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Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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What’s in your Dubai chocolate? Nuclear scientists test pistachios for toxins
For the uninitiated, Dubai chocolate is a candy bar filled with pistachio and tahini cream and crispy pastry recently popularized by social media influencers. While it’s easy to dismiss as a viral craze now past its peak, the nutty green confection has spiked global pistachio demand, and growers and processors are ramping up production. That means more pistachios need to be tested for aflatoxins—a byproduct of a common crop mold.
S. R. Hatcher, H. K. Rae
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 10 | Number 4 | August 1961 | Pages 316-330
doi.org/10.13182/NSE61-A15373
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The formation of a colloidal suspension of hydrated aluminum oxide, Gibbsite or α-Al2O3 · 3D2O, in the heavy water of the NRU reactor is described, and compared with turbidity formation in other aluminum-water reactor systems. The observed corrosion rate of aluminum in NRU is consistent with a mass transfer mechanism involving the continuous dissolution of the corrosion product film. Two primary mechanisms for removing the dissolved aluminum from solution are postulated. These are direct crystallization onto deposits in the heat exchangers and direct crystallization onto Gibbsite particles in the water. The former effectively removes alumina from the system while the latter produces turbidity in the water. The rate of appearance of turbidity depends on its rate of formation and its rate of removal by the purification system. Turbidity is removed by filtration and adsorption in the ion-exchange columns and by evaporation. It is desirable to reduce the rate of formation of turbidity by choosing water conditions which minimize the solubility of the corrosion product film, rather than controlling the turbidity level by an adequate purification capacity.