Year
1999
Abstract
Uranium and plutonium storage present different challenges to radiation detectors. The former does not generate significant numbers of neutrons but does produce many gamma- and x-rays below 200 keV. On the other hand, gamma radiation field from plutonium is intense, extends to energies significantly above those from uranium, and plutonium emits spontaneous fission neutrons. Radiation detectors based on the 10B(n,a) reaction and using CZT or scintillator are being evaluated for use in storage applications. In addition, a small and relatively inexpensive detector employing a thin polyethylene radiator mounted within an ion chamber was built to measure fast fission neutrons in a high gamma-ray field and at temperatures in excess of 50C. This paper will present the results of measurements of the characteristics of these devices and an evaluation regarding their utility in storage applications.