Mixed-Radiation-Field Dosimetry Utilizing Nuclear Quadrupole Resonance

Radiation effects on urea, thiourea, guanidine carbonate and guanine sulfate were evaluated for both photon and neutron irradiations. Hydration of these materials typically provides a greatly increased sensitivity to both forms of radiation exposure, although not all materials lend themselves to this treatment without changing the chemical structure of the compound. Urea was found to be the most stable hydrated compound and provides the best sensitivity for quantifying radiation effects using NQR techniques. Urea permits a straight-forward quantification of each of the important parameters of the observed NQR signal, the FID. Several advanced data analysis methods were developed to assist in quantifying NQR spectra, both from urea and materials having more complex molecular structures, such as thiourea and guanidine sulfate. Unfortunately, these analysis techniques are frequently quite time consuming for the complex NQR spectra that result from some of these materials. The simpler analysis afforded by urea has therefore made it the prime candidate for an NQR dosimetry material. The moderate sensitivity of hydrated urea to photon irradiation does not permit this material to achieve the levels of performance required for a personnel dosimeter. It does, however, demonstrate acceptable sensitivity over dose ranges where it could provide a good biological dosimeter for several areas of radiation processing. The demonstrated photon sensitivity could permit hydrated urea to be used in applications such as food irradiation dosimetry. This material also exhibits a good sensitivity to neutron irradiation. The precise correlation between neutron exposure and the parameters of the resulting NQR spectra are currently being developed