Plutonium solution assay system based on high-resolution gamma-ray spectroscopy
An automated, nondestructive assay system for plutonium solution samples has been designed, constructed, and tested. The assay system is based on high-resolution gamma-ray spectroscopy of the naturally emitted plutonium gamma rays. The assays are made on 20- to 30-ml samples over a wide range of plutonium concentration (approx. 0.5 g Pu/l to approx. 500 g Pu/l) with 1-sigma precision of generally less than or equal to 1% for /sup 239/Pu, /sup 241/Pu, and /sup 241/Am in assay times of 45 min or less. When properly calibrated, bias and/or systematic error is less than or equal to 1% over the range of concentration, and the assay procedure is insensitive to the chemical composition of the solutions. The system employs a very high resolution, moderately efficient lithium-drifted germanium gamma-ray detector to optimize the accurate extraction of the required information from the complex plutonium spectra. Also critical to the assay accuracy is the correction for sample self attenuation (based on transmission measurement through the sample by an external plutonim source) and the correction for pileup and deadtime losses (based on the constant 88.0 keV flux from a small, fixed /sup 109/Cd source). Once set up and running the system is easily operated by relatively untrained personnel and the system control codes have many internal checks on the system performance and assay precision.
- Research Organization:
- Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-36
- OSTI ID:
- 5642525
- Report Number(s):
- LA-8146-MS; TRN: 80-005166
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
ORGANIC
PHYSICAL AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
98 NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT, SAFEGUARDS, AND PHYSICAL PROTECTION
PLUTONIUM
GAMMA SPECTROSCOPY
ACCURACY
AUTOMATION
LI-DRIFTED GE DETECTORS
SOLUTIONS
ACTINIDES
DISPERSIONS
ELEMENTS
GE SEMICONDUCTOR DETECTORS
LI-DRIFTED DETECTORS
MEASURING INSTRUMENTS
METALS
MIXTURES
RADIATION DETECTORS
SEMICONDUCTOR DETECTORS
SPECTROSCOPY
TRANSURANIUM ELEMENTS
400103* - Radiometric & Radiochemical Procedures- (-1987)
055001 - Nuclear Fuels- Safeguards
Inspection
& Accountability- Technical Aspects