Elemental Study of Bangladeshi Fish Samples Using PIGE Technique

Proton induced gamma emission (PIGE) method has been developed at the Accelerator Laboratory of Atomic Energy Center, Dhaka (AECD) for the investigation of various human health related specimens. In the present study PIGE analytical technique has been used for the determination of numerous trace elements in some commonly used fish samples which were collected from Islampur area at Savar. During the experimental work the γrays emitted from the prepared fish samples were measured using a Highpurity Germenium (HPGe) detector. The detected 18 elements were Iron, Calcium, Sodium, Magnesium, Aluminum, Potassium, Vanadium, Chromium, Manganese, Copper, Zinc, Selenium, Bromine, Rubidium, Strontium, Cadmium, Iodine, Lead etc. The objective of this study was to measure the concentrations of these trace elements in the collected fish samples and to investigate whether their concentrations are harmful for human health by comparison with limits set by WHO/FAO. The results obtained indicate that Fe, K and Ca concentrations were relatively high in all samples as compared with the other elements. The measured elemental concentration of Fe, Mn, Zn, Cu, Cr and V in all fish samples were found to be above the WHO/FAO recommended limits

Assessment of N-16 activity concentration in Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission TRIGA Research Reactor

An assessment for determining N-16 activity concentrations during the operation condition of Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission TRIGA Research Reactor was performed employing several governing equations. The radionuclide N-16 is a high energy (6.13 MeV) gamma emitter which is predominately created by the fast neutron interaction with O-16 present in the reactor core water. During reactor operation at different power level, the concentration of N-16 at the reactor bay region may increase causing radiation risk to the reactor operating personnel or the general public. Concerning the safety of the research reactor, the present study deals with the estimation of N-16 activity concentrations in the regions of reactor core, reactor tank, and reactor bay at different reactor power levels under natural convection cooling mode. The estimated N-16 activity concentration values with 500 kW reactor power at the reactor core region was 7.40×105Bq/cm3 and at the bay region was 3.39×10−5Bq/cm3. At 3 MW reactor power with active forced convection cooling mode, the N-16 activity concentration in the decay tank exit water was also determined, and the value was 4.14×10−1Bq/cm3

Estimation of Na-24 activity concentration in BAEC TRIGA Research Reactor

The Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission (BAEC) TRIGA Research Reactor is a unique nuclear installation of the country generally implemented for a wide variety of research applications and serves as an excellent source of neutron. During reactor operation it is necessary to measure and control the activity concentration of the pool water for fuel element failure detection and for the determination of contamination. The present study deals with the estimation of activity concentration for Na-24 present in water coolant produced as a result of 23Na (n, γ) 24Na reaction. Several governing equations have been employed to estimate the Na-24 activity concentrations theoretically at different reactor power levels including maximum reactor power of 2.4 MW. From the obtained result it is ensured that the estimated Na-24 activity of 8.83 × 10−3 μCi/cm3 is not significant enough for any radiological hazard. Thus for ensuring radiological safety issues of the research reactor the assessment performed under the present study has an implication. Keywords: TRIGA Research Reactor, Na-24, Activity concentration, Purification system, Water impurity, Radiological safet