405 research outputs found
Laser Spectroscopy of Niobium Fission Fragments: First Use of Optical Pumping in an Ion Beam Cooler Buncher
A new method of optical pumping in an ion beam cooler buncher has been developed to selectively enhance ionic metastable state populations. The technique permits the study of elements previously inaccessible to laser spectroscopy and has been applied here to the study of Nb. Model independent mean-square charge radii and nuclear moments have been studied for Nb to cover the region of the N=50 shell closure and N≈60 sudden onset of deformation. The increase in mean-square charge radius is observed to be less than that for Y, with a substantial degree of β softness observed before and after N=60
Application of the environmental relative moldiness index in Finland
The environmental relative moldiness index (ERMI) metric was previously developed to quantify mold contamination in U.S. homes. This study determined the applicability of the ERMI for quantifying mold and moisture damage in Finnish residences. Homes of the LUKAS2 birth cohort in Finland were visually inspected for moisture damage and mold, and vacuumed floor dust samples were collected. An ERMI analysis including 36 mold-specific quantitative PCR assays was performed on the dust samples (n = 144), and the ERMI metric was analyzed against inspection-based observations of moisture damage and mold. Our results show that the ERMI was significantly associated with certain observations of visible mold in Finnish homes but not with moisture damage. Several mold species occurred more frequently and at higher levels in Finnish than in U.S. homes. Modification of the ERMI toward Finnish conditions, using a subsample of LUKAS2 homes with and without moisture damage, resulted in a simplified metric based on 10 mold species. The Finnish ERMI (FERMI) performed substantially better in quantifying moisture and mold damage in Finnish homes, showing significant associations with various observations of visible mold, strongest when the damage was located in the child's main living area, as well as with mold odor and moisture damage. As shown in Finland, the ERMI as such is not equally well usable in different climates and geographic regions but may be remodeled to account for local outdoor and indoor fungal conditions as well as for moisture damage characteristics in a given country.Peer reviewe
Q_EC values of the Superallowed beta-Emitters 10-C, 34-Ar, 38-Ca and 46-V
The Q_EC values of the superallowed beta+ emitters 10-C, 34-Ar, 38-Ca and
46-V have been measured with a Penning-trap mass spectrometer to be 3648.12(8),
6061.83(8), 6612.12(7) and 7052.44(10) keV, respectively. All four values are
substantially improved in precision over previous results.Comment: 9 pages, 7 figures, 5 table
Mass measurements in the vicinity of the doubly-magic waiting point 56Ni
Masses of 56,57Fe, 53Co^m, 53,56Co, 55,56,57Ni, 57,58Cu, and 59,60Zn have
been determined with the JYFLTRAP Penning trap mass spectrometer at IGISOL with
a precision of dm/m \le 3 x 10^{-8}. The QEC values for 53Co, 55Ni, 56Ni, 57Cu,
58Cu, and 59Zn have been measured directly with a typical precision of better
than 0.7 keV and Coulomb displacement energies have been determined. The Q
values for proton captures on 55Co, 56Ni, 58Cu, and 59Cu have been measured
directly. The precision of the proton-capture Q value for 56Ni(p,gamma)57Cu,
Q(p,gamma) = 689.69(51) keV, crucial for astrophysical rp-process calculations,
has been improved by a factor of 37. The excitation energy of the proton
emitting spin-gap isomer 53Co^m has been measured precisely, Ex = 3174.3(10)
keV, and a Coulomb energy difference of 133.9(10) keV for the 19/2- state has
been obtained. Except for 53Co, the mass values have been adjusted within a
network of 17 frequency ratio measurements between 13 nuclides which allowed
also a determination of the reference masses 55Co, 58Ni, and 59Cu.Comment: 14 pages, 13 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Resonance ionization spectroscopy of thorium isotopes - towards a laser spectroscopic identification of the low-lying 7.6 eV isomer of Th-229
In-source resonance ionization spectroscopy was used to identify an efficient
and selective three step excitation/ionization scheme of thorium, suitable for
titanium:sapphire (Ti:sa) lasers. The measurements were carried out in
preparation of laser spectroscopic investigations for an identification of the
low-lying Th-229m isomer predicted at 7.6 +- 0.5 eV above the nuclear ground
state. Using a sample of Th-232, a multitude of optical transitions leading to
over 20 previously unknown intermediate states of even parity as well as
numerous high-lying odd parity auto-ionizing states were identified. Level
energies were determined with an accuracy of 0.06 cm-1 for intermediate and
0.15 cm-1 for auto-ionizing states. Using different excitation pathways an
assignment of total angular momenta for several energy levels was possible. One
particularly efficient ionization scheme of thorium, exhibiting saturation in
all three optical transitions, was studied in detail. For all three levels in
this scheme, the isotope shifts of the isotopes Th-228, Th-229, and Th-230
relative to Th-232 were measured. An overall efficiency including ionization,
transport and detection of 0.6 was determined, which was predominantly limited
by the transmission of the mass spectrometer ion optics
Particle Size on Respiratory Protection Provided by Two Types of N95 Respirators on Agricultural Settings
The objective of this study was to compare size-selective workplace protection factors (WPFs) of an N95 elastomeric respirator (ER) and an N95 filtering facepiece respirator (FFR) in agricultural environments. Twenty-five healthy farm workers ranging in age from 20 to 30 years voluntarily participated in the study. Altogether eight farms were included representing three different types: two horse farms, three pig barns, and three grain handling sites. Subjects wore the ER and FFR while performing their daily activities, such as spreading hay, feeding livestock, and shoveling. Aerosol concentrations in an optical particle size range of 0.7–10 µm were determined simultaneously inside and outside of the respirator during the first and last 15 minutes of a 60-minute experiment. For every subject, size-selective WPFs were calculated in one-minute intervals and averaged over 30 minutes. For the ER, geometric mean WPFs were 172, 321, 1013, 2097 and 2784 for particles of 0.7–1.0, 1.0–2.0, 2.0–3.0, 3.0–5.0, and 5.0–10.0 µm, respectively. Corresponding values for the FFR were 69, 127, 324, 893, and 1994. The 5th percentiles for the ER and FFR were higher than the Assigned Protection Factor of 10 and varied from 28 to 250 and from 16 to 225, respectively. The results show that the N95 ER and FFR tested in the study provided expected level of protection for workers on agricultural farms against particles ranging from 0.7 to 10 µm. The WPFs for the ER were higher than those for the FFR in all size ranges, and the WPFs for both respirators increased with increasing particle size
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