Study of Zircaloy-4 fuel cladding corrosion using ion beams - Application to long term disposal of nuclear wastes

AC

Fission Enhanced diffusion of uranium in zirconia

This paper deals with the comparison between thermal and Fission Enhanced Diffusion (FED) of uranium into zirconia, representative of the inner face of cladding tubes. The experiments under irradiation are performed at the Institut Laue Langevin (ILL) in Grenoble using the Lohengrin spectrometer. A thin $^{235}UO\_2$ layer in direct contact with an oxidized zirconium foil is irradiated in the ILL high flux reactor. The fission product flux is about 10$^{11}$ ions cm$^{-2}$ s$^{-1}$ and the target temperature is measured by an IR pyrometer. A model is proposed to deduce an apparent uranium diffusion coefficient in zirconia from the energy distribution broadening of two selected fission products. It is found to be equal to 10$^{-15}$ cm$^2$ s$^{-1}$ at 480$\circ$C and compared to uranium thermal diffusion data in ZrO$\_2$ in the same pressure and temperature conditions. The FED results are analysed in comparison with literature data

A systematic comparison of software dedicated to meta-analysis of causal studies

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Our objective was to systematically assess the differences in features, results, and usability of currently available meta-analysis programs.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Systematic review of software. We did an extensive search on the internet (Google, Yahoo, Altavista, and MSN) for specialized meta-analysis software. We included six programs in our review: Comprehensive Meta-analysis (CMA), MetAnalysis, MetaWin, MIX, RevMan, and WEasyMA. Two investigators compared the features of the software and their results. Thirty independent researchers evaluated the programs on their usability while analyzing one data set.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The programs differed substantially in features, ease-of-use, and price. Although most results from the programs were identical, we did find some minor numerical inconsistencies. CMA and MIX scored highest on usability and these programs also have the most complete set of analytical features.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>In consideration of differences in numerical results, we believe the user community would benefit from openly available and systematically updated information about the procedures and results of each program's validation. The most suitable program for a meta-analysis will depend on the user's needs and preferences and this report provides an overview that should be helpful in making a substantiated choice.</p

Development and validation of MIX: comprehensive free software for meta-analysis of causal research data

BACKGROUND: Meta-analysis has become a well-known method for synthesis of quantitative data from previously conducted research in applied health sciences. So far, meta-analysis has been particularly useful in evaluating and comparing therapies and in assessing causes of disease. Consequently, the number of software packages that can perform meta-analysis has increased over the years. Unfortunately, it can take a substantial amount of time to get acquainted with some of these programs and most contain little or no interactive educational material. We set out to create and validate an easy-to-use and comprehensive meta-analysis package that would be simple enough programming-wise to remain available as a free download. We specifically aimed at students and researchers who are new to meta-analysis, with important parts of the development oriented towards creating internal interactive tutoring tools and designing features that would facilitate usage of the software as a companion to existing books on meta-analysis. RESULTS: We took an unconventional approach and created a program that uses Excel as a calculation and programming platform. The main programming language was Visual Basic, as implemented in Visual Basic 6 and Visual Basic for Applications in Excel 2000 and higher. The development took approximately two years and resulted in the 'MIX' program, which can be downloaded from the program's website free of charge. Next, we set out to validate the MIX output with two major software packages as reference standards, namely STATA (metan, metabias, and metatrim) and Comprehensive Meta-Analysis Version 2. Eight meta-analyses that had been published in major journals were used as data sources. All numerical and graphical results from analyses with MIX were identical to their counterparts in STATA and CMA. The MIX program distinguishes itself from most other programs by the extensive graphical output, the click-and-go (Excel) interface, and the educational features. CONCLUSION: The MIX program is a valid tool for performing meta-analysis and may be particularly useful in educational environments. It can be downloaded free of charge via or

Étude des effets résiduels dans les noyaux 84Rb, 85Sr, 87,86,85Y au cours de la désexcitation du noyau composé

Analysis of 84Rb, 87,86,85Y, isomer ratios induced in 85Rb with alpha particles [1] lead us to extend the analysis to others systems particle-target giving the same nuclei in the same way as for 85Sr. Experimental results for (γ, n) (p, xn), (p, pxn), (n, 2 n), (d, xn), (α, xn) and (α, αn) have been compared with the shifted Fermi gas. Dependence of the spin cut-off parameter with residual energy and nuclear structure is discussed.L'étude des rapports isomériques des noyaux 84Rb, 87,86,85 Y produits par les particules alpha sur le rubidium [1], nous a conduit à étendre l'analyse à d'autres systèmes particule-cible produisant ces mêmes noyaux ainsi qu'au noyau 85Sr. La comparaison des résultats expérimentaux obtenus par réaction (γ, n) (p, xn), (p, pxn), (n, 2 n), (d, xn), (α, xn) et (α, αn) avec les valeurs calculées nous permet une étude du paramètre de distribution de spins en fonction de l'énergie d'excitation et de la structure du noyau