Radiological Analyses of Ra and U in Surface Water and Sediments from the Jackpile Member of the Morrison Formation, Pueblo of Laguna, New Mexico.

Surface water and sediments from the Jackpile mine, St. Anthony mine, Rio Paguate, Rio Moquino, and Mesita Dam areas near Pueblo of Laguna, New Mexico, were analyzed for Ra and U using gamma (γ) spectroscopy and inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy, respectively. Activity ratios for Ra/U for solid samples range from 0.

Multiscale analysis of Benjamin Franklin's innovations in American paper money.

Benjamin Franklin was a preeminent proponent of the new colonial and Continental paper monetary system in 18th-century America. He established a network of printers, designing and printing money notes at the same time. Franklin recognized the necessity of paper money in breaking American dependence on the British trading system, and he helped print Continental money to finance the American War of Independence.

Hyperstoichiometric Uranium Dioxides: Rapid Synthesis and Irradiation-Induced Structural Changes.

Uranium dioxide (UO), the primary fuel for commercial nuclear reactors, incorporates excess oxygen forming a series of hyperstoichiometric oxides. Thin layers of these oxides, such as UO, form readily on the fuel surface and influence its properties, performance, and potentially geologic disposal. This work reports a rapid and straightforward combustion process in solutions to prepare UO nanomaterials and thin films.

Irradiation-Driven Restructuring of UO Thin Films: Amorphization and Crystallization.

Combustion synthesis in uranyl nitrate-acetylacetone-2-methoxyethanol solutions was used to deposit thin UO films on aluminum substrates to investigate the irradiation-induced restructuring processes. Thermal analysis revealed that the combustion reactions in these solutions are initiated at ∼160 °C. The heat released during the process and the subsequent brief annealing at 400 °C allow the deposition of polycrystalline films with 5-10 nm UO grains.

Irradiation-induced reactions at the CeO/SiO/Si interface.

The influence of high-energy (1.6 MeV) Ar irradiation on the interfacial interaction between cerium oxide thin films (∼15 nm) with a SiO/Si substrate is investigated using transmission electron microscopy, ultrahigh vacuum x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and a carbon monoxide (CO) oxidation catalytic reaction using ambient pressure XPS. The combination of these methods allows probing the dynamics of vacancy generation and its relation to chemical interactions at the CeO/SiO/Si interface.

Irradiation-enhanced reactivity of multilayer Al/Ni nanomaterials.

We have investigated the effect of accelerated ion beam irradiation on the structure and reactivity of multilayer sputter deposited Al/Ni nanomaterials. Carbon and aluminum ion beams with different charge states and intensities were used to irradiate the multilayer materials. The conditions for the irradiation-assisted self-ignition of the reactive materials and corresponding ignition thresholds for the beam intensities were determined.