Neutron dosimetry in low-earth orbit using passive detectors

This paper summarizes neutron dosimetry measurements made by the USF Physics Research Laboratory aboard US and Russian LEO spacecraft over the past 20 years using two types of passive detector. Thermal/resonance neutron detectors exploiting the 6Li(n,T) alpha reaction were used to measure neutrons of energies <1 MeV. Fission foil neutron detectors were used to measure neutrons of energies above 1 MeV. While originally analysed in terms of dose equivalent using the NCRP-38 definition of quality factor, for the purposes of this paper the measured neutron data have been reanalyzed and are presented in terms of ambient dose equivalent. Dose equivalent rate for neutrons <1 MeV ranged from 0.80 microSv/d on the low altitude, low inclination STS-41B mission to 22.0 microSv/d measured in the Shuttle's cargo bay on the highly inclined STS-51F Spacelab-2 mission. In one particular instance a detector embedded within a large hydrogenous mass on STS-61 (in the ECT experiment) measured 34.6 microSv/d. Dose equivalent rate measurements of neutrons >1 MeV ranged from 4.5 microSv/d on the low altitude STS-3 mission to 172 microSv/d on the ~6 year LDEF mission. Thermal neutrons (<0.3 eV) were observed to make a negligible contribution to neutron dose equivalent in all cases. The major fraction of neutron dose equivalent was found to be from neutrons >1 MeV and, on LDEF, neutrons >1 MeV are responsible for over 98% of the total neutron dose equivalent. Estimates of the neutron contribution to the total dose equivalent are somewhat lower than model estimates, ranging from 5.7% at a location under low shielding on LDEF to 18.4% on the highly inclined (82.3 degrees) Biocosmos-2044 mission.     

Secondary particle contribution to LET spectra on LDEF

Four experiments utilizing passive detectors (P0006, P0004, A0015, M0004) were flown on LDEF to study the radiation environment. These experiments have been summarized in a companion paper (Benton et al., 1996). One of the experimental goals was to measure LET spectra at different locations and shielding depths with plastic nuclear track detectors (PNTD). It was found that the LET spectra extended well above the LET cutoff imposed by the geomagnetic field on GCR particle penetration into LEO. The high LET particles detected were mostly short-range (range < 2000 μm), indicating that they were secondaries produced locally within the PNTD. The presence of these high LET particle fluences is important for the determination of dose equivalent because of the high Quality Factors (Q) involved. A relatively small fraction of particle fluence can contribute a large fraction of dose equivalent.

Short-range, inelastic secondary particles produced by trapped protons in the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA) were found to be a major contributor to the LET spectra above 100 keV/μm. The LET spectra were found to extend beyond the 137 keV/μm relativistic GCR Fe peak to over 1000 keV/μm. The high LET tail of the LET spectra was measured in CR-39 and polycarbonate PNTDs using different techniques. GCR made a relatively modest contribution to the LET spectra as compared to the contributions from short-range secondary particles and stopping protons.

LET spectra intercomparisons were made between LDEF measurements and exposures to 154 MeV accelerated proton beams. The similarities support the role of nuclear interactions by trapped protons as the major source of secondary particles in the PNTDs. Also techniques were employed to reduce the range cutoff for detection of the short-range secondaries to 1 μm, so that essentially all secondary particles were included in the LET spectra. This has allowed a more realistic assessment of secondary contribution to dose equivalent.

Comparisons of measured and calculated LET spectra have been made that demonstrate the need for more accurate modeling of secondary particles in radiation transport codes. Comparisons include preliminary calculations in which attempts have been made to include secondary particles.     

反应堆235U裂变源辐射防护材料的优化设计

以热中子反应堆²³⁵U裂变源为辐射源,利用MCNP程序对其能谱进行模拟并研究其辐射防护,结果表明对²³⁵U裂变源所发射的能量高于3MeV的瞬发中子,重金属具有良好的屏蔽效果,而对于能量低于1MeV的中子,轻氢材料的防护效果更好;W/LiH,W/B₄C,TiH₂/W三种复合材料当质量比满足：W：LiH=19：1,W：B₄C=9：1,W：TiH₂=3：1时材料的屏蔽效果最佳;通过遗传算法结合MCNP模拟,得到W/TiH₂/B₄C,TiH₂/Cu/Gd,TiH₂/B₄C/Gd三种复合材料的最优组分配比,源每次裂变产生的粒子穿过这三种材料后在等效组织中造成的剂量当量率（10^-11Sv·h^-1）与材料厚度呈指数下降关系,三种材料分别可近似为1.071exp（-0.187 8x）,1.077exp（-0.166 2x）和1.608exp（-0.171 9x）,x为材料厚度（cm）.     

Intercomparison of radiation measurements on STS-63

A joint NASA Russia study of the radiation environment inside the Space Shuttle was performed on STS-63. This was the second flight under the Shuttle-Mir Science Program (Phase 1). The Shuttle was launched on 2 February 1995, in a 51.65° inclination orbit and landed at Kennedy Space Center on 11 February 1995, for a total flight duration of 8.27 days. The Shuttle carried a complement of both passive and active detectors distributed throughout the Shuttle volume. The crew exposure varied from 1962 to 2790 μGy with an average of 2265.8 μGy or 273.98 μGy/day. Crew exposures varied by a factor of 1.4, which is higher than usual for STS mission. The flight altitude varied from 314 to 395 km and provided a unique opportunity to obtain dose variation with altitude. Measurements of the average east-west dose variation were made using two active solid state detectors. The dose rate in the Spacehab locker, measured using a tissue equivalent proportional counter (TEPC), was 413.3 μGy/day, consistent with measurements made using thermoluminescent detectors (TLDs) in the same locker. The average quality factor was 2.33, and although it was higher than model calculations, it was consistent with values derived from high temperature peaks in TLDs. The dose rate due to galactic cosmic radiation was 110.6 μGy/day and agreed with model calculations. The dose rate from trapped particles was 302.7 μGy/day, nearly a factor of 2 lower than the prediction of the AP8 model. The neutrons in the intermediate energy range of 1–20 MeV contributed 13 μGy/day and 156 μSv/day, respectively. Analysis of data from the charged particle spectrometer has not yet been completed.     

Observation of diffusion through ion irradiated Makrofol KG

The features of the latent track in polycarbonate can be analysed by measuring the diffusion constant under ultra high vacuum conditions. Stacks of 30 μm Makrofol KG foils were irradiated with uranium ions of 11.4 MeV/u at the GSI Darmstadt, Germany. We used different fluences from 3·10¹⁰ to 5·10¹¹ ions/cm². The diffusion constant was determined by the time-lag-method [1]. A quadrupole mass filter was used to observe the diffusion of the gas. We measured the diffusion of argon through different foils of each stack at room temperature. In all cases also unirradiated foils were measured. The dependence of the permeability and the diffusion constant on the ion fluence and the energy loss of the ions will be given and indications on the size of latent ion tracks concerning gas diffusion will be discussed.     

乏燃料贮运用铝基碳化硼复合材料的屏蔽性能计算

采用蒙特卡罗方法, 利用MCNP程序计算了在中子能量为0.5–20 MeV, ²³⁵U核热中子裂变源条件下, 厚度为3–9 cm、碳化硼含量5%–15%的铝基碳化硼复合材料在空气、水、200–1400 ppm (1 ppm=10^-6) 硼酸溶液介质中的中子透射系数. 结果表明: B₄C/Al复合材料的透射系数随碳化硼含量和材料厚度的增加而减少, 随中子能量的升高而增大, 而硼酸浓度的改变对中子透射系数影响不大. B₄C/Al复合材料在水中比硼酸中更能发挥其屏蔽效果, 在空气中屏蔽特性显现出“反转”现象, 中子能量高于5 MeV时透射系数几乎没有变化. 在裂变源条件下的B₄C/Al复合材料中子透射系数均比稳定源20 MeV 低. 介质的中子屏蔽效果是硼酸溶液>水> 空气, 水介质的中子透射系数与介质厚度呈指数下降关系, 裂变源和稳定源条件下分别近似为e^-0.71x和e^-0.669x, x为厚度(cm). 关键词： 蒙特卡罗 乏燃料设备 中子吸收材料 4C/Al')" href="#">B₄C/Al     

Heavy ion induced damage in MgAl2O4, an inert matrix candidate for the transmutation of minor actinides

Magnesium aluminum spinel (MgAl₂O₄) is a material selected as a possible matrix for transmutation of minor actinides by neutron capture or fission in nuclear reactors. To study the radiation stability of this inert matrix, especially against fission product impact, irradiations with heavy energetic ions or clusters have been performed. The high electronic energy losses of the heavy ions in this material led to the formation of visible tracks as evidenced by transmission electron microscopy for 30 MeV C₆₀-Buckminster fullerenes and for ions of energy close to or higher than fission energy (²⁰⁹Bi with 120 MeV and 2.38 GeV energy). The irradiations at high energies showed a pronounced degradation of the spinel. Additionally, MgAl₂O₄ exhibited a large swelling for irradiation at high fluences with fission products of fission energy (here I-ions of 72 MeV) and at temperatures ≤ 500 °C. These observations are discussed from the technological point of view in the frame of using MgAl₂O₄ as an inert matrix for the transmutation of minor actinides.     

Measurement of high energy neutrons by fission reactions

In most high energy radiation fields, such as those encountered around accelerators or cosmic rays in the atmosphere, neutrons produce the largest percentage of the hadron dose. In these radiation fields, the neutron spectrum is typically formed by low energy neutrons (evaporation spectrum) and high energy neutrons (knock-on spectrum).

Neutron spectrometry and dosimetry are better understood for low energy neutrons (i.e. neutrons with energy below 20 MeV) than for those of higher energies. This paper reports the study of different detectors based on the registration of fission fragments of different heavy elements (namely bismuth, gold and tantalum), which have their principal response to high energy neutrons.     

Dosimetry of 40 and 70 MeV/n O beams

Using CR-39 plastic track detectors the range values of ¹⁶O ions at two different energies (initially in the beam line, 39.97 MeV/n and 69.98 MeV/n) were measured after escaping the beam pipe and found to be (3050 ± 40) μm and (8210 ± 90) μm, respectively. The longitudinal and projected angular spread of oxygen ions of an initial energy of 69.98 MeV/n in the region of the Bragg peak was derived from the measured geometrical parameters of tracks. Based on a calibration curve (etch rate ratio vs total linear energy transfer in CR-39) and the measured track length distribution at the range end of oxygen ions, the complete depth dose profile of a 67.7 MeV/n ¹⁶O beam in CR-39 (plateau, extended Bragg peak and residual ionization caused by projectile like fragments) was obtained.     

Cosmic-ray neutron spectrometry by solid state detectors

Extensive data have been gathered since the early 1990s on the response of different detectors based on the registration of neutron-induced fission in bismuth, gold, tantalum by the spark replica counter and the thin film breakdown counter. These detectors make it possible to exploit the excellent characteristics of the fission reactions in bismuth, gold and tantalum for the measurements of high-energy neutrons.

Most of the investigations have been carried out at the quasi-monoenergetic neutron beam facility at The Svedberg Laboratory-TSL of the Uppsala University in cooperation with the Khlopin Radium Institute (KRI).

The responses of different fission detectors in the intermediate range of neutron energy (35–180 MeV) have been evaluated: a region where the predictive power of available nuclear reaction models and codes is not reliable yet. For neutron energy greater than 200 MeV, the fission-detector responses have been derived from the data of the proton fission cross-sections.

Finally, by using the ratio of the responses of these detectors, a simple and accurate way to evaluate the spectrum hardness can be obtained, thus providing a tool to obtain spectral information needed for neutron dosimetry without the need to know the entire spectrum.

The experimentally measured spectra obtained to-date have different shapes and they are also different from those calculated.

In this paper, a new approach will be reported to analyse the existing spectra by using response ratios of different detectors. Preliminary data have been already obtained for the high-energy neutron spectrum from the CERN concrete facility.     

Particle multiplicities in the fission-like reactions of 340 MeV Si on Th

Pre-scission and post-scission multiplicities of neutrons and alpha particles have been simultaneously measured for the fission-like reactions of 340 MeV ²⁸Si on ²³²Th. Dynamical model calculations using HICOL code predict that about 90% of the observed events are of quasi-fission type while the remaining 10% are from compound nucleus fission decay. Moving source fits were carried out to the observed neutron and alpha particle spectra, measured at different angles with respect to the fragment directions. The pre-scission and post-scission neutron multiplicities are deduced to be 8.7±2.0 and 9.4±2.0, respectively. The corresponding multiplicity values for alpha particles are found to be 0.22±0.08 and 0.1±0.03. From the measured post-scission neutron multiplicity, it is inferred that about 65±20 MeV of the initial excitation energy remains at scission. This may be compared to the value of 85±30 MeV estimated from PACE2 statistical model calculations, adjusted to reproduce the measured pre-scission neutron multiplicity. From a comparison of the Statistical Model predictions with the measured pre-scission neutron multiplicity, the fission delay is estimated to be of 5⁺⁷₋₃×10⁻²⁰ s which overlaps with the average duration of fission-like process from the contact to the scission point (2×10⁻²⁰ s) as determined from HICOL-based dynamical calculations. For the delay time deduced as above, the pre-scission alpha particle multiplicity calculated by the PACE2 code is about a factor two larger than the experimental one, demonstrating the difficulties in modelling the alpha particle emission from highly elongated shapes that characterize the fissioning system from the contact point to scission.     

Bismuth-fission detectors for high energy nucleons: II. Proton and neutron responses

A critical requirement for the ²⁰⁹Bi-fission detector is the knowledge of its response as a function of energy for both neutrons and protons. For this reason, stacks of ²⁰⁹Bi-fission detectors have been exposed to proton beams of 100 and 150 MeV at the Paul Sherrer Institute. Similar stacks have been exposed to neutron beams of 100 and 160 MeV at the Svedberg Laboratory from Uppsala University. The calibrations data with neutrons have been compared with those obtained with protons of the same energies. This comparison has proved that the response of ²⁰⁹Bi-fission detector for neutrons is two to three times smaller than that for protons at least in the range of nucleon energy up to 150 MeV.     

Heavy-ion particle spectrometry by track pattern in muscovite detectors

Muscovite mica detectors were irradiated with the ions: ¹⁹F of 47.5 MeV, ²⁴Mg of 57 MeV, ²⁸Si of 28 and 74 MeV, ³²S of 32 and 74 MeV, ⁶³Cu of 78.75 MeV and with neutron induced uranium fission fragments. Using optical microscopy, after an appropriate chemical etching, two characteristic etched track structure patterns were observed: a rhombic pyramid terrace structure for the Mg, Si and S ions, and a rhombic prism structure for the Cu ions and fission fragments. The use of these etched track patterns to discriminate two groups of ions between them, for the energy range covered in this work, is proposed.     

Measurement of peak fluence of neutron beams using Bi-fission detectors

Fission fragments and other charged particles leave tracks of permanent damage in most of the insulating solids. Damage track detectors are useful for personal dosimeters and for flux/dose determination of high-energy particles from accelerators or cosmic rays. A detector that has its principal response at nucleon energy above 50 MeV is provided by the fission of Bi-209. Neutrons produce the largest percentage of hadron dose in most high-energy radiation fields. In these fields, the neutron spectrum is typically formed by low-energy neutrons (evaporation spectrum) and high-energy neutrons (knock-on spectrum). We used Bi-fission detectors to measure neutron peak fluence and compared the result with the calculated value of neutron peak fluence. For the exposure to 100 MeV we have used the iThemba Facility in South Africa.     

Energy spectra of neutrons emitted following muon capture in O and C

The energy spectra of neutrons emitted following muon capture in ¹⁶O and ¹²C are investigated using the continuum shell model. Nuclear wave functions, which have been shown by Ohtsubo and the author to describe the radiative pion capture reaction in the above nuclei well, are adopted. The calculated neutron energy spectra explain well the observed main peaks, at 5 MeV for ¹⁶O and 4 MeV for ¹²C, which are considered to be the giant resonances excited in the muon capture reaction. These peaks are interpreted as the 2⁻ state at 20.3 MeV for ¹⁶O and the 1⁻ state at 22.5 MeV for ¹²C. Comparisons with photon spectra in radiative pion capture reactions are also made. The calculated total capture rates exceed the experimental values by a factor of 2.5 for ¹⁶O and by 30–40% for ¹²C.     

LET spectra measurements on LDEF: variations with shielding and location

LET spectra measurements made with passive plastic nuclear track detectors (PNTDs) were found to depend on detector orientation, shielding and experiment location. LET spectra were measured at several locations on LDEF as part of the P0006 LETSME experiment (Benton and Parnell, 1984), the P0004 Seeds in Space experiment (Parks and Alston, 1984), the A0015 Free Flyer Biostacks and the M0004 Fiber Optics Data Link experiment (Taylor, 1984). Locations included the east, west and Earth sides of the LDEF satellite. The LET spectra measured with PNTDs deviated significantly from calculations, especially for high LET particles (LET_∞·H₂O ≥ 100 keV/μm). At high LETs, short-range inelastic secondary particles produced by trapped proton interactions with the nuclei of the detector were found to be the principal contributor to LET spectra. At lower LETs, the spectra appeared to be due to short-range, inelastic and stopping primary protons, with primary GCR particles making a smaller contribution.

The dependence of LET spectra on detector orientation and shielding was studied using the four orthogonal stacks in the P0006 experiment. Both measurements of total track density and LET spectra showed a greater number of particles arriving from the direction of space than from Earth. Measurements of LET spectra in CR-39 PNTD on the east (leading) and west (trailing) sides of LDEF showed a higher rate of production at the west side. This was caused by a larger flux of trapped protons on the west side as predicted by the east/west trapped proton anisotropy in the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA).

Track density measured in CR-39 PNTDs increased as a function of shielding depth in the detector stack. A similar measurement made in a thick stack of CR-39 interspersed with layers of Al and exposed to 154 MeV protons at a ground-based accelerator showed a similar result, indicating that a significant fraction of the particle events counted were from secondaries and that the total cross-section for production of proton-induced secondaries increased as the energy of primary protons attenuated. Little change was seen in either total differential or integral LET spectra as a function of shielding depth, indicating that the increase in cross section with decreasing proton energy affected mostly the shorter range secondary components. Similarity in the slopes of LET spectra from ground-based proton exposures and the A0015 LET spectra showed that modeling of a monoenergetic proton beam transported through a 1-D geometry was a useful first step in modeling the production of secondary particles by trapped protons in the SAA.     

Energy loss dependent transversal etching rates of heavy ion tracks in plastic

By the method of electrolytical etching track etching rates V_t and corresponding transversal track etching rates V_trans of single heavy ion tracks in thin Makrofol KG foils have been measured at ion energies from 10–480 MeV/u. Makrofol KG foils of 8 μm thickness were irradiated perpendicular to the surface with ⁷⁹Au and ⁵⁴Xe ions at specific energies with energy loss values of REL=(10–90) ^*10³ MeVcm²/g at GSI Darmstadt, Germany, and Lawrence Berkeley Lab., Cal., USA. Using the electrolytical etching method by measuring the resistance of the foil during the etching process (etching conditions: 6n NaOH, room temperature and controlled 50° C) the breakthrough time and track etching rates V_t, V_trans and V_m (bulk etching rate) were analysed. Response curves (V_t/V_m)-1 as a function of Restricted Energy Loss (REL), the maximum extension of the ion induced damage perpendicular to the ion path and the dimension of the ion track core depending on the deposited energy can be estimated.     

A neutron sensor based on superheated droplets

The neutron sensor based on superheated droplets, developed in the U.S.A. and U.K., is one of the most attractive techniques at present for neutron radiation dosimetry. Limited shelf life, i.e. six months (BTI, U.K.), and the dependence of neutron response on climatic conditions are some of the problems associated with these sensors. The development of the above type of sensor suitable for tropical conditions is therefore required. The authors have begun to develop such sensors. The preliminary results show a lower limit of detection of 10 μSv for an ²⁴¹Am-Be neutron source and a linear response from 10 μSv to 1 mSv has been reported.     

Spin-spin effect in the Ho total neutron cross section at energies of 0.4 and 1.0 MeV

Measurements of the spin-spin effect, σ_ss in the total cross section for polarized neutrons on polarized ¹⁶⁵Ho are reported at neutron energies of 0.4 and 1.0 MeV. The absence of an observable effect at 1.0 MeV is in contradiction with a recently reported experimental result. The results of an improved theoretical calculation of σ_ss for neutron energies below 8 MeV are presented and used with the new experimental data to obtain the new limit V_ss < 300 keV for the strength of the spin-spin potential.     

Proximity scattering in the sequential decay Ca(d, n)Sc3.46(p)Ca

In a nuclear two-stage reaction proceeding through excited states of an unstable intermediate system, rescattering can occur between two of the three outgoing particles as a special type of final-state interaction (“proximity scattering”). The probability for proximity scattering increases with a decreasing lifetime of the intermediate state. Correlations between protons and neutrons from the reaction ⁴⁰Ca(d, np)⁴⁰Ca were measured at a bombarding energy of 5.80 MeV and a neutron emission angle of 70°. The results are compared with a quantal calculation of the cross section for this process. A width Γ = 50±20 keV for the excited state at 3.46 MeV in ⁴¹Sc has been deduced from this comparison. Apparent discrepancies between the Γ-values obtained by this method and by a classical prediction for the proximity scattering probability are discussed.