Abstract: A functional membrane is provided, which has high functionality combined with the gas barrier performance and mechanical strength inherent in a polymer film substrate. In particular, a polymer electrolyte membrane is provided, which is excellent in terms of high proton conductivity and gas barrier performance and is most appropriate to serve as a polymer electrolyte membrane for fuel cells. A method for producing a functional membrane is provided, which comprises: a step of ion irradiation, in which active species are generated in a polymer film substrate containing nonconductive inorganic particles by irradiating the polymer film substrate with high-energy heavy ions to the extent of 104/cm2 to 1014/cm2; and a step of graft polymerization subsequent to the step of ion irradiation, in which one or more monomers selected from group A consisting of monomers containing useful functional groups are added such that the monomers are graft polymerized with the polymer film substrate.

Abstract: An apparatus with which areas near surfaces in a water environment that are contaminated by radioisotopes are decontaminated by non-thermal laser peeling without suffering re-melting, re-diffusing and re-contaminating. The apparatus includes a piping structure with which a substance to be irradiated that has been deposited on outer and inner surfaces of a nuclear reactor pressure vessel, and a nuclear reactor container tank, and the internal nuclear reactor structures all having been contaminated with radioisotopes, can be removed in the water environment. The piping structure, to secure a region in a water environment that is gas pressurized to discharge the water and filled with the gas to not interfere with laser irradiation, has a semi-hermetically closed, incomplete water seal that is half-open with a siphon provided downward, a mechanical structure that withstands water pressure in a radial direction, and an extendable bellows-like tube to enable the piping structure to tilt.

Abstract: A crosslinked nano-inorganic particle/polymer electrolyte membrane composed of a polymer film substrate, graft molecular chains bound to the backbone skeleton of the polymer film substrate and comprising a vinyl monomer graft-polymerized, sulfonic groups bound to the graft molecular chains, and an inorganic material as nano-scale particles uniformly dispersed within a crosslinked structure ascribed to the backbone skeleton of the polymer film substrate and the graft molecular chains, wherein the backbone skeleton of the polymer film substrate, the graft molecular chains, and the nano-inorganic particles mutually construct a crosslinked structure.

Abstract: A sensing element for cyclic saturated hydrocarbons, which can optically detect in a short time the volatilized organic hydride at comparatively low sensing element temperature, and a detector which uses the sensing element are disclosed. The sensing element for cyclic saturated hydrocarbons has a transparent substrate made of ceramics such as quartz; a tungsten trioxide thin film having columnar structure on the transparent substrate, and a platinum layer formed to the thickness of 15 nm or less on the surface of the thin film by deposition.

Abstract: Parts, structural components, etc. that have their surfaces contaminated by radioisotopes in the accelerators, nuclear reactors, RI product manufacturing factories, nuclear fuel factories, nuclear fuel reprocessing factories, etc. are decontaminated by non-thermal laser peeling without suffering re-melting, re-diffusing and re-contaminating such that upon non-thermal laser irradiation, areas near the irradiated surface are evaporated and removed faster than the heat generated in the irradiated surface is transmitted to nearby areas.

Abstract: Isotope identification imaging of nuclear fuel material or explosives concealed in a drum or container in which nuclear reactor fuel or radioactive waste are sealed is realized while ensuring high precision, high reliability, and safety. A sample 31 is irradiated with laser Compton photon beams 21 and 22 generated by a collision between an electron beam 12 and polarized laser light 16 and 20. An isotope in the sample is identified using nuclear resonance fluorescence, and the spatial distribution thereof is imaged. In so doing, a nuclear level of an isotope whose emission direction of nuclear resonance fluorescence is dependent on the planes of polarization of the incident LCS photon beams is used.

Abstract: Provided is a method that can remove fission products in a spent electrolyte produced in a dry reprocessing process by an easy operation and can vitrify the fission products easily, the fission products including not only the fission products that generate precipitate but also the fission products that generate no precipitate. A spent electrolyte produced in a dry reprocessing process is subjected to a phosphate conversion processing to obtain a processing target substance; the processing target substance is passed through a separating material 10 including an iron phosphate glass at a temperature of not more than a softening point of the iron phosphate glass in order to remove insoluble fission products included in the processing target substance by filtration with the separating material and to sorb fission products in solution to the separating material for separation; and the iron phosphate glass holding the fission products is used as a waste vitrification material.

Abstract: A neutron image detection method is disclosed, which collects a fluorescent light generated by a neutron incident at a designated position interval in one-dimensional geometry and determines an incident position of the neutron by detecting the collected fluorescent light, in which the fluorescent light is detected by a photon counting method; a pulse signal generated by an individual output photon is extracted on the basis of a clock signal generated with the same time interval as the time width of the pulse signal generated by a single photon; a count-value distribution is obtained in terms of incident position as variable determined by a single neutron incident by counting the pulse signal output; and a neutron incident position is determined by calculating a median point on the basis of the obtained count-value distribution.

Abstract: A method for separating and recovering trivalent and tetravalent actinoids in a simple and less costly manner without using an organophosphorus compound is provided. This method selectively separates and recovers the tetravalent actinoid plutonium Pu (IV) and the trivalent actinoids americium Am (III) and curium Cm (III) from trivalent lanthanoids Ln (III), etc. with the use of an extractant having a functional group with neutral multidentate ligand activity which is a hybrid donor type organic compound having both of donor atoms, i.e., an oxygen atom and a nitrogen atom.

Abstract: A hydrogen gas detecting material, which changes in light absorption characteristics when exposed to an atmosphere containing hydrogen, and the coating method are characterized in that (1) the principal component of the hydrogen gas detecting material is tungsten oxide, (2) palladium is deposited on the surface of the tungsten oxide, (3) the tungsten oxide is coated on a substrate by a sputtering method involving a controlled oxygen pressure, and (4) the temperature of the substrate during coating with the tungsten oxide is room temperature (20° C.).

Abstract: Filter media for liquid purification, which can remove metal compounds or metal ions containing in polishing or washing liquids such as alkali, acid solution or ultra-pure water used for silicon wafers of semiconductors. Removal of metals from various kind of liquid such as inorganic chemicals, organic solvent, or industrial waste water are also the subject of the present invention. The Filter media made of melt-blown nonwoven substrate comprising of aethylene/norbornene copolymer represented by the following formula [1] and/or a polycyclic norbornene polymer represented by the following formulae [2](a),(b),(c) as raw material, wherein said ethylene/norbornene copolymer and said polycyclic norbornene polymer have a glass transition temperature (Tg) selected in a range from 80 to 180° C. and melt volume rate (MVR) (ISO 1133, measuring conditions: 260° C., 2.

Abstract: A gas amount measuring device including a vacuum container, a first pipe, an air release valve being attached to the first pipe, a second pipe, a calibration gas generator being attached to the first pipe, a third pipe, a vacuum gauge, a first valve, a leak valve, a second valve, a turbomolecular pump, a third valve, and a roughing pump being attached to the third pipe in order from a vacuum container side, a first bypass pipe connecting the third pipe between the vacuum container and the first valve to the third pipe between the leak valve and the second valve, a fourth valve being attached to the first bypass pipe, and a second bypass pipe connecting the third pipe between the leak valve and the second valve to the third pipe between the third valve and the roughing pump, a fifth valve being attached to the second bypass pipe.

Abstract: Disclosed is an austenitic welding material which contains C: 0.01 wt % or less, Si: 0.5 wt % or less, Mn: 0.5 wt % or less, P: 0.005 wt % or less, S: 0.005 wt % or less, Ni: 15 to 40 wt %, Cr: 20 to 30 wt %, N: 0.01 wt % or less, 0: 0.01 wt % or less, and the balance of Fe and inevitable impurities, wherein the content of B contained as one of the inevitable impurities in the welding material is 3 wt ppm or less, and the total content of C, P, S, N and O in the welding material is 0.02 wt % or less.

Abstract: [Problems to be Solved] To provide highly hydrous contact lenses having a cellulose derivative as an essential component. [Means to Solve the Problems] The highly hydrous contact lens formed by exposing a pasty mixture containing a cellulose derivative, a polymerizable compound couplable to the foregoing cellulose derivative, and water to radiation.

Abstract: There is provided a gas separation apparatus for separating a specified gas from a gas to be treated containing a plurality of gases. The gas separation apparatus includes a plurality of serially-connected separation units that separate the specified gas from other gases by using a column, and a suction unit that controls an inside of the column to a reduced pressure. At least two of the plurality of separation units differ from each other in at least one separation condition.

Abstract: By performing photograft polymerization of functional monomers such that grafted chains will be introduced from the surface of a polymer base film into its interior without deteriorating its inherent characteristics and also by creating a multiplex crosslinked structure between the grafted chains and the base film under such conditions as to cause preferential radiation-induced crosslinking reaction, there is produced a polymer electrolyte membrane having high enough oxidation resistance and proton conductivity to be suitable for use in fuel cells.

Abstract: A high gain solid-state laser apparatus capable of generating short-pulse terahertz waves with high efficiency is provided. The apparatus includes laser gain media 1 and an optical switch 3 that entraps seed light from a laser oscillator into the apparatus and outputs amplified laser light pulses from the apparatus. In the apparatus, ytterbium-doped lutetium lithium tetrafluoride (LuLiF4) crystal that is cooled below the liquid-nitrogen temperature is used as the laser gain media.

Abstract: An object of the present invention is to provide a method and an apparatus which solve problems such as a measurement error due to air bubbles in a scattering method and a light-shielding method, count loss due to different elements and impossible measurement due to emulsification, and can easily and accurately measure the number, the particle size and the like of fine particles in a fluid at a low cost.

Abstract: There are provided a radiation-proof resin composition that is excellent in mechanical characteristics even after exposure to harsh radiation (with 2.5 MGy), that exhibits a suitable radiation-resistant properties by a small amount of mixed additives, and that can suppress the blooming of the additives, and a radiation-resistant wire/cable. The radiation-resistant resin composition is obtained by adding 0.3 to 1.0 parts by mass of a salicylate-based UV absorber, 0.3 to 5 parts by mass of a benzotriazole-based UV absorber, and 0.3 to 5 parts by mass of a triazine-based UV absorber to 100 parts by mass of a polyolefin-based resin.

Abstract: An image sensor and an image sensing method can obtain image signals with a high S/N ratio in a high-speed image pickup operation. Signal charges are input to input transfer stage 31 of CCD memory 30. Final transfer stage 32 is formed so as to be connected to the input transfer stage 31 and able to transfer signal charges to the input transfer stage 31. In an accumulation mode, read gate 42 and drain gate 40 are not turned on and the next transfer operation of the CCD memory 30 is conducted. The accumulated signal charges are transferred on a stage by stage basis and the signal charges obtained at the first image pickup timing are transferred again straightly to the input transfer stage 31. In this state, the signal charges obtained newly at photoelectric conversion section 20 at the next image pickup timing are injected into the input transfer stage 31 by way of input gate 21.