• Title/Summary/Keyword: Neutron and ${\gamma}$-rays

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Experimental setup for elemental analysis using prompt gamma rays at research reactor IBR-2

  • Hramco, C.;Turlybekuly, K.;Borzakov, S.B.;Gundorin, N.A.;Lychagin, E.V.;Nehaev, G.V.;Muzychka, A. Yu;Strelkov, A.V.;Teymurov, E.
    • Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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    • v.54 no.8
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    • pp.2999-3005
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    • 2022
  • The new experimental setup has been built at the 11b channel of the IBR-2 research reactor at FLNP, JINR, to study the elemental composition of samples by registration of prompt gamma emission during thermal neutron capture. The setup consists of a curved mirror neutron guide and a radiation-resistant HPGe high-purity germanium detector. The detector is surrounded by lead shielding to suppress the natural background gamma level. The sample is placed in a vacuum channel and surrounded by a LiF shield to suppress the gamma background generated by scattered neutrons. This work presents characteristics of the experimental setup. An example of hydrogen concentration determining in a diamond powder made by detonation synthesis is given and on its basis, the sensitivity of the setup is calculated being ~4 ㎍.

Study of n/γ discrimination using 3He proportional chamber in high gamma-ray fields

  • Choi, Joonbum;Park, Junesic;Son, Jaebum;Kim, Yong Kyun
    • Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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    • v.51 no.1
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    • pp.263-268
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    • 2019
  • The $^3He$ proportional chamber is widely used for neutron measurement owing to its high neutron detection efficiency and simplicity for gamma-ray rejection. In general, the neutron and gamma-ray signals obtained from the $^3He$ proportional chamber can be easily separated by the difference in the pulse heights. However, for a high gamma-ray field, the gamma-ray signal cannot be precisely eliminated by the pulse height due to gamma-ray pulse pileup which causes the pulse height of gamma-ray pulse to increase and making the pulses due to neutrons and gamma rays indistinguishable. In this study, an improved algorithm for $n/{\gamma}$ discrimination using a parameter, which is the ratio of the rise time to the pulse height, is proposed. The $n/{\gamma}$ discrimination performance of the algorithm is evaluated by applying it to $^{252}Cf$ neutron signal separation from various gamma-ray exposure rate levels ranging 0.1-5 R/h. The performance is compared to that of the conventional pulse-height analysis method in terms of the gamma elimination ratio. The suggested algorithm shows better performance than the conventional one by 1.7% (at 0.1 R/h) to 70% (at 5 R/h) for gamma elimination.

Material Discrimination Using X-Ray and Neutron

  • Jaehyun Lee;Jinhyung Park;Jae Yeon Park;Moonsik Chae;Jungho Mun;Jong Hyun Jung
    • Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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    • v.48 no.4
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    • pp.167-174
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    • 2023
  • Background: A nondestructive test is commonly used to inspect the surface defects and internal structure of an object without any physical damage. X-rays generated from an electron accelerator or a tube are one of the methods used for nondestructive testing. The high penetration of X-rays through materials with low atomic numbers makes it difficult to discriminate between these materials using X-ray imaging. The interaction characteristics of neutrons with materials can supplement the limitations of X-ray imaging in material discrimination. Materials and Methods: The radiation image acquisition process for air-cargo security inspection equipment using X-rays and neutrons was simulated using a GEometry ANd Tracking (Geant4) simulation toolkit. Radiation images of phantoms composed of 13 materials were obtained, and the R-value, representing the attenuation ratio of neutrons and gamma rays in a material, was calculated from these images. Results and Discussion: The R-values were calculated from the simulated X-ray and neutron images for each phantom and compared with those obtained in the experiments. The R-values obtained from the experiments were higher than those obtained from the simulations. The difference can be due to the following two causes. The first reason is that there are various facilities or equipment in the experimental environment that scatter neutrons, unlike the simulation. The other is the difference in the neutron signal processing. In the simulation, the neutron signal is the sum of the number of neutrons entering the detector. However, in the experiment, the neutron signal was obtained by superimposing the intensities of the neutron signals. Neutron detectors also detect gamma rays, and the neutron signal cannot be clearly distinguished in the process of separating the two types of radiation. Despite these differences, the two results showed similar trends and the viability of using simulation-based radiation images, particularly in the field of security screening. With further research, the simulation-based radiation images can replace ones from experiments and be used in the related fields. Conclusion: The Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute has developed air-cargo security inspection equipment using neutrons and X-rays. Using this equipment, radiation images and R-values for various materials were obtained. The equipment was reconstructed, and the R-values were obtained for 13 materials using the Geant4 simulation toolkit. The R-values calculated by experiment and simulation show similar trends. Therefore, we confirmed the feasibility of using the simulation-based radiation image.

Calculation of Neutron and Gamma-Ray Flux-to-Dose-Rate Conversion Factors (중성자(中性子) 및 감마선(線)에 대한 선량율(線量率) 환산인자(換算因子) 계산(計算))

  • Kwon, Seog-Guen;Lee, Soo-Yong;Yook, Chong-Chul
    • Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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    • v.6 no.1
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    • pp.8-24
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    • 1981
  • This paper presents flux-to-dose-rate conversion factors for neutrons and gamma rays based on the American National Standard Institute(ANSI) N666. These data are used to calculated the dose rate distribution of neutron and gamma ray in radiation fields. Neutron flux-to-dose-rate conversion factors for energies from $2.5{\times}10^{-8}$ to 20 MeV are presented; the corresponding energy range for gamma rays is 0.01 to 15 MeV. Flux-to-dose-rate conversion factors were calculated, under the assumption that radiation energy distribution has nonlinearity in the phantom, have different meaning from those values obtained by monoetiergetic radiation. Especially, these values were determined with the cross section library. The flux-to-dose-rate conversion factors obtained in this work were in a good agreement to the values presented by ANSI. Those data will be a useful for the radiation shielding analysis and the radiation dosimetry in the case of continuous energy distributions.

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Development of a DDA+PGA-combined non-destructive active interrogation system in "Active-N"

  • Kazuyoshi Furutaka;Akira Ohzu;Yosuke Toh
    • Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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    • v.55 no.11
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    • pp.4002-4018
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    • 2023
  • An integrated neutron interrogation system has been developed for non-destructive assay of highly-radioactive special nuclear materials, to accumulate knowledge of the method through developing and using it. The system combines a differential die-away (DDA) measurement system for the quantification of nuclear materials and a prompt gamma-ray analysis (PGA) system for the detection of neutron poisons which disturb the DDA measurements; a common D-T neutron generator is used. A special care has been taken for the selection of materials to reduce the background gamma rays produced by the interrogation neutrons. A series of measurements were performed to test the basic performance of the system. The results show that the DDA system can quantify plutonium of as small as 20 mg and it is not affected by intense neutron background up to 1.57 × 107 s-1 and gamma ray of 4.43 × 1010 s-1. The gamma-ray background counting rate at the PGA detector was reduced down to 3.9 × 103 s-1 even with the use of the D-T neutron generator. The test measurements show that the PGA system is capable of detecting 0.783 g of boron and about 86.8 g of gadolinium in 30 min.

Development of a Portable Detection System for Simultaneous Measurements of Neutrons and Gamma Rays (중성자선과 감마선 동시측정이 가능한 휴대용 계측시스템 개발에 관한 연구)

  • Kim, Hui-Gyeong;Hong, Yong-Ho;Jung, Young-Seok;Kim, Jae-Hyun;Park, Sooyeun
    • Journal of radiological science and technology
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    • v.43 no.6
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    • pp.481-487
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    • 2020
  • Radiation measurement technology has steadily improved and its usage is expanding in various industries such as nuclear medicine, security search, satellite, nondestructive testing, environmental industries and the domain of nuclear power plants (NPPs). Especially, the simultaneous measurements of gamma rays and neutrons can be even more critical for nuclear safety management of spent nuclear fuel and monitoring of the nuclear material. A semiconductor detector comprising cadmium, zinc, and tellurium (CZT) enables to detect gamma-rays due to the significant atomic weight of the elements via immediate neutron and gamma-ray detection. Semiconductor sensors might be used for nuclear safety management by monitoring nuclear materials and spent nuclear fuel with high spatial resolution as well as providing real-time measurements. We aim to introduce a portable nuclide-analysis device that enables the simultaneous measurements of neutrons and gamma rays using a CZT sensor. The detector has a high density and wide energy band gap, and thus exhibits highly sensitive physical characteristics and characteristics are required for performing neutron and gamma-ray detection. Portable nuclide-analysis device is used on NPP-decommissioning sites or the purpose of nuclear nonproliferation, it will rapidly detect the nuclear material and provide radioactive-material information. Eventually, portable nuclide-analysis device can reduce measurement time and economic costs by providing a basis for rational decision making.

Development of Neutron Induced Prompt γ-ray Spectroscopy System Using 252Cf (252Cf 선원을 이용한 즉발감마선 계측시스템 구성)

  • Park, Yong-Joon;Song, Byung-Chul;Jee, Kwang-Yong
    • Analytical Science and Technology
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    • v.16 no.1
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    • pp.12-24
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    • 2003
  • For the design and set-up of neutron induced prompt ${\gamma}$-ray spectroscopy system using $^{252}Cf$ neutron source, the effects of shielding and moderator materials have been examined. The $^{252}Cf$ source being used for TLD badge calibration in Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute was utilized for this preliminary experiment. The ${\gamma}$-ray background and prompt ${\gamma}$-ray spectrum of the sample containing Cl were measured using HPGe (GMX 60% relative efficiency) located at the inside of the system connected to notebook PC at the outside of the system (about 20 meter distance). The background activities of neutron and ${\gamma}$-rays were measured with neutron survey meter as well as ${\gamma}$-ray survey meters, respectively and the system was designed to minimize the activities. Prompt ${\gamma}$-ray spectrum was measured using ${\gamma}$-${\gamma}$ coincident system for reduce the background and the continuum spectrum. The optimum system was designed and set up using the experimental data obtained.

Measurement of Energy Dependent Differential Neutron Capture Cross-section of Natural Sm by Using a Continuous Neutron Flux below (연속에너지 중성자에 대한 천연 Sm의 중성자 포획단면적 측정)

  • Yoon, Jungran
    • Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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    • v.10 no.5
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    • pp.337-341
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    • 2016
  • We measured the neutron capture cross-section of natural Sm(n,${\gamma}$) reaction in the energy regions from 0.003 to 10 eV. The 46-MeV electron linear accelerator of Research Reactor Institute, Kyoto University was used for generating a continuous neutron source. The neutron time-of-flight method was adopted for energy measurement. An assembly of BGO($Bi_4Ge_3O_{12}$) scintillators composed of 12 pieces of BGO crystals measured prompt gamma rays from Sm(n,${\gamma}$) reaction. The BGO assembly was located at a distance of $12.7{\pm}0.02m$ from the neutron source. In order to determine the neutron flux impinging on the Sm, the $^{10}B(n,{\alpha}{\gamma})^7Li$ standard cross-section were used. Natural Sm(n,${\gamma}$) reaction measurement result of the neutron capture cross-section was compared with the results of evaluation of the BROND-2.2 and the previous experimental data of J. C. Chou and V. N. Kononov.

Biological Effects Of Blood And Testis By Abdominal Irradiation With Neutron Or Gamma-ray In Black Mouse

  • Chun, Ki-Jung;Yoo, Bo-Kyung
    • Proceedings of the PSK Conference
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    • 2003.10b
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    • pp.109.1-109.1
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    • 2003
  • The aim of this study was to investigate the biological effects of blood and testis by neutron or gamma-ray irradiation in black mouse. Six-week-old C57BL male mice were irradiated with neutron (flux: 1.036739E+09) or Co60 gamma rays(dose rate: lGy/min.) The irradiation method of animal was abdominal irradiation and dose of irradiation was 10 and 20 Gy added with 5 and 15Gy in neutron irradiation.. After that, the mice were sacrificed 3 days later. Blood and testis were taken and then composition of blood in blood cell were investigated. (omitted)

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