| 1. |
- Aad, G., et al.
(author)
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- 2011
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swepub:Mat__t (peer-reviewed)
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| 2. |
- Barzakh, A., et al.
(author)
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Large Shape Staggering in Neutron-Deficient Bi Isotopes
- 2021
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In: Physical Review Letters. - 0031-9007. ; 127:19
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The changes in the mean-square charge radius (relative to Bi209), magnetic dipole, and electric quadrupole moments of Bi187,188,189,191 were measured using the in-source resonance-ionization spectroscopy technique at ISOLDE (CERN). A large staggering in radii was found in Bi187,188,189g, manifested by a sharp radius increase for the ground state of Bi188 relative to the neighboring Bi187,189g. A large isomer shift was also observed for Bi188m. Both effects happen at the same neutron number, N=105, where the shape staggering and a similar isomer shift were observed in the mercury isotopes. Experimental results are reproduced by mean-field calculations where the ground or isomeric states were identified by the blocked quasiparticle configuration compatible with the observed spin, parity, and magnetic moment. © 2021 authors.
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| 3. |
- Andel, B., et al.
(author)
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β -delayed fission of isomers in Bi 188
- 2020
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In: Physical Review C. - 2469-9985. ; 102:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- β-delayed fission (βDF) decay of a low-spin (ls) and a high-spin (hs) isomer in Bi188 was studied at the ISOLDE facility at CERN. Isomer-selective laser ionization and time gating were employed to investigate each isomer separately and their βDF partial half-lives were determined: T1/2p,βDF(188Bihs)=5.6(8)×103 s and T1/2p,βDF(188Bils)=1.7(6)×103 s. This work is the first βDF study of two states in one isotope and allows the spin dependence of low-energy fission to be explored. The fission fragment mass distribution of a daughter nuclide Pb188, following the β decay of the high-spin isomer, was deduced and indicates a mixture of symmetric and asymmetric fission modes. Experimental results were compared with self-consistent mean-field calculations based on the finite-range Gogny D1M interaction. To reproduce the measured T1/2p,βDF(188Bihs), the calculated fission barrier of Pb188 had to be reduced by ≈30%. After this reduction, the measured T1/2p,βDF(188Bils) was in agreement with calculations for a few possible configurations for Bils188. Theoretical βDF probabilities for these configurations were found to be lower by a factor of 4-9 than the βDF probability of Bihs188. The fission fragment mass distribution of Pb188 was compared to the scission-point model SPY and the calculations based on the finite-range liquid-drop model. The first observation of βDF for Bi190 is also reported. © 2020 authors. Published by the American Physical Society. Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI.
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| 4. |
- Sels, S., et al.
(author)
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Doppler and sympathetic cooling for the investigation of short-lived radioactive ions
- 2022
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In: Physical Review Research. - 2643-1564. ; 4:3
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- At radioactive ion beam (RIB) facilities, ions of short-lived radionuclides are cooled and bunched in buffer-gas-filled Paul traps to improve the ion-beam quality for subsequent experiments. To deliver even colder ions, beneficial to RIB experiments' sensitivity or accuracy, we employ Doppler and sympathetic cooling in a Paul trap cooler-buncher. The improved emittance of Mg+, K+, and O2+ ion beams is demonstrated by a reduced time-of-flight spread of the extracted ion bunches with respect to room-temperature buffer-gas cooling. Cooling externally-produced hot ions with energies of at least 7 eV down to a few Kelvin is achieved in a timescale of O(100 ms) by combining a low-pressure helium background gas with laser cooling. This is sufficiently short to cool short-lived radioactive ions. As an example of this technique's use for RIB research, the mass-resolving power in a multireflection time-of-flight mass spectrometer is shown to increase by up to a factor of 4.6 with respect to buffer-gas cooling. Simulations show good agreement with the experimental results and guide further improvements and applications. These results open a path to a significant emittance improvement and, thus, unprecedented ion-beam qualities at RIB facilities, achievable with standard equipment readily available. The same method provides opportunities for future high-precision experiments with radioactive cold trapped ions.
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| 5. |
- Bartling, Andrew W., et al.
(author)
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Techno-economic analysis and life cycle assessment of a biorefinery utilizing reductive catalytic fractionation
- 2021
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In: Energy & Environmental Science. - : Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC). - 1754-5692 .- 1754-5706. ; 14:8, s. 4147-4168
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Reductive catalytic fractionation (RCF) is a promising approach to fractionate lignocellulose and convert lignin to a narrow product slate. To guide research towards commercialization, cost and sustainability must be considered. Here we report a techno-economic analysis (TEA), life cycle assessment (LCA), and air emission analysis of the RCF process, wherein biomass carbohydrates are converted to ethanol and the RCF oil is the lignin-derived product. The base-case process, using a feedstock supply of 2000 dry metric tons per day, methanol as a solvent, and H-2 gas as a hydrogen source, predicts a minimum selling price (MSP) of crude RCF oil of $1.13 per kg when ethanol is sold at $2.50 per gallon of gasoline-equivalent ($0.66 per liter of gasoline-equivalent). We estimate that the RCF process accounts for 57% of biorefinery installed capital costs, 77% of positive life cycle global warming potential (GWP) (excluding carbon uptake), and 43% of positive cumulative energy demand (CED). Of $563.7 MM total installed capital costs, the RCF area accounts for $323.5 MM, driven by high-pressure reactors. Solvent recycle and water removal via distillation incur a process heat demand equivalent to 73% of the biomass energy content, and accounts for 35% of total operating costs. In contrast, H-2 cost and catalyst recycle are relatively minor contributors to operating costs and environmental impacts. In the carbohydrate-rich pulps, polysaccharide retention is predicted not to substantially affect the RCF oil MSP. Analysis of cases using different solvents and hemicellulose as an in situ hydrogen donor reveals that reducing reactor pressure and the use of low vapor pressure solvents could reduce both capital costs and environmental impacts. Processes that reduce the energy demand for solvent separation also improve GWP, CED, and air emissions. Additionally, despite requiring natural gas imports, converting lignin as a biorefinery co-product could significantly reduce non-greenhouse gas air emissions compared to burning lignin. Overall, this study suggests that research should prioritize ways to lower RCF operating pressure to reduce capital expenses associated with high-pressure reactors, minimize solvent loading to reduce reactor size and energy required for solvent recovery, implement condensed-phase separations for solvent recovery, and utilize the entirety of RCF oil to maximize value-added product revenues.
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| 6. |
- Abu-Omar, Mahdi M., et al.
(author)
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Guidelines for performing lignin-first biorefining
- 2021
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In: Energy & Environmental Science. - : Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC). - 1754-5692 .- 1754-5706. ; 14:1, s. 262-292
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Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The valorisation of the plant biopolymer lignin is now recognised as essential to enabling the economic viability of the lignocellulosic biorefining industry. In this context, the lignin-first biorefining approach, in which lignin valorisation is considered in the design phase, has demonstrated the fullest utilisation of lignocellulose. We define lignin-first methods as active stabilisation approaches that solubilise lignin from native lignocellulosic biomass while avoiding condensation reactions that lead to more recalcitrant lignin polymers. This active stabilisation can be accomplished by solvolysis and catalytic conversion of reactive intermediates to stable products or by protection-group chemistry of lignin oligomers or reactive monomers. Across the growing body of literature in this field, there are disparate approaches to report and analyse the results from lignin-first approaches, thus making quantitative comparisons between studies challenging. To that end, we present herein a set of guidelines for analysing critical data from lignin-first approaches, including feedstock analysis and process parameters, with the ambition of uniting the lignin-first research community around a common set of reportable metrics. These guidelines comprise standards and best practices or minimum requirements for feedstock analysis, stressing reporting of the fractionation efficiency, product yields, solvent mass balances, catalyst efficiency, and the requirements for additional reagents such as reducing, oxidising, or capping agents. Our goal is to establish best practices for the research community at large primarily to enable direct comparisons between studies from different laboratories. The use of these guidelines will be helpful for the newcomers to this field and pivotal for further progress in this exciting research area.
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