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At least 199 records · Page 11

Rapid activation product separations from fission products and soil matrixes

We report that a rapid method for the separation and qualitative analysis of several neutron activation products ( 198 Au, 192 Ir, 72 Ga, 51 Cr, 191/195m/197 Pt, 54 Mn, 57 Co, and 59 Fe) from fission products and soil matrixes has been developed. Analytes were isolated within 20 h using ion exchange chromatography. After separation, the activation products were characterized by γ-spectroscopy and inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy. Validation experiments demonstrated versatility of the method, showing that the activation products could be isolated from fresh fission products and other contaminants associated with complex soil matrixes.

38 RADIATION CHEMISTRY, RADIOCHEMISTRY, AND NUCLEA↗

The products of the thermal decomposition of CH{sub 3}CHO

We have used a heated 2 cm x 1 mm SiC microtubular ({mu}tubular) reactor to decompose acetaldehyde: CH{sub 3}CHO +{Delta}{yields} products. Thermal decomposition is followed at pressures of 75-150 Torr and at temperatures up to 1675 K, conditions that correspond to residence times of roughly 50-100 {mu}s in the {mu}tubular reactor. The acetaldehyde decomposition products are identified by two independent techniques: vacuum ultraviolet photoionization mass spectroscopy (PIMS) and infrared (IR) absorption spectroscopy after isolation in a cryogenic matrix. Besides CH{sub 3}CHO, we have studied three isotopologues, CH{sub 3}CDO, CD{sub 3}CHO, and CD{sub 3}CDO. We have identified the thermal decomposition products CH{sub 3} (PIMS), CO (IR, PIMS), H (PIMS), H{sub 2} (PIMS), CH{sub 2}CO (IR, PIMS), CH{sub 2}=CHOH (IR, PIMS), H{sub 2}O (IR, PIMS), and HC{identical_to}CH (IR, PIMS). Plausible evidence has been found to support the idea that there are at least three different thermal decomposition pathways for CH{sub 3}CHO; namely, radical decomposition: CH{sub 3}CHO +{Delta}{yields} CH{sub 3}+[HCO]{yields} CH{sub 3}+ H + CO; elimination: CH{sub 3}CHO +{Delta}{yields} H{sub 2}+ CH{sub 2}=C=O; isomerization/elimination: CH{sub 3}CHO +{Delta}{yields}[CH{sub 2}=CH-OH]{yields} HC{identical_to}CH + H{sub 2}O. An interesting result is that both PIMS and IR spectroscopy show compelling evidence for the participation of vinylidene, CH{sub 2}=C:, as an intermediate in the decomposition of vinyl alcohol: CH{sub 2}=CH-OH +{Delta}{yields}[CH{sub 2}=C:]+ H{sub 2}O {yields} HC{identical_to}CH + H{sub 2}O.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Fermion production during and after axion inflation

We study derivatively coupled fermions in axion-driven inflation, specifically m{sub ϕ}{sup 2}ϕ{sup 2} and monodromy inflation, and calculate particle production during the inflationary epoch and the post-inflationary axion oscillations. During inflation, the rolling axion acts as an effective chemical potential for helicity which biases the gravitational production of one fermion helicity over the other. This mechanism allows for efficient gravitational production of heavy fermion states that would otherwise be highly suppressed. Following inflation, the axion oscillates and fermions with both helicities are produced as the effective frequency of the fermion field changes non-adiabatically. For certain values of the fermion mass and axion-fermion coupling strength, the two helicity states are produced asymmetrically, resulting in unequal number-densities of left- and right-helicity fermions.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Measurement of Charged-Pion Production in Deep-Inelastic Scattering off Nuclei with the CLAS Detector

Background: Energetic quarks in nuclear deep-inelastic scattering propagate through the nuclear medium. Processes that are believed to occur inside nuclei include quark energy loss through medium-stimulated gluon bremsstrahlung and intranuclear interactions of forming hadrons. More data are required to gain a more complete understanding of these effects. Purpose: To test the theoretical models of parton transport and hadron formation, we compared their predictions for the nuclear and kinematic dependence of pion production in nuclei. Methods: We have measured charged-pion production in semi-inclusive deep-inelastic scattering off D, C, Fe, and Pb using the CLAS detector and the CEBAF 5.014-GeV electron beam. We report results on the nuclear-to-deuterium multiplicity ratio for π + and π - as a function of energy transfer, four-momentum transfer, and pion energy fraction or transverse momentum—the first three-dimensional study of its kind. Results: The π + multiplicity ratio is found to depend strongly on the pion fractional energy z and reaches minimum values of 0.67 ± 0.03, 0.43 ± 0.02, and 0.27 ± 0.01 for the C, Fe, and Pb targets, respectively. The z dependencies of the multiplicity ratios for π + and π - are equal within uncertainties for C and Fe targets but show differences at the level of 10% for the Pb-target data. The results are qualitatively described by the GIBUU transport model, as well as with a model based on hadron absorption, but are in tension with calculations based on nuclear fragmentation functions. Conclusions: These precise results will strongly constrain the kinematic and flavor dependence of nuclear effects in hadron production, probing an unexplored kinematic region. They will help to reveal how the nucleus reacts to a fast quark, thereby shedding light on its color structure and transport properties and on the mechanisms of the hadronization process.

Moran, S.↗

A search for resonant production of tt pairs in 4.8 fb -1 of integrated luminosity of pp collisions at √s=1.96 TeV

We search for resonant production of tt pairs in 4.8 fb -1 integrated luminosity of pp collision data at √s = 1.96 TeV in the lepton+jets decay channel, where one top quark decays leptonically and the other hadronically. A matrix element reconstruction technique is used; for each event a probability density function (pdf) of the tt candidate invariant mass is sampled. These pdfs are used to construct a likelihood function, whereby the cross section for resonant tt production is estimated, given a hypothetical resonance mass and width. The data indicate no evidence of resonant production of tt pairs. A benchmark model of leptophobic Z' → tt is excluded with m Z' < 900 GeV at 95% confidence level.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Observation of Single Top Quark Production in Association with a Z Boson in Proton-Proton Collisions at s =13 TeV

The observation of single top quark production in association with a Z boson and a quark (tZq) is reported. Events from proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV containing three charged leptons (either electrons or muons) and at least two jets are analyzed. The data were collected with the CMS detector in 2016 and 2017 and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 77.4fb-1. The increased integrated luminosity, a multivariate lepton identification, and a redesigned analysis strategy improve significantly the sensitivity of the analysis compared to previous searches for tZq production. The tZq signal is observed with a significance well over 5 standard deviations. The measured tZq production cross section is σ(pp→tZq→t?+?-q)=111±13(stat)-9+11(syst) fb, for dilepton invariant masses above 30 GeV, in agreement with the standard model expectation. © 2019 CERN.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

Estimation of economic impacts of cellulosic biofuel production: a comparative analysis of three biofuel pathways: Economic impacts of biofuel production

The development of a cellulosic biofuel industry utilizing domestic biomass resources is expected to create opportunities for economic growth resulting from the construction and operation of new biorefineries. We applied an economic input-output model to estimate potential economic impacts, particularly gross job growth, resulting from the construction and operation of biorefineries using three different technology pathways: 1) cellulosic ethanol via biochemical conversion in Iowa, 2) renewable diesel blendstock via biological conversion in Georgia, and 3) renewable diesel and gasoline blendstock via fast pyrolysis in Mississippi. Combining direct, indirect, and induced effects, capital investment associated with the construction of a biorefinery processing 2,000 dry metric tons of biomass per day (DMT/day) could yield between 5,960 and 8,470 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs during the construction period. Fast pyrolysis biorefineries produce the most jobs on a project level thanks to the highest capital requirement among the three pathways. Normalized for one million dollars of capital investment, the fast pyrolysis biorefineries are estimated to yield slighter more jobs (12.1 jobs) than the renewable diesel (11.8 jobs) and the cellulosic ethanol (11.6 jobs) biorefineries. While operating biorefineries is not labor-intensive, the annual operation of a 2,000 DMT/day biorefinery could support between 720 and 970 jobs when the direct, indirect, and induced effects are considered. The major factor, which results in the variations among the three pathways, is the type of biomass feedstock used for biofuels. The agriculture/forest, services, and trade industries are the primary sectors that will benefit from the ongoing operation of biorefineries.

Biofuels↗

Study of Z Boson Production in PbPb Collisions at {radical}(s{sub NN})=2.76 TeV

A search for Z bosons in the {mu}{sup +}{mu}{sup -} decay channel has been performed in PbPb collisions at {radical}(s{sub NN})=2.76 TeV with the CMS detector at the LHC, in a 7.2 {mu}b{sup -1} data sample. The number of opposite-sign muon pairs observed in the 60-120 GeV/c{sup 2} invariant mass range is 39, corresponding to a yield per unit of rapidity (y) and per minimum bias event of [33.8{+-}5.5(stat){+-}4.4(syst)]x10{sup -8}, in the |y|<2.0 range. Rapidity, transverse momentum, and centrality dependencies are also measured. The results agree with next-to-leading order QCD calculations, scaled by the number of incoherent nucleon-nucleon collisions.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗