A small diameter, flexible, all attitude, self-contained germanium spectrometer. Operator`s manual
- Battelle, Pacific Northwest National Lab., Richland, WA (United States)
- Battelle, Columbus Lab., OH (United States)
The end of the Cold War has brought about tremendous changes in the nuclear complex of the Department of Energy. One of the many changes has been the shutdown or decommissioning of many facilities that performed nuclear work. One of the steps in the process of decommissioning a facility involves the decontamination or removal of drain lines or pipes that may have carried radioactive materials at one time. The removal of all these pipes and drain lines to a nuclear disposal facility could be quite costly. It was suggested by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) that a germanium spectrometer could be built that could fit through straight pipes with a diameter as small as 5.08 cm (2 inches) and pass through curved pipes with a diameter as small as 7.6 cm (3 inches) such as that of a 3-inch p-trap in a drain line. The germanium spectrometer could then be used to simultaneously determine all gamma-ray emitting radionuclides in or surrounding the pipe. By showing the absence of any gamma-ray emitting radionuclides, the pipes could then be reused in place or disposed of as non-radioactive material, thus saving significantly in disposal costs. A germanium spectrometer system has been designed by PNNL and fabricated by Princeton Gamma Tech (PGT) that consists of three segments, each 4.84 cm in diameter and about 10 cm in length. Flexible stainless steel bellows were used to connect the segments. Segment 1 is a small liquid nitrogen reservoir. The reservoir is filled with a sponge-like material which enables the detector to be used in any orientation. A Stirling cycle refrigerator is under development which can replace the liquid nitrogen reservoir to provide continuous cooling and operation.
- Research Organization:
- Battelle Memorial Inst., Columbus, OH (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Assistant Secretary for Human Resources and Administration, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC06-76RL01830
- OSTI ID:
- 567509
- Report Number(s):
- PNWD-2395; ON: DE97053811; TRN: 98:008616
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: PBD: May 1997
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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