Development and testing of a system for forming neutron fluxes on a linear electron accelerator
A system for the formation of neutron fluxes, consisting of a neutron converter, a neutron reflector and a lead protection, has been developed and partially manufactured. Test tubes with an aqueous solution of the organic dye methyl orange with the addition of 4% boric acid were used as detectors of...
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| Zitieren: | Development and testing of a system for forming neutron fluxes on a linear electron accelerator / S.P. Gokov, V.M. Horbach, S.A. Kalenik, Yu.G. Kazarinov, V.V. Kantemirov, V.I. Kasilov, S.S. Kochetov, O.A. Lyukhtan, A.V. Tverdohvalov, V.V. Tsiats’ko, E.V. Tsiats’ko // Problems of Atomic Science and Technology. — 2022. — № 5. — С. 73-76. — Бібліогр.: 5 назв. — англ. |
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irk-123456789-1957882023-12-07T12:15:13Z Development and testing of a system for forming neutron fluxes on a linear electron accelerator Gokov, S.P. Horbach, V.M. Kalenik, S.A. Kazarinov, Yu.G. Kantemirov, V.V. Kasilov, V.I. Kochetov, S.S. Lyukhtan, O.A. Tverdohvalov, A.V. Tsiats’ko, V.V. Tsiats’ko, E.V. Linear charged-particle accelerators A system for the formation of neutron fluxes, consisting of a neutron converter, a neutron reflector and a lead protection, has been developed and partially manufactured. Test tubes with an aqueous solution of the organic dye methyl orange with the addition of 4% boric acid were used as detectors of the generated neutron fluxes, which is associated with the impossibility of using gas-discharge neutron counters in the accelerator bunker due to the impact of pulsed electrical noise and gamma-ray flashes. Testing of the neutron flux formation system showed that the neutron flux at the location of the detectors increased by 15%, while the neutron background in the accelerator bunker decreased by 3 times. The conducted studies have shown the effectiveness of using a chemical dosimeter under conditions of intense pulsed neutron fluxes. Розроблена та частково виготовлена система формування нейтронних потоків, яка складається з нейтронного конвертера, відбивача нейтронів та свинцевого захисту. В якості детекторів сформованих потоків нейтронів використовувалися пробірки з водним розчином органічного барвнику метиловий помаранчевий з додаванням 4% борної кислоти, що пов’язано з неможливістю використання газорозрядних лічильників нейтронів у бункері прискорювача через вплив імпульсних електричних перешкод і гамма-спалахів. Тестування системи формування потоку нейтронів показало, що потік нейтронів у місці розташування детекторів збільшився на 15%, а нейтронний фон у бункері прискорювача зменшився в 3 рази. Проведені дослідження показали ефективність використання хімічного дозиметра в умовах інтенсивних імпульсних потоків нейтронів. 2022 Article Development and testing of a system for forming neutron fluxes on a linear electron accelerator / S.P. Gokov, V.M. Horbach, S.A. Kalenik, Yu.G. Kazarinov, V.V. Kantemirov, V.I. Kasilov, S.S. Kochetov, O.A. Lyukhtan, A.V. Tverdohvalov, V.V. Tsiats’ko, E.V. Tsiats’ko // Problems of Atomic Science and Technology. — 2022. — № 5. — С. 73-76. — Бібліогр.: 5 назв. — англ. 1562-6016 PACS: 61.72.Cc, 61.80.Hg, 78.20.Ci, 87.80.+s, 87.90.+y, 07.05.Tp, 78.70.–g DOI: https://doi.org/10.46813/2022-141-073 http://dspace.nbuv.gov.ua/handle/123456789/195788 en Problems of Atomic Science and Technology Національний науковий центр «Харківський фізико-технічний інститут» НАН України |
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Digital Library of Periodicals of National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine |
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Linear charged-particle accelerators Linear charged-particle accelerators |
| spellingShingle |
Linear charged-particle accelerators Linear charged-particle accelerators Gokov, S.P. Horbach, V.M. Kalenik, S.A. Kazarinov, Yu.G. Kantemirov, V.V. Kasilov, V.I. Kochetov, S.S. Lyukhtan, O.A. Tverdohvalov, A.V. Tsiats’ko, V.V. Tsiats’ko, E.V. Development and testing of a system for forming neutron fluxes on a linear electron accelerator Problems of Atomic Science and Technology |
| description |
A system for the formation of neutron fluxes, consisting of a neutron converter, a neutron reflector and a lead protection, has been developed and partially manufactured. Test tubes with an aqueous solution of the organic dye methyl orange with the addition of 4% boric acid were used as detectors of the generated neutron fluxes, which is associated with the impossibility of using gas-discharge neutron counters in the accelerator bunker due to the impact of pulsed electrical noise and gamma-ray flashes. Testing of the neutron flux formation system showed that the neutron flux at the location of the detectors increased by 15%, while the neutron background in the accelerator bunker decreased by 3 times. The conducted studies have shown the effectiveness of using a chemical dosimeter under conditions of intense pulsed neutron fluxes. |
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Article |
| author |
Gokov, S.P. Horbach, V.M. Kalenik, S.A. Kazarinov, Yu.G. Kantemirov, V.V. Kasilov, V.I. Kochetov, S.S. Lyukhtan, O.A. Tverdohvalov, A.V. Tsiats’ko, V.V. Tsiats’ko, E.V. |
| author_facet |
Gokov, S.P. Horbach, V.M. Kalenik, S.A. Kazarinov, Yu.G. Kantemirov, V.V. Kasilov, V.I. Kochetov, S.S. Lyukhtan, O.A. Tverdohvalov, A.V. Tsiats’ko, V.V. Tsiats’ko, E.V. |
| author_sort |
Gokov, S.P. |
| title |
Development and testing of a system for forming neutron fluxes on a linear electron accelerator |
| title_short |
Development and testing of a system for forming neutron fluxes on a linear electron accelerator |
| title_full |
Development and testing of a system for forming neutron fluxes on a linear electron accelerator |
| title_fullStr |
Development and testing of a system for forming neutron fluxes on a linear electron accelerator |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Development and testing of a system for forming neutron fluxes on a linear electron accelerator |
| title_sort |
development and testing of a system for forming neutron fluxes on a linear electron accelerator |
| publisher |
Національний науковий центр «Харківський фізико-технічний інститут» НАН України |
| publishDate |
2022 |
| topic_facet |
Linear charged-particle accelerators |
| url |
http://dspace.nbuv.gov.ua/handle/123456789/195788 |
| citation_txt |
Development and testing of a system for forming neutron fluxes on a linear electron accelerator / S.P. Gokov, V.M. Horbach, S.A. Kalenik, Yu.G. Kazarinov, V.V. Kantemirov, V.I. Kasilov, S.S. Kochetov, O.A. Lyukhtan, A.V. Tverdohvalov, V.V. Tsiats’ko, E.V. Tsiats’ko // Problems of Atomic Science and Technology. — 2022. — № 5. — С. 73-76. — Бібліогр.: 5 назв. — англ. |
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Problems of Atomic Science and Technology |
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ISSN 1562-6016. Problems of Atomic Science and Technology. 2022. №5(141) 73
https://doi.org/10.46813/2022-141-073
DEVELOPMENT AND TESTING OF A SYSTEM FOR FORMING
NEUTRON FLUXES ON A LINEAR ELECTRON ACCELERATOR
S.P. Gokov
1
, V.M. Horbach
2
, S.A. Kalenik
1
, Yu.G. Kazarinov
1,2
, V.V. Kantemirov
1
,
V.I. Kasilov
1
, S.S. Kochetov
1
, O.A. Lyukhtan
2
, A.V. Tverdohvalov
1
,
V.V. Tsiats’ko
1
, E.V. Tsiats’ko
1
1
National Science Centеr “Kharkov Institute of Physics and Technology”, Kharkіv, Ukraine;
2
V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University, Kharkiv, Ukraine
E-mail: gokovsp@kipt.kharkov.ua
A system for the formation of neutron fluxes, consisting of a neutron converter, a neutron reflector and a lead
protection, has been developed and partially manufactured. Test tubes with an aqueous solution of the organic dye
methyl orange with the addition of 4% boric acid were used as detectors of the generated neutron fluxes, which is
associated with the impossibility of using gas-discharge neutron counters in the accelerator bunker due to the impact
of pulsed electrical noise and gamma-ray flashes. Testing of the neutron flux formation system showed that the neu-
tron flux at the location of the detectors increased by 15%, while the neutron background in the accelerator bunker
decreased by 3 times. The conducted studies have shown the effectiveness of using a chemical dosimeter under con-
ditions of intense pulsed neutron fluxes.
PACS: 61.72.Cc, 61.80.Hg, 78.20.Ci, 87.80.+s, 87.90.+y, 07.05.Tp, 78.70.–g
INTRODUCTION
To carry out experiments on the interaction of neu-
tron fluxes with various materials, as well as to create a
compact source of thermal and epithermal neutrons
based on the linear electron accelerator LUE-30 [1], a
system for the formation of neutron fluxes was devel-
oped and partially manufactured. The main purpose of
the neutron flux formation system, on the one hand, is to
equalize and increase the neutron field in the irradiation
zone of the samples under study. On the other hand, the
neutron flux formation system allows to reduce the flux
of neutrons and gamma-quanta from the electron-
neutron converter to the environment and thereby im-
prove the radiation background in the bunker and accel-
erator building.
DESCRIPTION OF THE NEUTRON FLUX
FORMATION SYSTEM
The neutron flux formation system consists of an
electron-neutron converter, a neutron reflector and pro-
tection against the accompanying gamma background
around the reflector. As part of this work, cement-
graphite neutron reflectors with a working area in the
form of a hemisphere, ideal for a nuclear reactor, and a
cylinder, used in the design of nuclear reactors, were
calculated and manufactured [2, 3]. The diagram of the
neutron flux generation system with a reflector with a
working area in the form of a hemisphere at the LUE-30
accelerator is shown in Fig. 1.
A neutron reflector is a medium that, due to its good
moderating properties, allows:
- to reduce the leakage of neutrons from the irradia-
tion zone and thereby improve the radiation back-
ground;
- slightly align and increase the neutron field in the
irradiation zone.
It follows from the above that the main requirement
for the reflector material is that it must be a good neu-
tron moderator, that is, it must have a sufficiently large
ability to slowdown and the lowest possible absorption
of moderated and thermal neutrons [2, 3].
We have manufactured two neutron reflectors: with
spherical and cylindrical working areas from a cement-
graphite mixture in the ratio: 30% cement, 70% graph-
ite. This composition is due to the above properties of
the material for the reflectors and the mechanical
strength of the entire structure. The dimensions of the
reflectors were 300x300x200 mm, the radius of the
hemisphere was 50 mm, and the cylinder diameter was
100 mm.
The electron-neutron converter, which consisted of
four tungsten plates 2 mm thick, was fastened with a
steel rod inside the working area of the reflectors. A
Fig. 1. Scheme of the system for generating neutron fluxes with a reflector
with a working area in the form of a hemisphere on the LUE-30 accelerator
74 ISSN 1562-6016. Problems of Atomic Science and Technology. 2022. №5(141)
hole 30 mm in diameter was drilled in the side part of
the reflector to pass the electron beam from the accel-
erator to the electron-neutron converter. A photograph
of the manufactured reflector from a cement-graphite
mixture is shown in Fig. 2.
Fig. 2. Photo of a reflector made from a cement-graphite mixture
with a working area in the form of a hemisphere.
On the left is a view of the working area, on the right is a hole for passing the beam
When performing this work, a reflector with an elec-
tron-neutron converter inside was placed on the axis of
the electron beam of the LUE-30 accelerator. Outside,
the reflector was lined with lead bricks.
A photo of the reflector with lead shielding on the
axis of the LUE-30 accelerator is shown in Fig. 3.
Fig. 3. Photo of a reflector with lead shielding on the
axis of the LUE-30 accelerator
TESTING THE NEUTRON FLUX
FORMATION SYSTEM
The work was carried out at the NSC KIPT on a lin-
ear electron accelerator LUE-30. An electron beam with
the energy of 15 MeV and an average current of 20 μA
was output from the accelerator to an electron-neutron
converter located inside the system for generating neu-
tron fluxes. Irradiation was carried out for 1 hour, which
corresponds to a total neutron flux of 10
11
n/cm
2
at the
location of the detectors (calculated using the Geant4
program [5]).
Test tubes with an aqueous solution of the organic
dye methyl orange with the addition of 4% boric acid
[4], which were installed inside the lead protection,
were used as detectors of the formed neutron fluxes.
The scheme of the experiment is shown in Fig. 4.
This is due to the fact that under the radiation condi-
tions of the LUE-30 bunker, when the accelerator is
operating at short distances from the electron-neutron
converter, it is impossible to use gas-discharge neutron
counters due to the influence of pulsed electrical noise
and gamma-ray flashes.
Test tubes with an aqueous solution of the organic
dye methyl orange with boric acid were installed inside
the lead shield with a 5 cm thick polyethylene heater at
a distance of 15 cm from the electron-neutron converter.
We carried out three experiments: test tubes with a
solution were irradiated only in the presence of a con-
verter without a reflector, with a reflector with a work-
ing area in the form of a hemisphere, and with a reflec-
tor with a working area in the form of a cylinder. Ab-
sorption spectra were obtained for all irradiated samples
using an SF-46 spectrophotometer. The degree of dis-
coloration of the solutions was used to determine the
total flux of thermal neutrons passing through the irradi-
ated object.
ISSN 1562-6016. Problems of Atomic Science and Technology. 2022. №5(141) 75
Fig. 4. Scheme of the experiment
The main absorption spectra of irradiated and non-
irradiated solutions of methyl orange dye with boric
acid are shown in Fig. 5
Fig. 5. Main absorption spectra of irradiated and non-
irradiated aqueous solution dye methyl orange with 4%
boric acid: 1 – non irradiated dye solution with boric
acid; 2 – dye solution with boric acid irradiated without
reflector; 3 – dye solution with boric acid
irradiated with reflector
It can be seen from Fig. 5 that when the samples
studied without a reflector are irradiated with a neutron
flux, the absorption spectrum of an aqueous solution of
the methyl orange dye “sags” by 25 percent relative to
the non-irradiated solution. This indicates a 25% break-
down of dye molecules in solution due to the interaction
of thermal and epithermal neutron fluxes with
10
В,
which is contained in boric acid [4]. When cement-
graphite reflectors were used in the experiment, an addi-
tional 15% breakdown of dye molecules was observed
due to an increase in the neutron flux density. It was
found in the work that the results obtained for our ex-
periment are practically independent of the shape of the
working area of the reflector. The spherical or cylindri-
cal shape of the working area of the reflector led to the
same additional breakdown of the dye molecules in the
solution, i.e. to the same increase in the density of the
neutron flux at the place of irradiation of the samples.
In this work, the neutron background was also moni-
tored in the bunker and the LUE-30 accelerator build-
ing. The neutron background inside the bunker at a dis-
tance of 9 m from the electron-neutron converter and
within the accelerator building was monitored using a
certified MKS-01 instrument. At the same time, it was
found that the neutron background when using the neu-
tron flux formation system decreases by 3 times. This
will significantly improve the radiation situation during
the operation of the LUE-30 accelerator for neutron
programs and save the technical resource of the acceler-
ator itself, due to the possibility of increasing the neu-
tron flux density in the experiment and reducing the
operating time of the equipment.
CONCLUSIONS
In the work, a system for the formation of neutron
fluxes at the electron accelerator LUE-30 of the NSC
KIPT was developed and tested.
The neutron fluxes obtained using the formation sys-
tem were recorded using chemical dosimeters (test tubes
with an aqueous solution of the organic dye methyl or-
ange with the addition of 4% boric acid). This is due to
the fact that under the radiation conditions of the LUE-
30 bunker, when the accelerator is operating at short
distances from the electron-neutron converter, it is im-
possible to use gas-discharge neutron counters due to
the influence of pulsed electrical noise and gamma-ray
flashes.
An analysis of the obtained absorption spectra of
aqueous solutions showed that the use of cement-
graphite mixture reflectors in the system for generating
neutron fluxes makes it possible to increase the neutron
flux at the location of the irradiated samples by 15%,
while the neutron background in the bunker and in cer-
tain places of the accelerator building decreases by 3
times.
It was also found that the results obtained in our ex-
periment do not actually depend on the shape of the
working area of the reflector.
The presence of a system for the formation of neu-
tron fluxes in the future will significantly improve the
radiation situation during the operation of the LUE-30
accelerator for neutron programs and save the technical
resource of the accelerator itself.
76 ISSN 1562-6016. Problems of Atomic Science and Technology. 2022. №5(141)
The conducted studies have shown the effectiveness
of using a chemical dosimeter under conditions of in-
tense neutron pulsed fluxes in the presence of signifi-
cant pulsed electrical noise and gamma-ray flashes.
REFERENCES
1. V. Kasilov, S. Gokov, S. Kalenik, S. Kochetov,
L. Saliy, V. Tsyats’ko, E. Tsyats’ko, and O. Shopen.
Concept of Neutron Source Creation for Nuclear
Medicine on the Basis of Linear Electron Accelera-
tor // East European Journal of Physics. 2021, v. 4,
p. 160-163.
2. А.Н. Климов Ядерная физика и ядерные реак-
торы. М.: “Атомиздат”, 1985, 384 c.
3. В.Е. Левин. Ядерная физика и ядерные реакто-
ры. 4-е изд. М.: “Атомиздат”, 1979, 288 c.
4. S.P. Gokov, Yu.G. Kazarinov, S.A. Kalenik,
V.Y. Kasilov, T.V. Malykhina, Ye.V. Rudychev,
and V.V. Tsiats’ko. Research of interaction process-
es of fast and thermal neutrons with so-lution of or-
ganic dye methyl orange // East European Journal
of Physics. 2021, v. 4, p. 130-134.
5. Geant4 Collaboration, Physics Reference Manual,
http://cern.ch/geant4-userdoc/UsersGuides/ Phys-
icsList-Guide/fo/PhysicsList Guide.pdf.
Article received 08.09.2022
РОЗРОБКА ТА ТЕСТУВАННЯ СИСТЕМИ ФОРМУВАННЯ ПОТОКІВ НЕЙТРОНІВ
НА ЛІНІЙНОМУ ПРИСКОРЮВАЧІ ЕЛЕКТРОНІВ
С.П. Гоков, В.М. Горбач, С.О. Каленик, Ю.Г. Казарінов, В.В. Кантеміров, В.Й. Касілов,
С.С. Кочетов, О.А. Люхтан, А.В. Твердохвалов, В.В. Цяцько, Є.В. Цяцько
Розроблена та частково виготовлена система формування нейтронних потоків, яка складається з нейт-
ронного конвертера, відбивача нейтронів та свинцевого захисту. В якості детекторів сформованих потоків
нейтронів використовувалися пробірки з водним розчином органічного барвнику метиловий помаранчевий з
додаванням 4% борної кислоти, що пов’язано з неможливістю використання газорозрядних лічильників
нейтронів у бункері прискорювача через вплив імпульсних електричних перешкод і гамма-спалахів. Тесту-
вання системи формування потоку нейтронів показало, що потік нейтронів у місці розташування детекторів
збільшився на 15%, а нейтронний фон у бункері прискорювача зменшився в 3 рази. Проведені дослідження
показали ефективність використання хімічного дозиметра в умовах інтенсивних імпульсних потоків нейтро-
нів.
https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%90%D1%82%D0%BE%D0%BC%D0%B8%D0%B7%D0%B4%D0%B0%D1%82
http://cern.ch/geant4-userdoc/UsersGuides
|