) and 238 U(d,f) were spectroscoped using a gas transport system. Thereby was taken advantage of the fact that at the transport with pure helium without aerosols only iodine activities were collected in a membrane filter. The relative independent yields of the isomeric fission products of 132 I and 136 I were determined for different excitation energies. Thereby was taken advantage of the fact that the transport yield of the gas transport system for 136 I directly produced from the fission was greater than for iodine indirectly produced by β-decay. (orig./HSI) [de

Fission-product release during accidents

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hunt, C.E.L.; Cox, D.S.

1991-09-01

One of the aims when managing a reactor accident is to minimize the release of radioactive fission products. Release is dependent not only on the temperature, but also on the partial pressure of oxygen. Strongly oxidizing atmospheres, such as those that occurred during the Chernobyl accident, released semi-volatile elements like ruthenium, which has volatile oxides. At low temperatures, UO 2 oxidization to U 3 O 8 can result in extensive breakup of the fuel, resulting in the release of non-volatile fission products as aerosols. Under less oxidizing conditions, when hydrogen accumulates from the zirconium-water reaction, the resulting low oxygen partial pressure can significantly reduce these reactions. At TMI-2, only the noble gases and volatile fission products were released in significant quantities. A knowledge of the effect of atmosphere as well as temperature on the release of fission products from damaged reactor cores is therefore a useful, if not necessary, component of information required for accident management

Recovery and use of fission product noble metals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jensen, G.A.; Rohmann, C.A.; Perrigo, L.D.

1980-06-01

Noble metals in fission products are of strategic value. Market prices for noble metals are rising more rapidly than recovery costs. A promising concept has been developed for recovery of noble metals from fission product waste. Although the assessment was made only for the three noble metal fission products (Rh, Pd, Ru), there are other fission products and actinides which have potential value

Space Flight Applications of Optical Fiber; 30 Years of Space Flight Success

Science.gov (United States)

Ott, Melanie N.

2010-01-01

For over thirty years NASA has had success with space flight missions that utilize optical fiber component technology. One of the early environmental characterization experiments that included optical fiber was launched as the Long Duration Exposure Facility in 1978. Since then, multiple missions have launched with optical fiber components that functioned as expected, without failure throughout the mission life. The use of optical fiber in NASA space flight communications links and exploration and science instrumentation is reviewed.

Ternary fission induced by polarized neutrons

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gönnenwein Friedrich

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Ternary fission of (e,e U- and Pu- isotopes induced by cold polarized neutrons discloses some new facets of the process. In the so-called ROT effect shifts in the angular distributions of ternary particles relative to the fission fragments show up. In the so-called TRI effect an asymmetry in the emission of ternary particles relative to a plane formed by the fragment momentum and the spin of the neutron appear. The two effects are shown to be linked to the components of angular momentum perpendicular and parallel to the fission axis at the saddle point of fission. Based on theoretical models the spectroscopic properties of the collective transitional states at the saddle point are inferred from experiment.

Fission dynamics in the proton induced fission of heavy nuclei

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rubchenya, V.A. E-mail: rubchen@phys.jyu.fi; Trzaska, W.H.; Itkis, I.M.; Itkis, M.G.; Kliman, J.; Kniajeva, G.N.; Kondratiev, N.A.; Kozulin, E.M.; Krupa, L.; Pokrovski, I.V.; Voskressenski, V.M.; Hanappe, F.; Materna, T.; Dorvaux, O.; Stuttge, L.; Chubarian, G.; Khlebnikov, S.V.; Vakhtin, D.N.; Lyapin, V.G

2004-04-05

Multi-parameter correlation study of the reaction {sup 242}Pu(p, f) at E{sub p} 13, 20 and 55 MeV has been carried out. Fission fragment mass and kinetic energy distributions and the double differential neutron spectra have been measured. It was observed that the two-humped shape of mass distributions prevailed up to highest proton energy. Manifestation of the nuclear shell Z 28 near fragment mass A{sub fr} = 70 has been detected. The experimental results were analyzed in the framework of a time-dependent statistical model with inclusion of nuclear friction effects in the fission process. The multi-parameter correlation study of the reaction.

Fission-product retention in HTGR fuels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Homan, F.J.; Kania, M.J.; Tiegs, T.N.

1982-01-01

Retention data for gaseous and metallic fission products are presented for both Triso-coated and Biso-coated HTGR fuel particles. Performance trends are established that relate fission product retention to operating parameters, such as temperature, burnup, and neutron exposure. It is concluded that Biso-coated particles are not adequately retentive of fission gas or metallic cesium, and Triso-coated particles which retain cesium still lose silver. Design implications related to these performance trends are identified and discussed

Basic physics of the fission process. Chapter 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Michaudon, A.

1981-01-01

A general description of the fission process is given with special emphasis on those aspects which are necessary for the understanding of the measurements and calculations of neutron-induced fission cross-sections. Having considered the various phases of the process, some typical properties of the low-energy fission of actinide nuclei are presented and the more specific features of neutron induced fission are examined. (U.K.)

Fission fragment yields and total kinetic energy release in neutron-induced fission of235,238U,and239Pu

Science.gov (United States)

Tovesson, F.; Duke, D.; Geppert-Kleinrath, V.; Manning, B.; Mayorov, D.; Mosby, S.; Schmitt, K.

2018-03-01

Different aspects of the nuclear fission process have been studied at Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) using various instruments and experimental techniques. Properties of the fragments emitted in fission have been investigated using Frisch-grid ionization chambers, a Time Projection Chamber (TPC), and the SPIDER instrument which employs the 2v-2E method. These instruments and experimental techniques have been used to determine fission product mass yields, the energy dependent total kinetic energy (TKE) release, and anisotropy in neutron-induced fission of U-235, U-238 and Pu-239.

Fission mass yields of excited medium heavy nuclei

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sandulescu, A.; Depta, K.; Herrmann, R.; Greiner, W.; Scheid, W.

1985-01-01

The mass distributions resulting from the fission of excited medium mass nuclei are discussed on the basis of the fragmentation theory. It is shown that very asymmetric fission events can be expected with rates which are only a few orders of magnitude smaller than the rates for symmetric fission. As an example a calculation of the fission mass distribution of the excited 172 Yb compound nucleus is presented. This mass distribution reveals observable structures over the entire range of the mass asymmetry due to valleys in the potential energy surface for fission fragments with closed proton and neutron shells

Characterization of a facility for the measurement of fission fragment transport effects: experimental determination of the fission rates for fissile and fissionable isotopes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Benetti, P.; Raselli, G.L.; Tigliole, A. Borio di; Cagnazzo, M.; Cesana, A.; Mongelli, S.; Terrani, M.

2002-01-01

The transfer facility of the LENA laboratory allows the direct neutron irradiation of fissionable material in the D channel of the TRIGA reactor. A test measurement carried out with a ionization chamber and a 239 Pu sample shows the possibility to use this tool for the study of the transport effects of the fission fragment emerging from thin layers of fissile materials. (author)

Fission of heavy nuclei: microscopic study of fission barriers and fragments angular momentum; Fission des noyaux lourds: etude microscopique des barrieres de fission et du moment angulaire des fragments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bonneau, L

2003-11-01

A lot of experimental data on nuclear fission has been being collected for the last 65 years, allowing theoreticians to confront their models with reality. The first part of this work is dedicated to the computation of fission barriers. We have extended the HF + BCS (Hartree Fock + Bandeen-Cooper-Schrieffer) method in order to include a new set of polynomials on which wave functions can be broken to, more accurately than on Hermite's polynomials in the 2 fragment configuration. The fission barriers of 26 heavy nuclei from Thorium-230 to Nobelium-256 have been assessed and compared to experimental data, it appears that differences are no greater than 1 MeV. We have discovered a neat correlation between the variation of the experimental fission lifetimes of even Fermium isotopes and the computed heights of second barriers. Moreover our model reproduces the hyper-deformed well of Thorium-230 with a good agreement on the well depth. The second part deals with the scission region. We have performed Hartree-Fock calculations in order to explore different ways of fragmentation. We have shown that the harmonic oscillator gives a valid description of such ways. In order to compute the mean value of J{sup 2} in the fragments we have been driven to propose an adequate definition of that quantity consistent with the non-locality property of the J{sup 2} operator. (A.C.)

Actinide neutron-induced fission up to 20 MeV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maslov, V.M.

2001-01-01

Fission and total level densities modelling along with double-humped fission barrier parameters allow to describe available actinide neutron-induced fission cross section data in the incident neutron energy range of ∼ 10 keV - 20 MeV. Saddle asymmetries relevant to shell correction model calculations influence fission barriers, extracted by cross section data analysis. The inner barrier was assumed axially symmetric in case of U, Np and Pu neutron-deficient nuclei. It is shown that observed irregularities in neutron-induced fission cross section data in the energy range of 0.5-3 MeV could be attributed to the interplay of few-quasiparticle excitations in the level density of fissioning and residual nuclei. Estimates of first-chance fission cross section and secondary neutron spectrum model were validated by 238 U fission, (n,2n) and (n,3n) data description up to 20 MeV. (author)

Actinide neutron-induced fission up to 20 MeV

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Maslov, V M [Radiation Physics and Chemistry Problems Institute, Minsk-Sosny (Belarus)

2001-12-15

Fission and total level densities modelling along with double-humped fission barrier parameters allow to describe available actinide neutron-induced fission cross section data in the incident neutron energy range of {approx} 10 keV - 20 MeV. Saddle asymmetries relevant to shell correction model calculations influence fission barriers, extracted by cross section data analysis. The inner barrier was assumed axially symmetric in case of U, Np and Pu neutron-deficient nuclei. It is shown that observed irregularities in neutron-induced fission cross section data in the energy range of 0.5-3 MeV could be attributed to the interplay of few-quasiparticle excitations in the level density of fissioning and residual nuclei. Estimates of first-chance fission cross section and secondary neutron spectrum model were validated by {sup 238}U fission, (n,2n) and (n,3n) data description up to 20 MeV. (author)

Correlated Production and Analog Transport of Fission Neutrons and Photons using Fission Models FREYA, FIFRELIN and the Monte Carlo Code TRIPOLI-4® .

Science.gov (United States)

Verbeke, Jérôme M.; Petit, Odile; Chebboubi, Abdelhazize; Litaize, Olivier

2018-01-01

Fission modeling in general-purpose Monte Carlo transport codes often relies on average nuclear data provided by international evaluation libraries. As such, only average fission multiplicities are available and correlations between fission neutrons and photons are missing. Whereas uncorrelated fission physics is usually sufficient for standard reactor core and radiation shielding calculations, correlated fission secondaries are required for specialized nuclear instrumentation and detector modeling. For coincidence counting detector optimization for instance, precise simulation of fission neutrons and photons that remain correlated in time from birth to detection is essential. New developments were recently integrated into the Monte Carlo transport code TRIPOLI-4 to model fission physics more precisely, the purpose being to access event-by-event fission events from two different fission models: FREYA and FIFRELIN. TRIPOLI-4 simulations can now be performed, either by connecting via an API to the LLNL fission library including FREYA, or by reading external fission event data files produced by FIFRELIN beforehand. These new capabilities enable us to easily compare results from Monte Carlo transport calculations using the two fission models in a nuclear instrumentation application. In the first part of this paper, broad underlying principles of the two fission models are recalled. We then present experimental measurements of neutron angular correlations for 252Cf(sf) and 240Pu(sf). The correlations were measured for several neutron kinetic energy thresholds. In the latter part of the paper, simulation results are compared to experimental data. Spontaneous fissions in 252Cf and 240Pu are modeled by FREYA or FIFRELIN. Emitted neutrons and photons are subsequently transported to an array of scintillators by TRIPOLI-4 in analog mode to preserve their correlations. Angular correlations between fission neutrons obtained independently from these TRIPOLI-4 simulations, using

Fuel and fission product behaviour in early phases of a severe accident. Part II: Interpretation of the experimental results of the PHEBUS FPT2 test

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dubourg, R. [Institut de Radioprotection et de Sûreté Nucléaire, B.P. 3, 13115 Saint Paul-lez-Durance Cedex (France); Barrachin, M., E-mail: marc.barrachin@irsn.fr [Institut de Radioprotection et de Sûreté Nucléaire, B.P. 3, 13115 Saint Paul-lez-Durance Cedex (France); Ducher, R. [Institut de Radioprotection et de Sûreté Nucléaire, B.P. 3, 13115 Saint Paul-lez-Durance Cedex (France); Gavillet, D. [Paul Scherrer Institute, CH-5232 Villigen PSI (Switzerland); De Bremaecker, A. [Institute for Nuclear Materials Sciences, SCK-CEN, Boeretang 200, B-2400 Mol (Belgium)

2014-10-15

One objective of the FPT2 test of the PHEBUS FP Program was to study the degradation of an irradiated UO{sub 2} fuel bundle and the fission product behaviour under conditions of low steam flow. The results of the post-irradiation examinations (PIE) at the upper levels (823 mm and 900 mm) of the test section previously reported are interpreted in the present paper. Solid state interactions between fuel and cladding have been compared with the characteristics of interaction identified in the previous separate-effect tests. Corium resulting from the interaction between fuel and cladding was formed. The uranium concentration in the corium is compared to analytical tests and a scenario for the corium formation is proposed. The analysis showed that, despite the rather low fuel burn up, the conditions of temperature and oxygen potential reached during the starvation phase are able to give an early very significant release fraction of caesium. A significant part (but not all) of the molybdenum was segregated at grain boundaries and trapped in metallic inclusions from which they were totally removed in the final part of the experiment. During the steam starvation phase, the conditions of oxygen potential were favourable for the formation of simple Ba and BaO chemical forms but the temperature was too low to provoke their volatility. This is one important difference with out-of-pile experiments such as VERCORS for which only a combination of high temperature and low oxygen potential induced a significant barium release. Finally another significant difference with analytical out-of-pile experiments comes from the formation of foamy zones due to the fission gas presence in FPT2-type experiments which give an additional possibility for the formation of stable fission product compounds.

Some aspects of fission and quasifission processes

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

2015-07-22

Jul 22, 2015 ... In this talk, I will review an incomplete subset of the major milestones in fission research, and briefly discuss some of the topics that I have been involved in during my career. These include studies of vibrational resonances and fission isomers that are caused by the second minimum in the fission barrier in ...

Nuclear fission with a Langevin equation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boilley, D.; Suraud, E.; Abe, Yasuhisa

1992-01-01

A microscopically derived Langevin equation is applied to thermally induced nuclear fission. An important memory effect is pointed out and discussed. A strong friction coefficient, estimated from microscopic quantities, tends to decrease the stationary limit of the fission rate and to increase the transient time. The calculations are performed with a collective mass depending on the collective variable and with a constant mass. Fission rates calculated at different temperatures are shown and compared with previous available results. (author) 23 refs.; 7 figs

A spin exchange model for singlet fission

Science.gov (United States)

Yago, Tomoaki; Wakasa, Masanobu

2018-03-01

Singlet fission has been analyzed with the Dexter model in which electron exchange occurs between chromophores, conserving the spin for each electron. In the present study, we propose a spin exchange model for singlet fission. In the spin exchange model, spins are exchanged by the exchange interaction between two electrons. Our analysis with simple spin functions demonstrates that singlet fission is possible by spin exchange. A necessary condition for spin exchange is a variation in exchange interactions. We also adapt the spin exchange model to triplet fusion and triplet energy transfer, which often occur after singlet fission in organic solids.

Neutron multiplicity of fission fragments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Abdelrahman, Y S [Physics department, mu` rah university Al-Karak, (Jordan)

1995-10-01

The total average neutron multiplicity of the fission fragments produced by the spontaneous fission of {sup 248} Cm has been measured. This measurement has been done by using a new experimental technique. This technique mainly depends on {gamma}-{gamma} coincidence using a very high resolution high purity germanium (HPGe) detector. 2 figs.

Advanced Fiber-Optic Instrumentation for Early Flight Fission Research, Phase II

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — By properly characterizing the thermo-mechanical activity within non-nuclear test articles, nuclear operation can be more accurately controlled and confidence in...

The use of an automated flight test management system in the development of a rapid-prototyping flight research facility

Science.gov (United States)

Duke, Eugene L.; Hewett, Marle D.; Brumbaugh, Randal W.; Tartt, David M.; Antoniewicz, Robert F.; Agarwal, Arvind K.

1988-01-01

An automated flight test management system (ATMS) and its use to develop a rapid-prototyping flight research facility for artificial intelligence (AI) based flight systems concepts are described. The ATMS provides a flight test engineer with a set of tools that assist in flight planning and simulation. This system will be capable of controlling an aircraft during the flight test by performing closed-loop guidance functions, range management, and maneuver-quality monitoring. The rapid-prototyping flight research facility is being developed at the Dryden Flight Research Facility of the NASA Ames Research Center (Ames-Dryden) to provide early flight assessment of emerging AI technology. The facility is being developed as one element of the aircraft automation program which focuses on the qualification and validation of embedded real-time AI-based systems.

Theoretical study of fission dynamics with muons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oberacker, V.E.; Umar, A.S.; Bottcher, C.; Strayer, M.R.; Maruhn, J.A.; Frankfurt Univ.

1992-01-01

Following muon capture by actinide atoms, some of the inner shell muonic transitions proceed by inverse internal conversion, i.e. the excitation energy of the muonic atom is transferred to the nucleus. In particular, the muonic E2:(3d→1s) transition energy is close to the peak of the isoscalar giant quadrupole resonance in actinide nuclei which exhibits a large fission width. Prompt fission in the presence of a bound muon allows us to study the dynamics of large-amplitude collective motion. We solve the time-dependent Dirac equation for the muonic spinor wave function in the Coulomb field of the fissioning nucleus on a 3-dimensional lattice and demonstrate that the muon attachment probability to the light fission fragment is a measure of the nuclear energy dissipation between the outer fission barrier and the scission point

Post-irradiation studies on knock-out and pseudo-recoil releases of fission products from fissioning UO2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamagishi, S.; Tanifuji, T.

1976-01-01

By using post-irradiation techniques, in-pile releases of 133 Xe, sup(85m)Kr, 88 Kr, 87 Kr and 138 Xe from UO 2 fissioning at low temperatures below about 200 0 C are studied: these are analyzed into a time-dependent knock-out and time-independent pseudo-recoil releases. For the latter, a 'self knock-out' mechanism is proposed: when a fission fragment loses thoroughly its energy near the UO 2 surface and stops there, it will knock out the surface substances and accordingly the fragment (i.e. the fission product) will be released. The effective thickness of the layer where the self knock-out occurs is found to be approximately 7A. As for the knock-out release, the following is estimated from its dependence on various factors: the knock-out release of fission products occurs from the surface layer with the effective thickness of approximately 20A: the shape of UO 2 matrix knocked out by one fission fragment passing through the surface is equivalent to a cylinder approximately 32A diameter by approximately 27A thick, (i.e. the knock-out coefficient for UO 2 is approximately 660 uranium atoms per knock-out event). On the basis of the above estimations, the conclusions derived from the past in-pile studies of fission gas releases are evaluated. (Auth.)

Fission fragment mass and total kinetic energy distributions of spontaneously fissioning plutonium isotopes

Science.gov (United States)

Pomorski, K.; Nerlo-Pomorska, B.; Bartel, J.; Schmitt, C.

2018-03-01

The fission-fragment mass and total kinetic energy (TKE) distributions are evaluated in a quantum mechanical framework using elongation, mass asymmetry, neck degree of freedom as the relevant collective parameters in the Fourier shape parametrization recently developed by us. The potential energy surfaces (PES) are calculated within the macroscopic-microscopic model based on the Lublin-Strasbourg Drop (LSD), the Yukawa-folded (YF) single-particle potential and a monopole pairing force. The PES are presented and analysed in detail for even-even Plutonium isotopes with A = 236-246. They reveal deep asymmetric valleys. The fission-fragment mass and TKE distributions are obtained from the ground state of a collective Hamiltonian computed within the Born-Oppenheimer approximation, in the WKB approach by introducing a neck-dependent fission probability. The calculated mass and total kinetic energy distributions are found in good agreement with the data.

Search for sp-interference effect in emission of prompt neutrons of sup 2 sup 3 sup 5 U fission by thermal polarized neutrons

CERN Document Server

Danilyan, G V; Pavlov, V S; Fedorov, A V

2001-01-01

The results of the experiment for the search of the sp-interference effect in the distribution of the prompt neutrons of the sup 2 sup 3 sup 5 U fission by thermal polarized neutrons are presented. The experiment is carried out on the polarized neutrons beam of the MIFI reactor. The scheme of the installation and the flight time spectrum are presented

Fission product yield measurements using monoenergetic photon beams

Science.gov (United States)

Krishichayan; Bhike, M.; Tonchev, A. P.; Tornow, W.

2017-09-01

Measurements of fission products yields (FPYs) are an important source of information on the fission process. During the past couple of years, a TUNL-LANL-LLNL collaboration has provided data on the FPYs from quasi monoenergetic neutron-induced fission on 235U, 238U, and 239Pu and has revealed an unexpected energy dependence of both asymmetric fission fragments at energies below 4 MeV. This peculiar FPY energy dependence was more pronounced in neutron-induced fission of 239Pu. In an effort to understand and compare the effect of the incoming probe on the FPY distribution, we have carried out monoenergetic photon-induced fission experiments on the same 235U, 238U, and 239Pu targets. Monoenergetic photon beams of Eγ = 13.0 MeV were provided by the HIγS facility, the world's most intense γ-ray source. In order to determine the total number of fission events, a dual-fission chamber was used during the irradiation. These irradiated samples were counted at the TUNL's low-background γ-ray counting facility using high efficient HPGe detectors over a period of 10 weeks. Here we report on our first ever photofission product yield measurements obtained with monoenegetic photon beams. These results are compared with neutron-induced FPY data.

Fission product yield measurements using monoenergetic photon beams

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Krishichayan

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Measurements of fission products yields (FPYs are an important source of information on the fission process. During the past couple of years, a TUNL-LANL-LLNL collaboration has provided data on the FPYs from quasi monoenergetic neutron-induced fission on 235U, 238U, and 239Pu and has revealed an unexpected energy dependence of both asymmetric fission fragments at energies below 4 MeV. This peculiar FPY energy dependence was more pronounced in neutron-induced fission of 239Pu. In an effort to understand and compare the effect of the incoming probe on the FPY distribution, we have carried out monoenergetic photon-induced fission experiments on the same 235U, 238U, and 239Pu targets. Monoenergetic photon beams of Eγ = 13.0 MeV were provided by the HIγS facility, the world's most intense γ-ray source. In order to determine the total number of fission events, a dual-fission chamber was used during the irradiation. These irradiated samples were counted at the TUNL's low-background γ-ray counting facility using high efficient HPGe detectors over a period of 10 weeks. Here we report on our first ever photofission product yield measurements obtained with monoenegetic photon beams. These results are compared with neutron-induced FPY data.

Sommerfeld-Watson transformation for nuclear fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alexandru, G.

1978-01-01

It is proved that the fission matrix element can be written like a Sommerfeld-Watson relation. This leads to a dispersion relation for the fission process in which the substraction term is uniquely determined. (author)

On the mechanism of fission neutron emission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maerten, H.; Richter, D.; Seeliger, D.

1986-01-01

This review represents the present knowledge of the mechanism of prompt fission neutron emission. Starting with a brief fission process characterization related with neutron emission, possible emission mechanisms are discussed. It is emphasized that the experimental study of special mechanisms, i.e. scission neutron emission processes, requires a sufficiently correct description of emission probabilities on the base of the main mechanism, i.e. the evaporation from fully accelerated fragments. Adequate statistical-model approaches have to account for the complexity of nuclear fission reflected by an intricate fragment distribution. The present picture of scission neutron emission is not clarified neither experimentally nor theoretically. Deduced data are contradictory and depend on the used analysis procedures often involving rough discriptions of evaporated-neutron distributions. The contribution of two secondary mechanisms of fission neutron emission, i.e. the neutron evaporation during fragment acceleration and neutron emission due to the decay of 5 He after ternary fission, is estimated. We summarize the recent progress of the theoretical description of fission neutron spectra in the framework of statistical models considering the standard spectrum of 252 Cf(sf) neutrons especially. The main experimental basis for the study of fission neutron emission is the accurate measurement of emission probabilities as a function of emission energy and angle (at least) as well as fragment parameters (mass number ratio and kinetic energy). The present status is evaluated. (author)

The wastes of nuclear fission; Les dechets de la fission nucleaire

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Doubre, H. [Paris-11 Univ., Centre de Spectrometrie Nucleaire et de Spectrometrie de Masse, IN2P3/CNRS, 91 - Orsay (France)

2005-07-01

In this paper the author presents the problems of the radioactive wastes generated by the nuclear fission. The first part devoted to the fission phenomenon explains the incident neutron energy and the target nuclei role. The second part devoted to the nuclear wastes sources presents the production of wastes upstream of the reactors, in the reactors and why these wastes are dangerous. The third part discusses the radioactive wastes management in France (classification, laws). The last part details the associated research programs: the radionuclides separation, the disposal, the underground storage, the transmutation and the thorium cycle. (A.L.B.)

Double-energy double-velocity measurement system for fission fragments and its application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kanno, Ikuo

1987-10-01

A new system of double-energy double-velocity (DEDV) measurement for fission fragments has been developed. In this system, the energies of fission fragments are measured by silicon surface barrier detectors (SSB) and the velocities by the time-of-flight (TOF) method utilizing thin film detectors (TFD) as start detectors and SSBs as stop detectors of TOF. Theoretical and experimental studies on TFDs and SSBs have been performed before the construction of the DEDV measurement system. The TFD consists of a thin plastic scintillator film and light guide. The author proposes a new model of the luminescence production in a scintillator film. This model takes into account the thickness of the scintillator film and uses only one parameter. The calculated TFD response to charged particles shows good agreement with other experiments. The dependence of the TFD response to the thickness of the scintillator film has been studied experimentally and analyzed by the luminescence production model. The results of this analysis shows the validity of the luminescence production model. The time resolution of the DEDV measurement system using TFDs and SSBs was 133 ps. As an application of this system, the DEDV measurement for the thermal neutron-induced fission of 233 U has been carried out at the super mirror neutron guide tube facility of Kyoto University Reactor (KUR). The energy and velocity of each fission fragment have been stored on magnetic disk event by event in a list mode. The analyzed results of masses, energies and velocities of light and heavy fragments agree well with other authors' works. The value of the total neutron emission number is 2.53 and shows good agreement within experimental error, with the JENDL-2 value, 2.49. The light fragment shows a slightly greater number of neutrons emitted than the other works. This suggests the possibility of larger deformation of light fragments at the scission point. (author)

Fission cross section calculations for 209Bi target nucleus based on fission reaction models in high energy regions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kaplan Abdullah

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Implementation of projects of new generation nuclear power plants requires the solving of material science and technological issues in developing of reactor materials. Melts of heavy metals (Pb, Bi and Pb-Bi due to their nuclear and thermophysical properties, are the candidate coolants for fast reactors and accelerator-driven systems (ADS. In this study, α, γ, p, n and 3He induced fission cross section calculations for 209Bi target nucleus at high-energy regions for (α,f, (γ,f, (p,f, (n,f and (3He,f reactions have been investigated using different fission reaction models. Mamdouh Table, Sierk, Rotating Liquid Drop and Fission Path models of theoretical fission barriers of TALYS 1.6 code have been used for the fission cross section calculations. The calculated results have been compared with the experimental data taken from the EXFOR database. TALYS 1.6 Sierk model calculations exhibit generally good agreement with the experimental measurements for all reactions used in this study.

14. International workshop on nuclear fission physics. Proceedings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2000-01-01

The meetings on nuclear fission took place 12-15 October 1998 and was organized by Institute of Physics and Power Engineering. The aim of the workshop was to present and discuss main new both theoretical and experimental results obtained in the area of nuclear fission, dynamical feature, properties of fission fragments and complementary radiation. As usual the program of the workshop was designed to cover a wide range of physical phenomena - from low energy and spontaneous fission to fission of hot rotating nuclei and multifragmentation at intermediate and high energies. Reaction induced by slow and fast neutron, light and heavy ions were discussed [ru

Least squares analysis of fission neutron standard fields

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Griffin, P.J.; Williams, J.G.

1997-01-01

A least squares analysis of fission neutron standard fields has been performed using the latest dosimetry cross sections. Discrepant nuclear data are identified and adjusted spectra for 252 Cf spontaneous fission and 235 U thermal fission fields are presented

Fission fragment driven neutron source

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, Lowell G.; Young, Robert C.; Brugger, Robert M.

1976-01-01

Fissionable uranium formed into a foil is bombarded with thermal neutrons in the presence of deuterium-tritium gas. The resulting fission fragments impart energy to accelerate deuterium and tritium particles which in turn provide approximately 14 MeV neutrons by the reactions t(d,n).sup.4 He and d(t,n).sup.4 He.

Material synergism fusion-fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sankara Rao, K.B.; Raj, B.; Cook, I.; Kohyama, A.; Dudarev, S.

2007-01-01

In fission and fusion reactors the common features such as operating temperatures and neutron exposures will have the greatest impact on materials performance and component lifetimes. Developing fast neutron irradiation resisting materials is a common issue for both fission and fusion reactors. The high neutron flux levels in both these systems lead to unique materials problems like void swelling, irradiation creep and helium embitterment. Both fission and fusion rely on ferritic-martensitic steels based on 9%Cr compositions for achieving the highest swelling resistance but their creep strength sharply decreases above ∝ 823K. The use of oxide dispersion strengthened (ODS) alloys is envisaged to increase the operating temperature of blanket systems in the fusion reactors and fuel clad tubes in fast breeder reactors. In view of high operating temperatures, cyclic and steady load conditions and the long service life, properties like creep, low cycle fatigue,fracture toughness and creepfatigue interaction are major considerations in the selection of structural materials and design of components for fission and fusion reactors. Currently, materials selection for fusion systems has to be based upon incomplete experimental database on mechanical properties. The usage of fairly well developed databases, in fission programmes on similar materials, is of great help in the initial design of fusion reactor components. Significant opportunities exist for sharing information on technology of irradiation testing, specimen miniaturization, advanced methods of property measurement, safe windows for metal forming, and development of common materials property data base system. Both fusion and fission programs are being directed to development of clean steels with very low trace and tramp elements, characterization of microstructure and phase stability under irradiation, assessment of irradiation creep and swelling behaviour, studies on compatibility with helium and developing

Search for spontaneous fission of 226Ra and systematics of the spontaneous fission, α-decay and cluster decay probabilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mikheev, V.L.; Tret'yakova, S.P.; Golovchenko, A.N.; Timofeeva, O.V.; Hussonnois, M.; Le Naour, C.

1998-01-01

The low limit of the 226 Ra spontaneous fission half-life corresponding to T 1/2 ≥ 4 · 10 18 years is measured. The 226 Ra spontaneous fission probability proved to be about 50 times less than the value expected from the known systematics, connecting the ratios of theα-decay and spontaneous fission probabilities with the fissility parameter Z 2 /A. It is shown that the probabilities of spontaneous fission, α-decay and cluster decay can be systematized in the same way according to the difference between the decay products Coulomb energy near the scission point and decay energy Q

p- and n-induced U-fission tracks as possible error sources in the fission track dating of extraterrestric samples

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thiel, K.

1975-01-01

Using the fission track dating method by means of uranium fission tracks in meteorites and moon samples (according to the successful Apollo and Luna missions), special problems arise, as the samples frequently have a very great age and were subjected to the inmediate effect of primary cosmic radiation. To determine the share of induced fission tracks, an extended 'cosmic ray' simulation experiment was carried out on the p-synchrocyclotron in CERN, Geneva; the performance and results of the test with the proton flux and U fission track measurements are dealt with in detail. (HK/LH) [de

Microscopic Theory of Fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Younes, W; Gogny, D

2008-01-01

In recent years, the microscopic method has been applied to the notoriously difficult problem of nuclear fission with unprecedented success. In this paper, we discuss some of the achievements and promise of the microscopic method, as embodied in the Hartree-Fock method using the Gogny finite-range effective interaction, and beyond-mean-field extensions to the theory. The nascent program to describe induced fission observables using this approach at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is presented

Core degradation and fission product release

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wright, R.W.; Hagen, S.J.L.

1992-01-01

Experiments on core degradation and melt progression in severe LWR accidents have provided reasonable understanding of the principal processes involved in the early phase of melt progression that extends through core degradation and metallic material melting and relocation. A general but not a quantitative understanding of late phase melt progression that involves ceramic material melting and relocation has also been obtained, primarily from the TMI-2 core examination. A summary is given of the current state of knowledge on core degradation and melt progression obtained from these integral experiments and of the principal remaining significant uncertainties. A summary is also given of the principal results on in-vessel fission product release obtained from these experiments. (author). 8 refs, 5 figs, 3 tabs

RSAC, Gamma Doses, Inhalation and Ingestion Doses, Fission Products Inventory after Fission Products Release

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Richardson, L.C.

1967-01-01

1 - Description of problem or function: RSAC generates a fission product inventory from a given set of reactor operating conditions and then computes the external gamma dose, the deposition gamma dose, and the inhalation-ingestion dose to critical body organs as a result of exposure to these fission products. Program output includes reactor operating history, fission product inventory, dosages, and ingestion parameters. 2 - Method of solution: The fission product inventory generated by the reactor operating conditions and the inventory remaining at various times after release are computed using the equations of W. Rubinson in Journal of Chemical Physics, Vol. 17, pages 542-547, June 1949. The external gamma dose and the deposition gamma dose are calculated by determining disintegration rates as a function of space and time, then integrating using Hermite's numerical techniques for the spatial dependence. The inhalation-ingestion dose is determined by the type and quantity of activity inhaled and the biological rate of decay following inhalation. These quantities are integrated with respect to time to obtain the dosage. The ingestion dose is related to the inhalation dose by an input constant

Mass distributions in nucleon-induced fission at intermediate energies

CERN Document Server

Duijvestijn, M C; Hambsch, F J

2001-01-01

Temperature-dependent fission barriers and fission-fragment mass distributions are calculated in the framework of the multimodal random neck-rupture model (MM-RNRM). It is shown how the distinction between the different fission modes disappears at higher excitation energies, due to the melting of shell effects. The fission-fragment mass yield calculations are coupled to the nuclear reaction code ALICE-91, which takes into account the competition between the other reaction channels and fission. With the combination of the temperature-dependent MM-RNRM and ALICE-91 nucleon-induced fission is investigated at energies between 10 and 200 MeV for nuclei varying from Au to Am. (72 refs).

Dosimetric measurement of the disintegration rate of fission products

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Solymosi, J.; Nagy, L.G.; Zagyvai, P.

1992-01-01

Investigations on the disintegration rate of fission products of 238 U and 239 Pu are presented. The intensity of the β-and γ-radiation of fission products were measured continously in an interval of 1-1300 hours following the fission, offering the possibility for determining the general and specific characteristics of the individual fission products. A universal measuring procedure was elaborated for the rapid in situ determination of the dosimetric features of fission products, which is suitable for the accurate evaluation and prediction of external absorbed dose even in case of fission products of various origin and unknown composition. (author) 6 refs.; 7 figs.; 1 tab

Progress in fission product nuclear data. Information about activities in the field of measurements and compilations/evaluations of fission product nuclear data (FPND)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lammer, G.

1978-07-01

This is the fourth issue of a report series on Fission Product Nuclear Data (FPND) which is published by the Nuclear Data Section (NDS) of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The purpose of this series is to inform scientists working on FPND, or using such data, about all activities in this field which are planned, ongoing, or have recently been completed. The main part of this report consists of unaltered original contributions which the authors have sent to IAEA/NDS. The types of activities being included in this report are measurements, compilations and evaluations of: Fission product yields (neutron induced and spontaneous fission); neutron reaction cross sections of fission products; data related to the radioactive decay of fission products; delayed neutron data of fission products; and lumped fission product data (decay heat, absorption etc.)

Dynamics in heavy ion fusion and fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bjoernholm, S.

1972-01-01

Dynamical aspects of heavy ion fussion and fission, mainly the aspect of damping which is meant as the dissipation of kinetic energy and the aspect of the effective mass of the fission motion, are discussed. Two categories of evidence of damping effects are given. One relates to the damping of the fission motion for the ground state shape and for the isomeric more elongated shape. The other relates to the damping of the fission motion from the last barrier to the scission point. The dependence of the effective mass associated with the fission motion on the deormation of nucleus is shown. As the elongation of the nucleus increases the effective mass of the fission motion varies strongly from being about forty times greater than the reduced mass in the beta-vibrational state of the ground state shape to being equal to the reduced mass in the moment of scission. Damping effects are expected to be propartional to the difference between the effective mass and the reduced mass. It is concluded that the damping in fussion reactions is relatively weak for lighter products and quite strong for superheavy products like 236 U or 252 Cf. (S.B.)

Fission properties of the heaviest elements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moller, P.; Nix, R.

1995-01-01

The authors discuss fission properties of the heaviest elements. In particular they focus on stability with respect to spontaneous fission and on the prospects of extending the region of known nuclei beyond the peninsula of currently known nuclides

Separation of fission products by the use of recoil; Separation des produits de fission par utilisation du recul

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Henry, R; Beydon, J; Bardy, A [Commissariat a l' Energie Atomique, Saclay (France).Centre d' Etudes Nucleaires

1960-07-01

We have studied fission recoil in U{sub 3}O{sub 8} organic solvent mixtures. The organic phase chosen was first naphtalene then terphenyl. Graphite and activated carbon were also tried out as recoil media. We first verified that the fission fragments are ejected from the uranium oxide particles under our experimental conditions. The retention phenomenon observed is due to an adsorption occurring either during irradiation or during the chemical treatment. Using naphthalene or terphenyl, the individual separation of the fission products has made it possible to show the influence of the chemical nature of the recoil medium on the retention of each fission product. We put forward a hypothesis concerning this phenomenon: experiments carried out using 'scavengers', together with kinetic studies make it possible to explain the retention phenomenon and to choose the most favorable conditions for reducing this retention to a low value. The thermal recombination kinetics demonstrate the influence of the fission ion charge on the final value of the retention for a given temperature. The origins of this thermal recombination are discussed. (author) [French] On a etudie le recul de fission dans les melanges U{sub 3}0{sub 8}, phase organique. La phase organique choisie a ete le naphtalene puis le terphenyle. Le graphite et le charbon actif ont egalement ete essayes comme milieux de recul. On a d'abord determine que les fragments de fission sortent des particules d'oxyde d'uranium avec un rendement de 100 pour cent dans nos conditions experimentales. Le phenomene de retention observe est du a une adsorption ayant lieu pendant l'irradiation ou pendant le traitement chimique. Dans le naphtalene et le terphenyle, la separation individuelle des produits de fission a permis de mettre en evidence l'influence de la nature chimique du milieu de recul sur la retention de chaque produit de fission. On avance une hypothese sur ce phenomene: des experiences effectuees avec des 'scavengers

Determination of 233U, 235U, 238U and 239Pu fission yields induced by fission and 14.7 MeV neutrons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Laurec, Jean; Adam, Albert; Bruyne, Thierry de.

1981-12-01

The 233 U, 235 U, 238 U, 239 Pu fission yields have been determined by a radiochemical method. A target and a fission chamber made of same fissible material are irradied together. The total fission number is measured from the fission chamber. The fission product activities are directly measured on the target using calibrated Ge-Li detectors. The fissible material masses are determined by alpha and mass spectrometries. The irradiations were made on the critical assemblies PROSPERO and CALIBAN and on the 14 MeV neutron generator of C.E. VALDUC. 3 to 5% fission yield errors are got for the most measured nuclides: 95 Zr, 97 Zr, 99 Mo, 103 Ru, 131 I, 132 Te, 140 Ba, 141 Ce, 143 Ce, 144 Ce, 147 Nd [fr

Process for the extraction of fission products

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anav, M.; Chesne, A.; Leseur, A.; Miquel, P.; Pascard, R.

1979-01-01

A process is described for the extraction of fission products contained in irradiated nuclear fuel elements which have been subject to a temperature of at least 1200 0 C during their irradiation prior to dissolving the fuel by the wet process. After mechanically treating the elements in order to decan and/or cut them they are brought into contact with water in order to pass the fission products into aqueous solution. The treated elements are then separated from the thus obtained aqueous solution. At least one of the fission products is then recovered from the aqueous solution. The fission products are iodine, cesium, rubidium and tritium

Separation of short-lived fission products

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tamai, Tadaharu; Ohyoshi, Emiko; Ohyoshi, Akira; Kiso, Yoshiyuki; Shinagawa, Mutsuaki.

1976-01-01

A rbief review is presented on the various methods of separation available for both gaseous and liquid states, for the separation of short-lived fission products formed by binary fission of neutron irradiated uranium. The means available for gaseous state are the hot atom reaction, the hydride method and on-line mass separation. For liquid state, use can be made of precipitation, ionic or atomic exchange, solvent extraction and paper electrophoresis. Particular reference is made to electrophoretic separation of ions produced by fission in aqueous solution of uranium. The principle of electrophoretic separation and the procedures for separating the element of interest from the other fission products are outlined, with reference made to the results obtained with the method by the present authors. The elements in question are alkalines, alkaline earths, rare earths, halogens, selenium and

Measurements of Fission Cross Sections of Actinides

CERN Multimedia

Wiescher, M; Cox, J; Dahlfors, M

2002-01-01

A measurement of the neutron induced fission cross sections of $^{237}$Np, $^{241},{243}$Am and of $^{245}$Cm is proposed for the n_TOF neutron beam. Two sets of fission detectors will be used: one based on PPAC counters and another based on a fast ionization chamber (FIC). A total of 5x10$^{18}$ protons are requested for the entire fission measurement campaign.

Fission track geochronology of Eastern Ghats

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Virk, H S; Koul, S L; Singh, S [Punjabi Univ., Patiala (India). Dept. of Physics

1978-12-01

Fission track geochronology of Eastern Ghats has been established by using fission track technique in dating micaceous and accessory minerals occurring in the region. Annealing studies confirm that radiation damage fossil tracks can be erased in minerals under intense metamorphic episodes thus resetting the geological clock. The fission track ages of the minerals range between 450 +- 5 m.y. to 622 +- 148 m.y. It is concluded that f.t. ages of the minerals date the last metamorphic event of the Eastern Ghats, known as the Indian Ocean Cycle.

Preliminary results utilizing high-energy fission product γ-rays to detect fissionable material in cargo

Science.gov (United States)

Slaughter, D. R.; Accatino, M. R.; Bernstein, A.; Church, J. A.; Descalle, M. A.; Gosnell, T. B.; Hall, J. M.; Loshak, A.; Manatt, D. R.; Mauger, G. J.; Moore, T. L.; Norman, E. B.; Pohl, B. A.; Pruet, J. A.; Petersen, D. C.; Walling, R. S.; Weirup, D. L.; Prussin, S. G.; McDowell, M.

2005-12-01

A concept for detecting the presence of special nuclear material (235U or 239Pu) concealed in intermodal cargo containers is described. It is based on interrogation with a pulsed beam of 7 MeV neutrons that produce fission events and their β-delayed neutron emission or β-delayed high-energy γ radiation between beam pulses provide the detection signature. Fission product β-delayed γ-rays above 3 MeV are nearly 10 times more abundant than β-delayed neutrons and are distinct from natural radioactivity and from nearly all of the induced activity in a normal cargo. Detector backgrounds and potential interferences with the fission signature radiation have been identified and quantified.

Fission of heavy nuclei: microscopic study of fission barriers and fragments angular momentum; Fission des noyaux lourds: etude microscopique des barrieres de fission et du moment angulaire des fragments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bonneau, L

2003-11-01

A lot of experimental data on nuclear fission has been being collected for the last 65 years, allowing theoreticians to confront their models with reality. The first part of this work is dedicated to the computation of fission barriers. We have extended the HF + BCS (Hartree Fock + Bandeen-Cooper-Schrieffer) method in order to include a new set of polynomials on which wave functions can be broken to, more accurately than on Hermite's polynomials in the 2 fragment configuration. The fission barriers of 26 heavy nuclei from Thorium-230 to Nobelium-256 have been assessed and compared to experimental data, it appears that differences are no greater than 1 MeV. We have discovered a neat correlation between the variation of the experimental fission lifetimes of even Fermium isotopes and the computed heights of second barriers. Moreover our model reproduces the hyper-deformed well of Thorium-230 with a good agreement on the well depth. The second part deals with the scission region. We have performed Hartree-Fock calculations in order to explore different ways of fragmentation. We have shown that the harmonic oscillator gives a valid description of such ways. In order to compute the mean value of J{sup 2} in the fragments we have been driven to propose an adequate definition of that quantity consistent with the non-locality property of the J{sup 2} operator. (A.C.)

Determination of the quadrupole moment of the fission-isomeric state in 238U by a modified charge-plunger method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pedersen, J.; Goerlach, U.; Habs, D.; Just, M.; Metag, V.; Mosler, E.; Schukraft, J.; Singer, P.; Specht, H.J.; Ulfert, G.

1978-01-01

A modified version of the charge plunger method has been developed which, by utilizing electrostatic fields, renders possible the separation of low- and high-charge recoil ions over short flight distances. With this technique the quadrupole moment of the 200 ns fission isomer in 238 U has been determined to be (29 +- 3) b. The corresponding deformation of c/a = (1.8 +- 0.1) provides another quantitative proof for shape isomerism in the actinide region. (orig.) [de

Thermochromatographic investigations of fission product transport and chemistry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Growcock, F.B.; Aronson, S.; Friedlander, M.; Skalyo, J. Jr.; Hosseini, A.; Taylor, R.D.

1978-01-01

A thermochromatographic technique has been developed to investigate the chemical states of fission products from irradiated fuel as well as in fission product simulation studies. Some recent work on iodine transport and on release of fission products from irradiated fuel kernels will be discussed

Fission of heavy nuclei: microscopic study of fission barriers and fragments angular momentum

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bonneau, L.

2003-11-01

A lot of experimental data on nuclear fission has been being collected for the last 65 years, allowing theoreticians to confront their models with reality. The first part of this work is dedicated to the computation of fission barriers. We have extended the HF + BCS (Hartree Fock + Bandeen-Cooper-Schrieffer) method in order to include a new set of polynomials on which wave functions can be broken to, more accurately than on Hermite's polynomials in the 2 fragment configuration. The fission barriers of 26 heavy nuclei from Thorium-230 to Nobelium-256 have been assessed and compared to experimental data, it appears that differences are no greater than 1 MeV. We have discovered a neat correlation between the variation of the experimental fission lifetimes of even Fermium isotopes and the computed heights of second barriers. Moreover our model reproduces the hyper-deformed well of Thorium-230 with a good agreement on the well depth. The second part deals with the scission region. We have performed Hartree-Fock calculations in order to explore different ways of fragmentation. We have shown that the harmonic oscillator gives a valid description of such ways. In order to compute the mean value of J 2 in the fragments we have been driven to propose an adequate definition of that quantity consistent with the non-locality property of the J 2 operator. (A.C.)

Measurement of fission yields far from the center of isotopic distributions in the thermal neutron fission of 235U

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shmid, M.

1979-08-01

The main purpose of this work was to measure independent yields, in the thermal neutron fission of 235 U, of fission products which lie far from the centers of the isotopic and isobaric yield distributions. These measurements were used to test the predictions of semi-empirical systematics of fission yields and theoretical fission models. Delay times were measured as a function of temperature in the range 1200-2000degC. The very low delay times achieved in the present work permitted expanding the measurable region to the isotopes 147 , 148 Cs and 99 Rb which are of special interest in the present work. The delay times of Sr and Ba isotopes achieved were more than two orders of magnitude lower than values reported in the literature and thus short-lived isotopes of these elements could be separated for the first time by mass spectrometry. The half-lives of 147 Ba, 148 Ba, 149 La and 149 Ce were measured for the first time. The isotopic distributions of fission yields were measured for the elements Rb, Sr, Cs and Ba in the thermal neutron fission of 235 U, those of 99 Rb, 147 Cs and 148 Cs having been measured for the first time. A comparison of the experimental yields with the predictions of the currently accepted semi-empirical systematics of fission yields, which is the odd-even effect systematics, shows that the systematics succeeds in accounting for the strong odd-even proton effect and the weaker odd-even neutron effect and also in predicting the shape of the distributions in the central region. It is shown that prompt neutron emission broadens the distribution only slightly in the wing of heavy isotopes and more significantly in the wing of light isotopes. But the effect of prompt neutron emission cannot explain the large discrepancies existing between the predictions of fission models and the experimentally measured fission yield in the wings of the isotopic distributions. (B.G.)

Fusion--fission hybrid concepts for laser-induced fusion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maniscalco, J.

1976-01-01

Fusion-fission hybrid concepts are viewed as subcritical fission reactors driven and controlled by high-energy neutrons from a laser-induced fusion reactor. Blanket designs encompassing a substantial portion of the spectrum of different fission reactor technologies are analyzed and compared by calculating their fissile-breeding and fusion-energy-multiplying characteristics. With a large number of different fission technologies to choose from, it is essential to identify more promising hybrid concepts that can then be subjected to in-depth studies that treat the engineering safety, and economic requirements as well as the neutronic aspects. In the course of neutronically analyzing and comparing several fission blanket concepts, this work has demonstrated that fusion-fission hybrids can be designed to meet a broad spectrum of fissile-breeding and fusion-energy-multiplying requirements. The neutronic results should prove to be extremely useful in formulating the technical scope of future studies concerned with evaluating the technical and economic feasibility of hybrid concepts for laser-induced fusion

Contributions to the theory of fission neutron emission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seeliger, D.; Maerten, H.; Ruben, A.

1990-03-01

This report gives a compilation of recent work performed at Technical University, Dresden by D. Seeliger, H. Maerten and A. Ruben on the topic of fission neutron emission. In the first paper calculated fission neutron spectra are presented using the temperature distribution model FINESSE for fissioning actinide nuclei. In the second paper, starting from a general energy balance, Terrell's approach is generalized to describe average fragment energies as a function of incident energy; trends of fragment energy data in the Th-Pu region are well reproduced. In the third contribution, prompt fission neutron spectra and fragment characteristics for spontaneous fission of even Pu-isotopes are presented and discussed in comparison with experimental data using a phenomenological scission point model including temperature dependent shell effects. In the fourth paper, neutron multiplicities and energy spectra as well as average fragment energies for incident energies from threshold to 20 MeV (including multiple-chance fission) for U-238 are compared with traditional data representations. (author). Refs, figs and tabs

Fission fragment angular distributions in proton-induced fission of 209Bi (p,f) and 197Au (p,f)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Soheily, S.; Noshad, H.; Lamehi-Rashti, M.

2002-01-01

The fission fragment angular distributions have been measured for proton-induced fission of 209 B i and 197 A u nuclei using surface barrier detectors at several energies between 25 MeV and 30 MeV. The experimental anisotropies are found to be in agreement with the predictions of the Standard Saddle-Point Statistical Model. The fission cross sections of 209 B i and 197 A u nuclei were also measured and compared with the previous works

Ternary fission of spontaneously fissile uranium isomers excited by neutrons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Makarenko, V.E.; Molchanov, Y.D.; Otroshchenko, G.A.; Yan'kov, G.B.

1989-01-01

Spontaneously fissile isomers (SFI) of uranium were excited in the reactions 236,238 U(n,n') at an average neutron energy 4.5 MeV. A pulsed electrostatic accelerator and time analysis of the fission events were used. Fission fragments were detected by the scintillation method, and long-range particles from fission were detected by an ionization method. The relative probability of fission of nuclei through a spontaneously fissile isomeric state was measured: (1.30±0.01)·10 -4 ( 236 U) and (1.48±0.02)·10 -4 ( 238 U). Half-lives of the isomers were determined: 121±2 nsec (the SFI 236 U) and 267±13 nsec (the SFI 238 U). In study of the ternary fission of spontaneously fissile isotopes of uranium it was established that the probability of the process amounts to one ternary fission per 163±44 binary fissions of the SFI 236 U and one ternary fission per 49±14 binary fissions of the SFI 238 U. The substantial increase of the probability of ternary fission of SFI of uranium in comparison with the case of ternary fission of nuclei which are not in an isomeric state may be related to a special nucleon configuration of the fissile isomers of uranium

ENDF/B-5. Fission Product Yields File

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schwerer, O.

1985-10-01

The ENDF/B-5 Fission Product Yields File contains a complete set of independent and cumulative fission product yields, representing the final data from ENDF/B-5 as received at the IAEA Nuclear Data Section in June 1985. Yields for 11 fissioning nuclides at one or more neutron incident energies are included. The data are available costfree on magnetic tape from the IAEA Nuclear Data Section. (author). 4 refs

Fission-gas-bubble mobility in oxide fuel: a critical analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tam, S.W.; Johnson, C.E.

1983-08-01

The available volatile fission product release data has confirmed the general viability of the scaling model of volatile fission product release in which the fractional release rates of the volatile fission products scale as that of the fission gas. The question of whether fission gas bubbles can move sufficiently fast to be a significant mechanism responsible for fission gas release from the fuel is considered. The mean jump distance per jump of the hopping process in gas bubble motion is analyzed. Surface roughness is also considered

Study of the number of neutrons produced by fission of {sup 239}Pu; Etude du nombre de neutrons produits par la fission de {sup 239}Pu

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jacob, M [Commissariat a l' Energie Atomique, Saclay (France). Centre d' Etudes Nucleaires

1958-07-01

Study of the number of neutrons produced by fission of {sup 239}Pu. The counting by coincidence of fissions and neutrons produced by these fissions allows the study of the variation of the mean number of neutrons emitted by {nu} fission. In the first chapter, it studied the variation of the mean number of neutrons emitted by {sup 239}Pu fission with the energy of the incident neutron. A description of the experiment is given: a spectrometer with a crystal of sodium chloride or beryllium (mounted on a goniometer) is used, a fission chamber containing 10 mg of {sup 239}Pu and the neutron detection system constituted of BF{sub 3} counters which are enriched in {sup 10}B. In the second part, the counting by coincidence of fissions and neutrons produced by the same fission and received by two different groups of counters allow the determination of a relationship between the root mean square and the average of neutron number produced by fission. The variation of the mean number of neutrons emitted by fission of {sup 239}Pu is studied when we change from a thermal spectra of neutrons to a fission spectra of incident neutrons. Finally, when separating in two different part the fission chamber, it is possible to measure the mean number of neutrons emitted from fission of two different sources. It compared the mean number of neutrons emitted by fission of {sup 239}Pu and {sup 233}U. (M.P.)

Fission cross section ratios for 233,234,236U relative to 235U from 0.5 to 400 MeV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lisowski, P.W.; Gavron, A.; Parker, W.E.; Balestrini, S.J.; Carlson, A.D.; Wasson, O.A.; Hill, N.W.

1991-01-01

Neutron-induced fission cross section ratios from 0.5 to 400 MeV for samples of 233, 234, 236 U relative to 235 U have been measured at the WNR neutron Source at Los Alamos. The fission reaction rate was determined using a fast parallel plate ionization chamber at a 20-m flight path. Cross sections over most the energy range were also extracted using the neutron fluence determined with three different proton telescope arrangements. Those data provided the shape of the 235 U(n,f) cross section relative to the hydrogen scattering cross section. That shape was then normalized to the very accurately known value for 235 U(n,f) at 14.1 MeV to allow us to obtain cross section section values from the ratio data and our values for 235 U(n,f). 6 refs., 1 fig

Fission cross section ratios for 233,234,236U relative to 235U from 0.5 to 400 MeV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lisowski, P.W.; Gavron, A.; Parker, W.E.; Balestrini, S.J.; Carlson, A.D.; Wasson, O.A.; Hill, N.W.

1992-01-01

Neutron-induced fission cross section ratios from 0.5 to 400 MeV for samples of 233,234,236 U relative to 235 U have been measured at the WNR neutron Source at Los Alamos. The fission reaction rate was determined using a fast parallel plate ionization chamber at a 20-m flight path. Cross sections over most of the energy range were also extracted using the neutron fluence determined with three different proton telescope arrangements. Those data provided the shape of the 235 U(n, f) cross section relative to the hydrogen scattering cross section. That shape was then normalized to the very accurately known value for 235 U(n, f) at 14.1 MeV which will allow us to obtain cross section values from the ratio data and our values for 235 U(n, f). (orig.)

Bimodality in macroscopic dynamics of nuclear fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bastrukov, S.I.; Salamatin, V.S.; Strteltsova, O.I.; Molodtsova, I.V.; Podgainy, D.V.; )

2000-01-01

The elastodynamic collective model of nuclear fission is outlined whose underlying idea is that the stiff structure of nuclear shells imparts to nucleus properties typical of a small piece of an elastic solid. Emphasis is placed on the macroscopic dynamics of nuclear deformations resulting in fission by two energetically different modes. The low-energy S-mode is the fission due to disruption of elongated quadrupole spheroidal shape. The characteristic features of the high-energy T-mode of division by means of torsional shear deformations is the compact scission configuration. Analytic and numerical estimates for the macroscopic fission-barrier heights are presented, followed by discussion of fingerprints of the above dynamical bimodality in the available data [ru

Fission cross section measurements at intermediate energies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Laptev, Alexander

2005-01-01

The activity in intermediate energy particle induced fission cross-section measurements of Pu, U isotopes, minor actinides and sub-actinides in PNPI of Russia is reviewed. The neutron-induced fission cross-section measurements are under way in the wide energy range of incident neutrons from 0.5 MeV to 200 MeV at the GNEIS facility. In number of experiments at the GNEIS facility, the neutron-induced fission cross sections were obtained for many nuclei. In another group of experiments the proton-induced fission cross-section have been measured for proton energies ranging from 200 to 1000 MeV at 100 MeV intervals using the proton beam of PNPI synchrocyclotron. (author)

Feasibility study on fission moly target development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Byung Ku; Kim, Seong Nyun; Shon, Dong Seong; Choi, Chang Beom; Lee, Jae Kuk; Park, Jin Ho; Jeong, Won Myung; Jeon, Kwan Sik; You, Jae Hyung; Kang, Kyung Chul; Ahn, Jong Hwan; Ju, Po Kuk

1996-01-01

A multi-purpose research reactor, HANARO has been operated on the beginning of 1995 and can be utilized for production of various radioisotopes. And a R and D program for fission Mo production was established, and the technical and economical feasibility study has been performed for fission Mo production in Korea. In this study the process for fission Mo production was recommended as follows; 1. Target : UO 2 of annulus type. 2. Separation and purification : Nitric acid dissolution → Alumina adsorption → Benzoin oxime precipitation → Alumina adsorption. And more desirable plan for steady supply of fission Mo were suggested in following viewpoints; 1. Technical collaboration with foreign company. 2. Backup supply system. 3. Marketing arrangement. (Author)

Fission Reaction Event Yield Algorithm FREYA 2.0.2

Science.gov (United States)

Verbeke, J. M.; Randrup, J.; Vogt, R.

2018-01-01

FREYA (Fission Reaction Event Yield Algorithm) is a fission event generator which models complete fission events. As such, it automatically includes fluctuations as well as correlations between observables, resulting from conservation of energy and momentum. The purpose of this paper is to present the main differences between FREYA versions 1.0 and 2.0.2 : additional fissionable isotopes, angular momentum conservation, Giant Dipole Resonance form factor for the statistical emission of photons, improved treatment of fission photon emission using RIPL database, and dependence on the incident neutron direction. FREYA 2.0.2 has been integrated into the LLNL Fission Library 2.0.2, which has itself been integrated into MCNP6.2, TRIPOLI-4.10, and can be called from Geant4.10.

Fission gas measuring technology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Hyung Kwon; Kim, Eun Ka; Hwang, Yong Hwa; Lee, Eun Pyo; Chun, Yong Bum; Seo, Ki Seog; Park, Dea Gyu; Chu, Yong Sun; Ahn, Sang Bok.

1998-02-01

Safety and economy of nuclear plant are greatly affected by the integrity of nuclear fuels during irradiation reactor core. A series of post-irradiation examination (PIE) including non-destructive and destructive test is to be conducted to evaluate and characterize the nuclear performance. In this report, a principle of the examination equipment to measure and analyse fission gases existing nuclear fuels were described and features of the component and device consisting the fission gas measuring equipment are investigated. (author). 4 refs., 2 tabs., 6 figs

Fission gas measuring technology

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Hyung Kwon; Kim, Eun Ka; Hwang, Yong Hwa; Lee, Eun Pyo; Chun, Yong Bum; Seo, Ki Seog; Park, Dea Gyu; Chu, Yong Sun; Ahn, Sang Bok

1998-02-01

Safety and economy of nuclear plant are greatly affected by the integrity of nuclear fuels during irradiation reactor core. A series of post-irradiation examination (PIE) including non-destructive and destructive test is to be conducted to evaluate and characterize the nuclear performance. In this report, a principle of the examination equipment to measure and analyse fission gases existing nuclear fuels were described and features of the component and device consisting the fission gas measuring equipment are investigated. (author). 4 refs., 2 tabs., 6 figs.

Fission of heavy hypernuclei

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nifenecker, H.

1993-01-01

The results on delayed and prompt fission of heavy hypernuclei obtained by the LEAR PS177 collaboration are recalled and discussed. It is shown that the hypernuclei life-times can be explained in term of a weak strangeness violating lambda-nucleon interaction with a cross section close to 6.0 10 -15 barns. The lambda attachment function is shown to be sensitive to the scission configuration, just before fission, and to the neck dynamics. This function provides a new way to study the nuclear scission process. (author)

Studies on fission with ALADIN. Precise and simultaneous measurement of fission yields, total kinetic energy and total prompt neutron multiplicity at GSI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martin, Julie-Fiona; Taieb, Julien; Chatillon, Audrey; Belier, Gilbert; Boutoux, Guillaume; Ebran, Adeline; Gorbinet, Thomas; Grente, Lucie; Laurent, Benoit; Pellereau, Eric; Alvarez-Pol, Hector; Ayyad, Yassid; Benlliure, Jose; Cortina Gil, Dolores; Caamano, Manuel; Fernandez Dominguez, Beatriz; Paradela, Carlos; Ramos, Diego; Rodriguez-Sanchez, Jose-Luis; Vargas, Jossitt; Audouin, Laurent; Tassan-Got, Laurent; Aumann, Thomas; Casarejos, Enrique; Farget, Fanny; Rodriguez-Tajes, Carme; Heinz, Andreas; Jurado, Beatriz; Kelic-Heil, Aleksandra; Kurz, Nikolaus; Nociforo, Chiara; Pietri, Stephane; Rossi, Dominic; Schmidt, Karl-Heinz; Simon, Haik; Voss, Bernd; Weick, Helmut

2015-01-01

A novel technique for fission studies, based on the inverse kinematics approach, is presented. Following pioneering work in the nineties, the SOFIA Collaboration has designed and built an experimental set-up dedicated to the simultaneous measurement of isotopic yields, total kinetic energies and total prompt neutron multiplicities, by fully identifying both fission fragments in coincidence, for the very first time. This experiment, performed at GSI, permits to study the fission of a wide variety of fissioning systems, ranging from mercury to neptunium, possibly far from the valley of stability. A first experiment, performed in 2012, has provided a large array of unprecedented data regarding the nuclear fission process. An excerpt of the results is presented. With this solid starter, further improvements of the experimental set-up are considered, which are consistent with the expected developments at the GSI facility, in order to measure more fission observables in coincidence. The completeness reached in the SOFIA data, permits to scrutinize the correlations between the interesting features of fission, offering a very detailed insight in this still unraveled mechanism. (orig.)

Studies on fission with ALADIN. Precise and simultaneous measurement of fission yields, total kinetic energy and total prompt neutron multiplicity at GSI

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Martin, Julie-Fiona; Taieb, Julien; Chatillon, Audrey; Belier, Gilbert; Boutoux, Guillaume; Ebran, Adeline; Gorbinet, Thomas; Grente, Lucie; Laurent, Benoit; Pellereau, Eric [CEA DAM Bruyeres-le-Chatel, Arpajon (France); Alvarez-Pol, Hector; Ayyad, Yassid; Benlliure, Jose; Cortina Gil, Dolores; Caamano, Manuel; Fernandez Dominguez, Beatriz; Paradela, Carlos; Ramos, Diego; Rodriguez-Sanchez, Jose-Luis; Vargas, Jossitt [Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela (Spain); Audouin, Laurent; Tassan-Got, Laurent [CNRS/IN2P3, IPNO, Orsay (France); Aumann, Thomas [Technische Universitaet Darmstadt, Darmstadt (Germany); Casarejos, Enrique [Universidad de Vigo, Vigo (Spain); Farget, Fanny; Rodriguez-Tajes, Carme [CNRS/IN2P3, GANIL, Caen (France); Heinz, Andreas [Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg (Sweden); Jurado, Beatriz [CNRS/IN2P3, CENBG, Gradignan (France); Kelic-Heil, Aleksandra; Kurz, Nikolaus; Nociforo, Chiara; Pietri, Stephane; Rossi, Dominic; Schmidt, Karl-Heinz; Simon, Haik; Voss, Bernd; Weick, Helmut [GSI Helmholtzzentrum fuer Schwerionenforschung GmbH, Darmstadt (Germany)

2015-12-15

A novel technique for fission studies, based on the inverse kinematics approach, is presented. Following pioneering work in the nineties, the SOFIA Collaboration has designed and built an experimental set-up dedicated to the simultaneous measurement of isotopic yields, total kinetic energies and total prompt neutron multiplicities, by fully identifying both fission fragments in coincidence, for the very first time. This experiment, performed at GSI, permits to study the fission of a wide variety of fissioning systems, ranging from mercury to neptunium, possibly far from the valley of stability. A first experiment, performed in 2012, has provided a large array of unprecedented data regarding the nuclear fission process. An excerpt of the results is presented. With this solid starter, further improvements of the experimental set-up are considered, which are consistent with the expected developments at the GSI facility, in order to measure more fission observables in coincidence. The completeness reached in the SOFIA data, permits to scrutinize the correlations between the interesting features of fission, offering a very detailed insight in this still unraveled mechanism. (orig.)

Fission Surface Power Technology Development Update

Science.gov (United States)

Palac, Donald T.; Mason, Lee S.; Houts, Michael G.; Harlow, Scott

2011-01-01

Power is a critical consideration in planning exploration of the surfaces of the Moon, Mars, and places beyond. Nuclear power is an important option, especially for locations in the solar system where sunlight is limited or environmental conditions are challenging (e.g., extreme cold, dust storms). NASA and the Department of Energy are maintaining the option for fission surface power for the Moon and Mars by developing and demonstrating technology for a fission surface power system. The Fission Surface Power Systems project has focused on subscale component and subsystem demonstrations to address the feasibility of a low-risk, low-cost approach to space nuclear power for surface missions. Laboratory demonstrations of the liquid metal pump, reactor control drum drive, power conversion, heat rejection, and power management and distribution technologies have validated that the fundamental characteristics and performance of these components and subsystems are consistent with a Fission Surface Power preliminary reference concept. In addition, subscale versions of a non-nuclear reactor simulator, using electric resistance heating in place of the reactor fuel, have been built and operated with liquid metal sodium-potassium and helium/xenon gas heat transfer loops, demonstrating the viability of establishing system-level performance and characteristics of fission surface power technologies without requiring a nuclear reactor. While some component and subsystem testing will continue through 2011 and beyond, the results to date provide sufficient confidence to proceed with system level technology readiness demonstration. To demonstrate the system level readiness of fission surface power in an operationally relevant environment (the primary goal of the Fission Surface Power Systems project), a full scale, 1/4 power Technology Demonstration Unit (TDU) is under development. The TDU will consist of a non-nuclear reactor simulator, a sodium-potassium heat transfer loop, a power

Simulation of Fission Product Liftoff Behavior During Depressurization Transients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tak, Nam-il; Yoon, Churl; Lee, Sung Nam

2016-01-01

As one of crucial technologies for the NHDD project, the development of the GAMMA-FP code is on-going. The GAMMA-FP code is targeted for fission product transport analysis under accident conditions. A well-known experiment named COMEDIE considered two important phenomena, i.e., fission product plateout and liftoff, for fission product transport within the primary circuit of a prismatic high temperature gas cooled reactor. The accumulated fission products on the structural material via the plateout can be liftoff during a blowdown phase after a pipe break accident. Since the fission product liftoff can increase a radioactivity risk, it is important to predict the amount of fission product liftoff during depressurization accidents. In this work, a model for fission product liftoff is implemented into the GAMMA-FP code and the GAMMA-FP code with the implemented model is validated using the COMEDIE blowdown test data. The results of GAMMA-FP show that the GAMMA-FP code can reliably simulate a pressure transient during blowdown phase after a pipe break accident. In addition, a reasonable amount of fission product liftoff was predicted by the GAMMA-FP code. The maximum difference between the measured and predicted liftoff fraction was less than a factor of 10. More in-depth study is required to increase the accuracy of prediction for a fission product liftoff

Fusion-fission dynamics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blocki, J.; Planeta, R.; Brzychczyk, J.; Grotowski, K.

1991-04-01

Classical dynamical calculations of the heavy ion induced fission process for the reactions 40 Ar+ 141 Pr, 20 Ne+ 165 Ho and 12 C+ 175 Lu leading to the iridium like nucleus have been performed. As a result prescission lifetimes were obtained and compared with the experimental values. The agreement between the calculated and experimental lifetimes indicates that the one-body dissipation picture is much more relevant in describing the fusion-fission dynamics than the two-body one. Somewhat bigger calculated times than the experimental ones in case of the C+Lu reaction at 16 MeV/nucleon may be a signal on the energy range applicability of the one-body dissipation model. (author)

International handling of fissionable material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1975-01-01

The opinion of the ministry for foreign affairs on international handling of fissionable materials is given. As an introduction a survey is given of the possibilities to produce nuclear weapons from materials used in or produced by power reactors. Principles for international control of fissionable materials are given. International agreements against proliferation of nuclear weapons are surveyed and methods to improve them are proposed. (K.K.)

Fission-product SiC reaction in HTGR fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Montgomery, F.

1981-01-01

The primary barrier to release of fission product from any of the fuel types into the primary circuit of the HTGR are the coatings on the fuel particles. Both pyrolytic carbon and silicon carbide coatings are very effective in retaining fission gases under normal operating conditions. One of the possible performance limitations which has been observed in irradiation tests of TRISO fuel is chemical interaction of the SiC layer with fission products. This reaction reduces the thickness of the SiC layer in TRISO particles and can lead to release of fission products from the particles if the SiC layer is completely penetrated. The experimental section of this report describes the results of work at General Atomic concerning the reaction of fission products with silicon carbide. The discussion section describes data obtained by various laboratories and includes (1) a description of the fission products which have been found to react with SiC; (2) a description of the kinetics of silicon carbide thinning caused by fission product reaction during out-of-pile thermal gradient heating and the application of these kinetics to in-pile irradiation; and (3) a comparison of silicon carbide thinning in LEU and HEU fuels

Neutronics of Laser Fission-Fusion Systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Velarde, G.

1976-01-01

Neutronics of Fission-Fusion microsystems inertially confined by Lasers are analysed by transport calculation, both stationary (DTF, TIHOC) and time dependent (TDA, TIHEX), discussing the results obtained for the basic parameters of the fission process (multiplication factor, neutron generation time and Rossi-∞). (Author) 14 refs

Neutronics of Laser Fission-Fusion Systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Velarde, G

1976-07-01

Neutronics of Fission-Fusion microsystems inertially confined by Lasers are analysed by transport calculation, both stationary (DTF, TIHOC) and time dependent (TDA, TIHEX), discussing the results obtained for the basic parameters of the fission process (multiplication factor, neutron generation time and Rossi-{infinity}). (Author) 14 refs.

Absolute calibration technique for spontaneous fission sources

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zucker, M.S.; Karpf, E.

1984-01-01

An absolute calibration technique for a spontaneously fissioning nuclide (which involves no arbitrary parameters) allows unique determination of the detector efficiency for that nuclide, hence of the fission source strength

Energy from nuclear fission an introduction

CERN Document Server

De Sanctis, Enzo; Ripani, Marco

2016-01-01

This book provides an overview on nuclear physics and energy production from nuclear fission. It serves as a readable and reliable source of information for anyone who wants to have a well-balanced opinion about exploitation of nuclear fission in power plants. The text is divided into two parts; the first covers the basics of nuclear forces and properties of nuclei, nuclear collisions, nuclear stability, radioactivity, and provides a detailed discussion of nuclear fission and relevant topics in its application to energy production. The second part covers the basic technical aspects of nuclear fission reactors, nuclear fuel cycle and resources, safety, safeguards, and radioactive waste management. The book also contains a discussion of the biological effects of nuclear radiation and of radiation protection, and a summary of the ten most relevant nuclear accidents. The book is suitable for undergraduates in physics, nuclear engineering and other science subjects. However, the mathematics is kept at a level that...

Fission neutron output measurements at LANSCE

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nelson, Ronald Owen; Haight, Robert C.; Devlin, Matthew J.; Fotiadis, Nikolaos; Laptev, Alexander; O'Donnell, John M.; Taddeucci, Terry N.; Tovesson, Fredrik; Ullmann, J.L.; Wender, Stephen A.; Bredeweg, T.A.; Jandel, M.; Vieira, D.J.; Wu, Ching-Yen; Becker, J.A.; Stoyer, M.A.; Henderson, R.; Sutton, M.; Belier, Gilbert; Chatillon, A.; Granier, Thierry; Laurent, Benoit; Taieb, Julien

2010-01-01

Accurate data for both physical properties and fission properties of materials are necessary to properly model dynamic fissioning systems. To address the need for accurate data on fission neutron energy spectra, especially at outgoing neutron energies below about 200 keV and at energies above 8 MeV, ongoing work at LANSCE involving collaborators from LANL, LLNL and CEA Bruyeres-le-Chatel is extending the energy range, efficiency and accuracy beyond previous measurements. Initial work in the outgoing neutron energy range from 1 to 7 MeV is consistent with current evaluations and provides a foundation for extended measurements. As part of these efforts, a new fission fragment detector that reduces backgrounds and improves timing has been designed fabricated and tested, and new neutron detectors are being assessed for optimal characteristics. Simulations of experimental designs are in progress to ensure that accuracy goals are met. Results of these measurements will be incorporated into evaluations and data libraries as they become available.

Fission rate measurements in fuel plate type assembly reactor cores

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rogers, J.W.

1988-01-01

The methods, materials and equipment have been developed to allow extensive and precise measurement of fission rate distributions in water moderated, U-Al fuel plate assembly type reactor cores. Fission rate monitors are accurately positioned in the reactor core, the reactor is operated at a low power for a short time, the fission rate monitors are counted with detectors incorporating automated sample changers and the measurements are converted to fission rate distributions. These measured fission rate distributions have been successfully used as baseline information related to the operation of test and experimental reactors with respect to fission power and distribution, fuel loading and fission experiments for approximately twenty years at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL). 7 refs., 8 figs

Report of fission study meeting

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1986-03-01

This book is the report of fission Study Meeting held from September 19 to 21, 1985 in the Research Center for Nuclear Physics, Osaka University. The objective of this study meeting was to stimulate the research on nuclear physics in Japan, which began to show new development accompanying the advance of the research on heavy ion nuclear reaction, and to make this a new starting point. More than 50 participants from physical, chemical and engineering fields, who have interest in the theory and experiment related to nuclear fission, gathered, and the meeting was a success beyond expectation. The contents covered a wide range including nuclear smashing reaction as well as nuclear fission in a narrow sense. In this book, the gists of 28 papers are collected. (Kako, I.)

Status of fission yield data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

England, T.R.; Blachot, J.

1988-01-01

In this paper we summarize the current status of the recent US evaluation for 34 fissioning nuclides at one or more neutron incident energies and for spontaneous fission. Currently there are 50 yields sets, and for each we have independent and cumulative yields and uncertainties for approximately 1100 fission products. When finalized the recommended data will become part of Version VI of the US ENDF/B. Other major evaluations in progress that are included in a recently formed IAEA Coordinated Research Program are also summarized. In a second part we review two empirical models in use to estimate independent yields. Comparison of model estimates with measured data is presented, including a comparison with some recent data obtained from Lohengrin (Cf-249 T). 18 refs., 13 figs., 3 tabs

A new neutron counter for fission research

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Laurent, B., E-mail: benoit.laurent@cea.fr [CEA, DAM, DIF, F-91297 Arpajon (France); Granier, T.; Bélier, G.; Chatillon, A.; Martin, J.-F.; Taieb, J. [CEA, DAM, DIF, F-91297 Arpajon (France); Hambsch, F.-J. [EC-JRC Institute for Reference Materials and Measurements (IRMM), Retieseweg, 2440 Geel (Belgium); Tovesson, F.; Laptev, A.B.; Haight, R.C.; Nelson, R.O.; O' Donnell, J.M. [Los Alamos Neutron Science Center, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545 (United States)

2014-05-01

A new neutron counter for research experiments on nuclear fission has been developed. This instrument is designed for the detection of prompt fission neutrons within relatively high levels of gamma and neutron background. It is composed of a set of {sup 3}He proportional counters arranged within a block of polyethylene which serves as moderator. The detection properties have been studied by means of Monte Carlo simulations and experiments with radioactive sources. These properties are confirmed by an experiment on neutron-induced fission of {sup 238}U at the WNR facility of the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center during which the mean prompt fission neutron multiplicity, or ν{sup ¯} has been measured from 1 to 20 MeV of incident neutron energy.

Low energy nuclear fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nifenecker, H.

1980-08-01

In these lectures the liquid drop model of fission is presented and some of its predictions compared with experiment. The liquid drop analogy allows to define in a rather simple and intuitive way a number of useful concepts and possible observables. It is shown how a synthesis of the liquid drop model and of the shell model can be made using the Strutinsky shell averaging procedure. Some experimental data related to the existence of shape isomers are presented and discussed. We conclude by discussing some aspects, both experimental and theoretical, of fission dynamics

Monte-Carlo Generation of Time Evolving Fission Chains

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)