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INL reports findings on unusual quantum behavior of plutonium
Scientists at Idaho National Laboratory have discovered that plutonium hexaboride (PuB6) displays a type of unusual quantum property called a topological Kondo insulating state. Materials with this property are neither typical electricity conductors nor regular insulators. Rather, they have exterior surfaces that strongly conduct electricity and interiors that block electricity.
Mihalis Lazaridis, Joaquim Areia Capitão, Yannis Drossinos
Nuclear Technology | Volume 115 | Number 3 | September 1996 | Pages 359-367
Technical Note | Nuclear Reactor Safety | doi.org/10.13182/NT96-A15845
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The RAFT computer code for aerosol formation and transport was modified to include boron species in its chemical database. The modification was necessary to calculate fission product transport and deposition in the FAL-17 and ISP-34 Falcon tests, where boric acid was injected. The experimental results suggest that the transport of cesium is modified in the presence of boron. The results obtained with the modified RAFT code are presented; they show good agreement with experimental results for cesium and partial agreement for boron deposition in the Falcon silica tube. The new version of the RAFT code predicts the same behavior for iodine deposition as the previous version, where boron species were not included.