NukeWorker Forum

Reference, Questions and Help => Nuke Q&A => Instrument Q&A => Topic started by: stormgoalie on Aug 15, 2007, 07:34

Title: Security monitor
Post by: stormgoalie on Aug 15, 2007, 07:34

All, 

Hope I am putting this in the right part of the forum so here goes.

We are in the process of doing some security modifications at a spent fuel dry storage facility and have run in to a snag with our security monitoring.  Our license requires that we maintain the capability to monitor for a specific amount of "special nuclear material" to the equivelant of approx 1/4 of a CANDU fuel pin.  Up until now we have relied upon a PM7 to accomplish this with some difficulty (background variations due to movement of loaded storage containers causing false alarms).

Now the obvious solution would be to shield the area where the PM7 is located to ensure as stable a background as possible.  Unfortunately due to restrictions imposed by facility design we do not have this option.  When discussing this with the Health Physicist the idea has been tossed around to use Neutron monitoring to detect spontaneous fissions of Pu-239 to get around the variable gamma background levels.  Does anyone have any experience with this sort of monitoring?  I am hoping that some of the Lazy H folks that worked at PFP or PUREX might have some experiences to pass on.  As a reformed Hanford tech I am hoping my former co-workers or anyone else can help a brother out ;D

Thanks and please forgive me if I posted this in the wrong area.

Cheers,
Jim Rodgers
NRRPT
RP Supervisor
Ontario Power Generation
Western Waste Management Facility

Title: Re: Security monitor
Post by: UncaBuffalo on Aug 15, 2007, 08:35

Try www.canberra.com

I´d think some of their ´Homeland Security´stuff would do what you are asking...

Title: Re: Security monitor
Post by: stormgoalie on Aug 16, 2007, 07:49

Thanks a bunch!! They do have something that might suit our needs, now the hard part is to convinvce HP and Security to look at it.

Cheers,
Jim Rodgers
NRRPT
RP Supervisor
Ontario Power Generation
Western Waste Management Facility

Title: Re: Security monitor
Post by: tonymartino on May 16, 2008, 03:21

I have seen their Inspector 1000 and Falcon at a trade show and it should do what you are asking for.