Papers by Author: H. Takiishi

Abstract: The aim of this work was to develop an alternative way to obtain casings used with irradiation targets containing uranium, for the production of the radionuclide Mo-99-Tc99m. The targets used for the production of Mo-99 are materials containing U-235 designed to be irradiated in a nuclear reactor. Usually these targets are encapsulated in aluminum or stainless steel. The idea here is to obtain casings by encapsulating a uranium button or a metallic cylinder with compacted and sintered nickel powder, this serving as a sealing for the fissile products occurring during U-235 irradiation. The sintered high purity nickel powder samples were compacted in uniaxial hydraulic press at 195 MPa. The sintering of the samples was carried out in an open-air furnace in an atmosphere with a certain control using titanium-machining chips at 600 °C. The samples bulk density was evaluated by the Archimedes' principle. The porosity of 20.08% was measured by mercury porosimetry. The microstructure was investigated by scanning microscopy revealing interconnected porosity and nickel oxide at the particles boundary surface. The results obtained by sintering of nickel powder according to the experimental undertaken, indicate the feasibility of achieving a casing for uranium targets.

Abstract: Ti-13Nb-13Zr alloy produced via powder metallurgy was submitted to heat treatment under various conditions and the effects on microstructure and elastic modulus were investigated. Heat treatment was performed using temperatures above and below α/β transus combined with different cooling rates – furnace cooling and water quenching. Microstructure and phases were analyzed employing scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. Elastic Modulus was determined using a dynamic mechanical analyzer (DMA). The results indicated that α phase precipitation and elastic modulus values increased after heat treatment performed using temperature below α/β transus. However, when it was performed above α/β transus and using higher cooling rate, a decrease in elastic modulus was observed despite higher α phase precipitation, indicating that the microstructural modifications observed via SEM, due to the presence of martensitic α phase, influenced on elastic modulus values.