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Title: Method of fission product beta spectra measurements for predicting reactor anti-neutrino emission

Abstract

The nuclear fission process that occurs in the core of nuclear reactors results in unstable, neutron-rich fission products that subsequently beta decay and emit electron antineutrinos. These reactor neutrinos have served neutrino physics research from the initial discovery of the neutrino to today's precision measurements of neutrino mixing angles. The prediction of the absolute flux and energy spectrum of the emitted reactor neutrinos hinges upon a series of seminal papers based on measurements performed in the 1970s and 1980s. The steadily improving reactor neutrino measurement techniques and recent reconsiderations of the agreement between the predicted and observed reactor neutrino flux motivates revisiting the underlying beta spectra measurements. A method is proposed to use an accelerator proton beam delivered to an engineered target to yield a neutron field tailored to reproduce the neutron energy spectrum present in the core of an operating nuclear reactor. Foils of the primary reactor fissionable isotopes placed in this tailored neutron flux will ultimately emit beta particles from the resultant fission products. Measurement of these beta particles in a time projection chamber with a perpendicular magnetic field provides a distinctive set of systematic considerations for comparison to the original seminal beta spectra measurements. Ancillary measurements suchmore » as gamma-ray emission and post-irradiation radiochemical analysis will further constrain the absolute normalization of beta emissions per fission. The requirements for unfolding the beta spectra measured with this method into a predicted reactor neutrino spectrum are explored.« less

Authors:
; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE
OSTI Identifier:
1176821
Report Number(s):
PNNL-SA-101212
Journal ID: ISSN 0168-9002; TRN: US1500045
DOE Contract Number:  
AC05-76RL01830
Resource Type:
Journal Article
Journal Name:
Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research. Section A, Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 776; Journal ID: ISSN 0168-9002
Publisher:
Elsevier
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY; NUCLEAR REACTORS; FISSION PRODUCTS; BETA DECAY; ELECTRON ANTINEUTRINOS; Radiation Flux; ENERGY SPECTRA; ACCURACY; COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS; PROTON BEAMS; NEUTRONS; NEUTRON FLUX; BETA SPECTRA; TIME PROJECTION CHAMBERS; PHOTON EMISSION; GAMMA RADIATION; RADIOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS

Citation Formats

Asner, David M., Burns, Kimberly A., Campbell, Luke W., Greenfield, Bryce A., Kos, Marek S., Orrell, John L., Schram, Malachi, VanDevender, Brent A., Wood, Lynn S., and Wootan, David W. Method of fission product beta spectra measurements for predicting reactor anti-neutrino emission. United States: N. p., 2015. Web. doi:10.1016/j.nima.2014.09.076.
Asner, David M., Burns, Kimberly A., Campbell, Luke W., Greenfield, Bryce A., Kos, Marek S., Orrell, John L., Schram, Malachi, VanDevender, Brent A., Wood, Lynn S., & Wootan, David W. Method of fission product beta spectra measurements for predicting reactor anti-neutrino emission. United States. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nima.2014.09.076
Asner, David M., Burns, Kimberly A., Campbell, Luke W., Greenfield, Bryce A., Kos, Marek S., Orrell, John L., Schram, Malachi, VanDevender, Brent A., Wood, Lynn S., and Wootan, David W. 2015. "Method of fission product beta spectra measurements for predicting reactor anti-neutrino emission". United States. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nima.2014.09.076.
@article{osti_1176821,
title = {Method of fission product beta spectra measurements for predicting reactor anti-neutrino emission},
author = {Asner, David M. and Burns, Kimberly A. and Campbell, Luke W. and Greenfield, Bryce A. and Kos, Marek S. and Orrell, John L. and Schram, Malachi and VanDevender, Brent A. and Wood, Lynn S. and Wootan, David W.},
abstractNote = {The nuclear fission process that occurs in the core of nuclear reactors results in unstable, neutron-rich fission products that subsequently beta decay and emit electron antineutrinos. These reactor neutrinos have served neutrino physics research from the initial discovery of the neutrino to today's precision measurements of neutrino mixing angles. The prediction of the absolute flux and energy spectrum of the emitted reactor neutrinos hinges upon a series of seminal papers based on measurements performed in the 1970s and 1980s. The steadily improving reactor neutrino measurement techniques and recent reconsiderations of the agreement between the predicted and observed reactor neutrino flux motivates revisiting the underlying beta spectra measurements. A method is proposed to use an accelerator proton beam delivered to an engineered target to yield a neutron field tailored to reproduce the neutron energy spectrum present in the core of an operating nuclear reactor. Foils of the primary reactor fissionable isotopes placed in this tailored neutron flux will ultimately emit beta particles from the resultant fission products. Measurement of these beta particles in a time projection chamber with a perpendicular magnetic field provides a distinctive set of systematic considerations for comparison to the original seminal beta spectra measurements. Ancillary measurements such as gamma-ray emission and post-irradiation radiochemical analysis will further constrain the absolute normalization of beta emissions per fission. The requirements for unfolding the beta spectra measured with this method into a predicted reactor neutrino spectrum are explored.},
doi = {10.1016/j.nima.2014.09.076},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1176821}, journal = {Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research. Section A, Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment},
issn = {0168-9002},
number = ,
volume = 776,
place = {United States},
year = {Sun Mar 01 00:00:00 EST 2015},
month = {Sun Mar 01 00:00:00 EST 2015}
}