The half-life re-measured: consolidating the chronometer for events in the early Solar System.

The half-life of the extinct radiolanthanide , important for both geochronological and astrophysical applications, was re-determined by a combination of mass spectrometry and -decay counting. Earlier studies provided only limited information on all potential factors that could influence the quantification of the half-life of . Thus, special attention was given  here to a complete documentation of all experimental steps to provide information about any possible artifacts in the data analysis.

Determination of the activity and nuclear decay data of Tb.

Terbium-157 was radiochemically extracted from an irradiated tantalum target. Since the resulting material contained a significant impurity of Tb, Tb was isotopically purified using laser resonance ionization at the RISIKO mass separator in Mainz and then implanted on an aluminum (Al) foil. The implanted Tb was measured by two different calibrated gamma-ray spectrometers to determine photon emission rates.

Determination of the half-life of gadolinium-148.

The half-life of the alpha-emitter Gd was measured using the "direct method", in which the number of atoms is directly determined and their activity is then measured. Pure Gd samples containing megabecquerels of Gd were obtained by reprocessing proton-irradiated tantalum material. Multicollector-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry was performed to determine the amount of Gd atoms retrieved.

High precision half-life measurement of the extinct radio-lanthanide Dysprosium-154.

Sixty years after the discovery of Dy, the half-life of this pure alpha-emitter was re-measured. Dy was radiochemically separated from proton-irradiated tantalum samples. Sector field- and multicollector-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry were used to determine the amount of Dy retrieved.

Removal of radioactive cesium from contaminated water by whey protein amyloids-carbon hybrid filters.

We report on the application of an innovative whey protein amyloids-carbon hybrid filter for the removal and disposal of the long-lived radioactive fission product Cs from aqueous samples. Test experiments revealed a reduction of Cs radioactivity by a factor of 340 compared to the initial solution, with an efficiency as high as 99.7%.

Chemical Characterization of a Volatile Dubnium Compound, DbOCl.

The formation and the chemical characterization of single atoms of dubnium (Db, element 105), in the form of its volatile oxychloride, was investigated using the on-line gas phase chromatography technique, in the temperature range 350-600 °C. Under the exactly same chemical conditions, comparative studies with the lighter homologues of Group 5 in the Periodic Table clearly indicate the volatility sequence being NbOCl > TaOCl ≥ DbOCl . From the obtained experimental results, thermochemical data for DbOCl were derived.

Separation and recovery of exotic radiolanthanides from irradiated tantalum targets for half-life measurements.

The current knowledge of the half-lives (T1/2) of several radiolanthanides is either affected by a high uncertainty or is still awaiting confirmation. The scientific information deriving from this imprecise T1/2 data has a significant impact on a variety of research fields, e.g.

Unexpected impact of the number of glutamine residues on metal complex stability.

The emerging question which this study aims to answer is: what impact do glutamines have on the stability of metal-peptide complexes? We focused our attention on the N-terminal domain of Hpn and Hpn-like proteins from Helicobacter pylori. Cu(2+) and Ni(2+) complexes of the model peptides MAHHE-NH2, MAHHEEQ-NH2, MAHHEQQ-NH2 and MAHHEQQHQA-NH2 were studied by means of different thermodynamic and spectroscopic techniques, as well as through molecular modelling computation. Experimental results, in very good agreement with theoretical findings, lead to the not obvious conclusion that the stability of metal complexes distinctly increases with the number of glutamine residues present in the peptide, although glutamine side-chains do not directly take part in coordination.