Interactions of Colloids with Radionuclides in Geosphere

Shinya_Nagasaki
SPEAKER:
SHINYA NAGASAKI
DATE/TIME:
MON, 01/31/2011 - 4:00PM TO 5:00PM
LOCATION:
3105 ETCHEVERRY HALL
Spring 2011 Colloquium Series
Abstract:

Radioactive waste disposal is an inevitable issue in all countries where pursue the sustainable use of not only nuclear energy but also radioisotopes in industries and medical services. From the engineering point of view, it is important to improve the reliability of performance assessment and safety assessment of the disposal for the societal and public acceptance. To achieve this goal, in the University of Tokyo, the adsorption/desorption of fission products and actinides on colloids and the migration of colloids in the geologic media have been investigated, since the colloids associated with fission products and actinides can act as a carrier for them in geosphere and biosphere. In the seminar, our recent research activities shown below will be introduced. (1) Metal adsorption in Mz+/natural organic materials (NOM)/mineral ternary systems An extended surface complexation model of a Mz+/NOM/mineral ternary system is developed, by taking into account various interactions between a NOM and a mineral surface and with the help of spectroscopy. (2) Multi-mode factor analysis for time-resolved laser-induced fluorescence spectroscopy (TRLFS) Parallel factor analysis is applied to a series of TRLFS data, and the speciation of a target metal ion is studied. (3) Field-flow fractionation (FFF) studies for environmental nanocolloids FFF is performed to investigate aggregation/disaggregation of nanocolloids in response to a change in chemical conditions and size-dependent binding of metal ions.

About the Speaker:

Prof. Nagasaki was graduated from Department of Nuclear Engineering, The University of Tokyo in 1988. After working in electric power company about 3 years, Nagasaki worked as Research Associate of Dept. Nuclear Engineering (1991-1993), Lecturer (1993-1995), Associate Professor (1995-2005) and Professor (2005-) at the University of Tokyo. Prof. Nagasaki is now a visiting professor at the Department of Nuclear Engineering, UC Berkeley. Research interests are interaction and migration of actinides and actinide colloids, and recent education interest is development of education program with widely distributed social scientific literacy for engineering students.

Video:

Economics and Nuclear Power Plants

Radek_Skoda
SPEAKER:
RADEK SKODA
DATE/TIME:
MON, 01/24/2011 - 4:00PM TO 5:00PM
LOCATION:
3105 ETCHEVERRY HALL
Spring 2011 Colloquium Series
Abstract:

It is the economics of any power plant which determines if the plant will be built and operated in the end. Comparison of cost structures for different base load and renewable energy sources underlines the specifics of nuclear power plants (NPPs). The corresponding sensitivity analyses identifies the main cost drivers and explains why and how the electricity supply function can develop in time and matches the changing electricity demand. Variable cost of NPPs is specific in many ways, most of them linked to the nuclear fuel cycle, namely to uranium supply and enrichment. The lecture will focus on general principles and should be complementary to nuclear engineering curriculum.

About the Speaker:

Dr. Radek Skoda received his M.Sc. in Experimental Particle Physics from the University of

Bergen in Norway and his Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering from the Czech Technical University. Before that he had also obtained B.S. and M.Sc. in finance and M.Sc. in nuclear engineering.

In his career, Radek initially focused on financial risk management for Dublin and London based investment banks, followed by work in the Department of Nuclear Reactor of the Czech Technical University in Prague; now he is spending his sabbatical year at Texas A&M University. He developed experimental nuclear reactor courses for several reactors and lectures topics
related to NPP fuel cycle and economics.

Video:

4153 Etcheverry Hall, MC 1730 (map) University of California
Berkeley, California 94720
510-642-4077

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