Direct disposal of spent nuclear fuel (SNF) in deep geological formations is the preferred option for the final storage of nuclear waste in many countries. In order to assess to which extent radionuclides could be released to the environment, it is of great importance to understand how they are chemically bound in the waste matrix. This is particularly important for long-lived radionuclides suc...

Chromium is a naturally occurring element present in the earth’s crust. Chromium is released to the environment from natural and anthropogenic sources, with the largest release occurring from industrial releases. The industries with the largest contribution to chromium release include metal processing, tannery facilities, chromate production, stainless steel welding, and ferrochrome and chrome ...

BACKGROUND Chromium is an essential element in human nutrition. Serum concentrations of chromium are not well characterized during pregnancy or in gestational diabetes mellitus. OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to determine whether low plasma chromium concentrations (< or =3 nmol/L) are associated with altered glucose, insulin, or lipid concentrations during pregnancy. DESIGN The s...

Chromium is one of the 25 most widespread elements in the Earth’s crust and occurs as an indelible non-volatile trace element in raw materials used in cement clinker production (clay, limestone and iron additives in particular). Chromium in raw materials mentioned above is mainly in form of trivalent chromium. Naturally occurring chromium (III) is not initially harmful, since it is chemically s...

Reduction of chromium(VI) to chromium(Ill) by thiourea between pH 3.0 and 5.5 is a key aspect of the chrominm(VI)/thiourea/polyacrylamide gel polymer system used in enhanced oil recovery processes. A method has been developed to determine chromium(Vl) concentration during the reduction of chromium(VI) to chromium(III) in this pH range. The reduction reaction is run in the presence of an acetic ...

The data on the standards for chromium requirements and the safety of various chromium compounds and doses are reviewed. The 350-fold difference between the acceptable daily intake and the calculated reference dose for humans of 70 mg per day seems without precedent with respect to other nutritional minerals. Previous claims of mutagenic effects of chromium are of questionable relevance. While ...

This study was undertaken to develop an assay for biologically active chromium suitable for determining the best form of chromium for human supplementation studies. The assay involved monitoring the decrease in fasting serum glucose for 1-3 hours in normal human subjects following ingestion of 100 μg of chromium. The maximum decline occurred 1-2 hours after taking the chromium. The average maxi...

We have developed a data transparent optical packet switch prototype employing wavelength conversion based on four-wave mixing. The switch is composed of an electro-optical control unit and an all-optical switching segment. To achieve higher switching efficiencies, Ge-doped silica suspended-core and chalcogenide arsenicselenide single-mode fibers were experimentally evaluated and compared to co...

Selenophosphate synthetase, the product of the selD gene, produces the biologically active selenium donor compound, monoselenophosphate, from ATP and selenide. Isolation of the enzyme and characterization of some of its physical and catalytic properties are described. Magnesium ion and a monovalent cation, K+, NH4+, or Rb+, are required for catalytic activity. Polyphosphates and other common nu...