Non-destructive assay of plutonium in absence of gamma-ray spectrometry
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Sanhita Chaudhury
,
Ashwani Kumar
Abstract
Gamma-ray spectrometry-based isotopic composition analysis is a prerequisite for absolute non-destructive assay of Pu by neutron counting or calorimetry. However, gamma-ray spectrometry can be complicated in samples that are heavily shielded or have a high 241Am fraction. Herein, for the absolute non-destructive assay of Pu, a simple yet potent empirical methodology combining neutron multiplicity counting and calorimetry is proposed, which obviates the need for gamma-ray spectrometry-based isotopic composition analysis. The approach includes stepwise correlation between the parameters obtained from neutron multiplicity counting, i.e., α ((α, n) neutron to spontaneous fission neutron ratio), effective mass of 240Pu, and D (doubles neutron rate) with the thermal power output (W Pu) due to radioactive decay (measured by calorimetry). Because D and W Pu both are governed by the Pu isotopic composition, their correlation should be sensitive to the isotopic information in a given sample. Mandatory correction for the 241Am contribution in W Pu was done using the linear plot between its weight fraction and the corresponding α. The proposed methodology was validated by analyzing several PuO2 standards containing high 241Am fraction (0.02–0.09). The measured Pu amounts were within 8 % of the actual values with measurement uncertainties between 8 and 10 %, which shows the potential of the proposed methodology for the assay of samples having high 241Am content or for the quantification of Pu in heavily shielded samples.
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Research ethics: Not applicable.
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Author contributions: The authors have accepted responsibility for the entire content of this manuscript and approved its submission.
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Competing interests: The authors state no conflict of interest.
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Research funding: None declared.
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Data availability: Not applicable.
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Supplementary Material
This article contains supplementary material (https://doi.org/10.1515/ract-2023-0193).
© 2024 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
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Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Preface
- NUCAR-2023: Foreword
- Research Articles
- Theoretical analysis of light and heavy-ion induced reactions: production of medically relevant 97Ru
- Excitation functions of alpha-particle induced nuclear reactions on nat Sn
- Non-destructive assay of plutonium in absence of gamma-ray spectrometry
- Catalytic destruction of oxalate in the supernatant stream generated during plutonium reconversion process
- Quantification of Zr in simulated dissolver solution of U–Zr fuel by laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy
- Radiochemical and chemical characterization of fuel, salt, and deposit from the electrorefining of irradiated U-6 wt% Zr in hot cells
- Zirconium sponge production: an integrated approach for chemical characterization of process intermediates using ICP-OES
- Determination of 10B/11B in boric acid and B4C using LA-ICPMS
- Evaluating sustainability of Bhuj aquifer system, Western India using nuclear dating techniques
- Nanocrystalline Ce(OH)4-based materials: ruthenium selective adsorbent for highly alkaline radioactive liquid waste
- Production and radiochemical separation of 68Ge from irradiated Ga–Ni alloy target in 30 MeV cyclotron
- Preparation of [64Cu]Cu–NOTA complex as a potential renal PET imaging agent using 64Cu produced via the direct activation route
- Total chemical synthesis of PSMA-617: an API for prostate cancer endotherapeutic applications
- Rapid screening technique for gross α and gross β estimations in aqueous samples during radiation emergency
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