Portable Neutron Sensors for Emergency Response Operations
This article presents the experimental work performed in the area of neutron detector development at the Remote Sensing Laboratory–Andrews Operations (RSL-AO) sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) in the last four years. During the 1950s neutron detectors were developed mostly to characterize nuclear reactors where the neutron flux is high. Due to the indirect nature of neutron detection via interaction with other particles, neutron counting and neutron energy measurements have never been as precise as gamma-ray counting measurements and gamma-ray spectroscopy. This indirect nature is intrinsic to all neutron measurement endeavors (except perhaps for neutron spin-related experiments, viz. neutron spin-echo measurements where one obtains μeV energy resolution). In emergency response situations generally the count rates are low, and neutrons may be scattered around in inhomogeneous intervening materials. It is also true that neutron sensors are most efficient for the lowest energy neutrons, so it is not as easy to detect and count energetic neutrons. Most of the emergency response neutron detectors are offshoots of nuclear device diagnostics tools and special nuclear materials characterization equipment, because that is what is available commercially. These instruments mostly are laboratory equipment, and not field-deployable gear suited for mobile teams. Our goal is to design and prototype field-deployable, ruggedized, lightweight, efficient neutron detectors.
- Research Organization:
- Nevada Test Site (NTS), Mercury, NV (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)
- DOE Contract Number:
- DE-AC52-06NA25946
- OSTI ID:
- 1055950
- Report Number(s):
- DOE/NV/25946-1404
- Journal Information:
- Proceedings of the American Nuclear Society June 2012 meeting, Conference: American Nuclear Society (ANS) Annual Meeting, Chicago, Illinois, June 24-28, 2012
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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