http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/matter_energy/nuclear_energy/ Nuclear Energy Research. Nuclear power, fission and fusion, tabletop accelerators, and more. Read the latest scientific research on nuclear energy. Full-text, images, free. en-us Wed, 11 Nov 2009 08:05:01 EST Wed, 11 Nov 2009 08:05:01 EST 60 http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/logosmall.gif http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/matter_energy/nuclear_energy/ For more science articles, visit ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091102111832.htm If you keep twisting a straight elastic string, at some moment it starts kinking in a wild way. Something similar occurs when one increases the electrical current flowing in a magnetized plasma doughnut: it takes on a wild helical shape, which spoils its performance. This phenomenon concerns scientists exploring fusion power, who use powerful magnetic fields to confine plasma during their experiments. Wed, 11 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091102111832.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091102111841.htm Physicists have directly observed a reverse shock wave of light in a specially tailored structure known as a left-handed metamaterial. Although it was first predicted over forty years ago, this is the first unambiguous experimental demonstration of the effect. Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091102111841.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091106095640.htm SNM applauds the US House of Representatives for its passage of H.R. 3276 -- the American Medical Isotopes Production Act of 2009. Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091106095640.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091102103327.htm In the quest to produce nuclear fusion energy, researchers from the DIII-D National Fusion Facility have recently confirmed long-standing theoretical predictions that performance, efficiency and reliability are simultaneously obtained in tokamaks, the leading magnetic confinement fusion device, operating at their performance limits. Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091102103327.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091028113948.htm Scientists are using an adapted version of VPIC, a particle-in-cell plasma physics code, to model the nonlinear physics of laser backscatter energy transfer and plasma instabilities in an attempt to reach fusion ignition. Sat, 31 Oct 2009 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091028113948.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091019122835.htm A new report examines and, when possible, estimates "hidden" costs of energy production and use -- such as the damage air pollution imposes on human health -- that are not reflected in market prices of coal, oil, other energy sources, or the electricity and gasoline produced from them. Tue, 27 Oct 2009 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091019122835.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091026125535.htm The world's fastest supercomputer, Roadrunner, at Los Alamos National Laboratory has completed its initial "shakedown" phase doing accelerated petascale computer modeling and simulations of a variety of unclassified, fundamental science projects. Mon, 26 Oct 2009 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091026125535.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091022202710.htm A mathematical model constructed by researchers predicts the risk of cardiovascular disease (heart attacks, stroke) associated with low background levels of radiation. The model shows that the risk would vary almost in proportion with dose. Results are consistent with risk levels reported in previous studies involving nuclear workers. Fri, 23 Oct 2009 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091022202710.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090806080345.htm A new advanced method for nano-scale imaging of vesicle-fusion could add to our understanding of diseases of the nervous system and viral infections. In the long term, this could be useful in developing a cure for neurological diseases and mental disorders (e.g. schizophrenia, depression, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease). Tue, 13 Oct 2009 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090806080345.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091007124723.htm Batteries can power anything from small sensors to large systems. While scientists are finding ways to make them smaller but even more powerful, problems can arise when these batteries are much larger and heavier than the devices themselves. Researchers are developing a nuclear energy source that is smaller, lighter and more efficient. Fri, 09 Oct 2009 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091007124723.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091006113012.htm High-energy heavy ion collisions can be a source of light flashes of a few yoctoseconds duration (a septillionth of a second, 10^-24 s) -- the time that light needs to traverse an atomic nucleus. This is shown in calculations of the light emission of so-called quark-gluon plasmas, which are created in such collisions for extremely short periods of time. Under certain conditions, double flashes are created, which could be utilized in the future to visualize the dynamics of atomic nuclei. Tue, 06 Oct 2009 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091006113012.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091004020806.htm NASA has made a series of critical strides toward the development of new nuclear reactors the size of a trash can that could power a human outpost on the moon or Mars. Three recent tests at different NASA centers and a national lab have successfully demonstrated key technologies required for compact fission-based nuclear power plants for human settlements on other worlds. Sun, 04 Oct 2009 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091004020806.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090924163526.htm Scientists at the US Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have confirmed the production of the superheavy element 114, ten years after a group at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in Dubna, Russia, first claimed to have made it. The search for 114 has long been a key part of the quest for nuclear science's hoped-for Island of Stability. Fri, 25 Sep 2009 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090924163526.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090907013804.htm Using bacteria and inositol phosphate, a chemical analogue of a cheap waste material from plants, researchers have recovered uranium from the polluted waters from uranium mines. The same technology can also be used to clean up nuclear waste. Sat, 19 Sep 2009 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090907013804.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090909111623.htm Physicists at NIST are studying their own version of a sodium substitute -- sodium-like tungsten ions that could be useful in monitoring the ultra-hot plasma inside fusion energy devices. Fri, 11 Sep 2009 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090909111623.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090908193528.htm The Society of Nuclear Medicine recently conducted a survey of nuclear pharmacies -- pharmacies that supply the critical radioisotope Technetium-99m, which is used in more than 16 million nuclear medicine tests each year in the United States -- to assess, anecdotally, the impact of the worldwide medical isotope shortage. Wed, 09 Sep 2009 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090908193528.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090720134556.htm Americans used more solar, nuclear, biomass and wind energy in 2008 than they did in 2007, according to the most recent energy flow charts. Mon, 07 Sep 2009 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090720134556.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090902161120.htm A researcher is studying ultra-high temperature and non-equilibrium plasmas to mimic what happens to matter in accretion disks around black holes. The work will enable astrophysicists to better understand what happens around black holes and in active galactic nuclei. Scientists will also better understand the application of high-energy density plasmas to energy production, such as controlled nuclear fusion (produced in the laboratory), and production of X-ray sources for a variety of applications. Sat, 05 Sep 2009 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090902161120.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090831130658.htm Researchers have found what could be the signal of ideal wave "surfing" conditions for individual particles within the massive turbulent ocean of the solar wind. The discovery could give a new insight into just how energy is dissipated in solar system sized plasmas such as the solar wind and could provide significant clues to scientists developing fusion power which relies on plasmas. Tue, 01 Sep 2009 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090831130658.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090818150036.htm Researchers are adapting the same methods used in fusion-energy research to create extremely thin plasma beams for a new class of "nanolithography" required to make future computer chips. Mon, 24 Aug 2009 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090818150036.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090820083442.htm Chemists are preparing to play an important but often unheralded role in determining the success of one of the largest and most important scientific experiments in history — next year's initial attempts at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) to produce the world's first controlled nuclear fusion reaction. If successful in taming the energy source of the sun, stars, and of the hydrogen bomb, scientists could develop a limitless new source of producing electricity for homes, factories, and businesses. Thu, 20 Aug 2009 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090820083442.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090816170917.htm A special three-day symposium focusing on the neutrino, a strange subatomic particle that could help answer some of the universe's most compelling questions, is scheduled for Aug. 16-18 at the 238th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society in Washington, D.C. Tue, 18 Aug 2009 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090816170917.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090811144002.htm One single atom of a certain isotope of hafnium found on Earth would prove that a supernova once exploded near our solar system. The problem is how to find such an atom 00 among billions of others. Researchers in Sweden have developed a laser technique that, in combination with standard techniques, may be able to do the job. Wed, 12 Aug 2009 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090811144002.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090806112353.htm Scientists in England are constructing highly sensitive detectors as part of an international project to understand the elements that make up the universe. Thu, 06 Aug 2009 00:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090806112353.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090728123045.htm With a sustained national commitment, the United States could obtain substantial energy-efficiency improvements, new sources of energy, and reductions in greenhouse gas emissions through the accelerated deployment of existing and emerging energy technologies. Sat, 01 Aug 2009 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090728123045.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090727130814.htm Scientists have created a transparent form of aluminum by bombarding the metal with the world's most powerful soft X-ray laser. 'Transparent aluminum' previously only existed in science fiction, featuring in the movie Star Trek IV, but the real material is an exotic new state of matter with implications for planetary science and nuclear fusion. The aluminum is nearly invisible to extreme ultraviolet radiation. Mon, 27 Jul 2009 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090727130814.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090629165605.htm Composite materials such as fiberglass, which take on a mix of properties of their constituent compounds, have been around for decades. Now, a materials scientist is taking composites to the nanoscale, where entirely new properties, not found in any of the original compounds, can emerge. Sat, 11 Jul 2009 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090629165605.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090709140813.htm The withdrawal of Nevada's Yucca Mountain as a potential nuclear waste repository has reopened the debate over how and where to dispose of spent nuclear fuel and high-level nuclear waste. Sat, 11 Jul 2009 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090709140813.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090629132252.htm A new calculation clarifies the complicated relationship between protons and neutrons in the atomic nucleus and offers a fascinating resolution of the famous NuTeV Anomaly. Thu, 09 Jul 2009 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090629132252.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090611210039.htm The element 112 has been officially recognized as a new element by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC). IUPAC confirmed the recognition of element 112 in an official letter to the head of the discovering team. The letter furthermore asks the discoverers to propose a name for the new element. Fri, 12 Jun 2009 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090611210039.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090511090842.htm Scientists have developed a new polymer that reduces the amount of radioactive waste produced during routine operation of nuclear reactors.  Fri, 15 May 2009 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090511090842.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090511181356.htm A material that is a hundred thousand times heavier than water and more dense than the core of the Sun is being produced at a university. The scientists working with this material are aiming for an energy process that is both more sustainable and less damaging to the environment than the nuclear power used today. Tue, 12 May 2009 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090511181356.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090506110202.htm Research by a theoretical physicist shows that the crusts of neutron stars are 10 billion times stronger than steel or any other of the earth's strongest metal alloys. Wed, 06 May 2009 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090506110202.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090504205603.htm Researchers have made precise mass measurements of four such nuclei, 68-selenium, 70-selenium, 71-bromine and an excited state of 70-bromine. The results may make it easier to understand X-ray bursts, the most common stellar explosions in the galaxy. Tue, 05 May 2009 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090504205603.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090421080405.htm When Sweden's spent nuclear fuel is to be permanently stored, it will be protected by three different barriers. Even if all three barriers are damaged, the nuclear fuel will not dissolve into the groundwater, according to new research. Thu, 23 Apr 2009 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090421080405.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090408091617.htm In Prague, President Barack Obama called for a world without nuclear weapons. Today, scientists have released a report calling for fundamental changes to US nuclear war planning, a vital prerequisite if smaller nuclear arsenals are to be achieved. Wed, 08 Apr 2009 00:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090408091617.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090402163721.htm By using the amount of carbon 14 in the atmosphere from above-ground nuclear testing in the 1950s and 1960, researchers have determined that cells in the human heart develop into adulthood. Fri, 03 Apr 2009 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090402163721.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090324151951.htm Radio frequency identification devices have widely been used for tracking for years; recently, scientists have developed a unique tracking technology that also monitors the environmental and physical conditions of containers of nuclear materials in storage and transportation. Tue, 31 Mar 2009 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090324151951.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090325142511.htm Concerns about climate change and energy independence have led to renewed calls for the resurgence of nuclear power. Therefore, it is important to understand the level of and bases for public attitudes, both supporting and opposing nuclear power. Wed, 25 Mar 2009 00:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090325142511.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090323110450.htm Researchers are reporting compelling new scientific evidence for the existence of low-energy nuclear reactions, the process once called "cold fusion" that may promise a new source of energy. Scientists describe what they term the first clear visual evidence that LENR devices can produce neutrons, which scientists view as tell-tale signs of nuclear fusion reactions. Mon, 23 Mar 2009 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090323110450.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090316075849.htm The Black Sea harbors vast quantities of hydrogen sulfide, the toxic gas associated with the smell of rotten eggs. This noxious gas could be used as a renewable source of hydrogen gas to fuel a future carbon-free economy, according to researchers. Tue, 17 Mar 2009 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090316075849.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090309131725.htm Scientists have observed particle collisions that produce single top quarks. The discovery of the single top confirms important parameters of particle physics, including the total number of quarks, and has significance for the ongoing search for the Higgs particle at Fermilab's Tevatron, currently the world's most powerful operating particle accelerator. Tue, 10 Mar 2009 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090309131725.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090302130224.htm Scientists in Washington state are reporting the surprise discovery of the oldest known sample of reactor-produced bomb-grade plutonium, a historic relic from the infancy of America's nuclear weapons program. Their research also represents the first demonstration of how radioactive sodium can be used as a tool in nuclear forensics. Thu, 05 Mar 2009 23:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090302130224.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090304114250.htm Engineers have developed a technique to "denature" plutonium created in large nuclear reactors, making it unsuitable for use in nuclear arms. By adding Americium (Am 241), a form of the basic synthetic element found in commercial smoke detectors and industrial gauges, plutonium can only be used for peaceful purposes. Thu, 05 Mar 2009 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090304114250.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090220075314.htm Atomic nuclei are normally compact structures defined by a sharp border. About twenty-five years ago, it was discovered that there are exceptions to this picture: Certain exotic atomic nuclei contain particles that shear off from the central core and create a cloud, which surrounds the central core like a 'heiligenschein' or halo. Now, for the first time, scientists have succeeded in precisely measuring this one-neutron halo by means of a laser, and in evaluating the dimensions of the cloud. Wed, 04 Mar 2009 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090220075314.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090218091937.htm The enormous pressures needed to melt diamond to slush and then to a completely liquid state have been determined 10 times more accurately than ever before. It may not immediately obvious why accelerating a projectile about the size of a stick of gum to 25 times the speed of a rifle bullet and smashing it into a target in central New Mexico would say anything about nuclear fusion or the state of diamonds on Neptune. Thu, 19 Feb 2009 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090218091937.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090212112738.htm Researchers have developed a protein that binds to uranium selectively and tightly -- a simple, effective methods for the sensitive detection and effective treatment of uranium poisoning. Fri, 13 Feb 2009 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090212112738.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090204093810.htm President Barack Obama has made his intention of eliminating all nuclear weapons a tenet of his administration's foreign policy. A US theoretical physicist and arms-control expert explains what Obama needs to do to make that honorable intention a reality. Wed, 04 Feb 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090204093810.htm