A new PGAI-NT setup at the NIPS facility of the Budapest Research Reactor

Prompt gamma activation analysis (PGAA) is a well known tool for non-destructive bulk elemental analysis of objects. The measured concentrations are only representative of the whole sample if it is homogenous; otherwise it provides only a sort of average composition of the irradiated part. In this latter case one has to scan the sample to obtain the spatial distribution of the elements. To test this idea we have constructed a prompt gamma activation imaging – neutron tomograph (PGAI-NT) setup at the NIPS station of the Budapest Research Reactor, consisting of a high-resolution neutron tomograph and a germanium gamma-spectrometer. The samples are positioned relative to the intersection of the collimated neutron beam and the projection of the gamma-collimator (isocenter) by using an xyzω-moving table

Results on the performance of a liquid H2 and 3He target

In this paper we present a H2 and 3He condenser to be used as a target for intermediate energy nuclear physics experiments. Here we summarize the test results on its working performance

ESPOSIZIONE PROFESSIONALE AL RISCHIO BIOLOGICO IN AMBITO OSPEDALIERO: PROPOSTA DI UN METODO DI VALUTAZIONE

La valutazione del rischio biologico è regolamentata dai Titoli X e X-bis (D.Lgs.81/08). Stimare il rischio consente di attuare idonee misure preventive nei confronti del lavoratore. Lo scopo del lavoro è di elaborare un metodo valutativo del rischio biologico in ambito ospedaliero basato su un indice di rischio numerico che rispecchi l’effettiva variabilità di esposizione degli operatori. Il metodo proposto è basato su quello elaborato da INAIL per la valutazione del rischio biologico negli ambulatori “Prime cure”, riadattato alla complessità ospedaliera. Per ogni reparto sono stati definiti rilevanti i seguenti parametri: 1) Tipologia e quantità delle procedure a rischio eseguite; 2) Presenza di pazienti portatori di malattie trasmissibili; 3) Conoscenza delle idonee procedure atte a garantire un’adeguata prevenzione; 4) Utilizzo di DPI e formazione degli operatori. E’ stato somministrato un questionario ai 71 reparti degli Ospedali Riuniti di Ancona. La rielaborazione delle risposte ottenute è stata integrata con dati provenienti dalle notifiche per malattie trasmissibili e dalle denunce di infortunio professionale. La corretta pesatura di taluni parametri ha contribuito al calcolo dell’indice di rischio finale. Si evincono differenze significative per ciascun reparto. Le aree con maggior numero di manovre a rischio sono le stesse che conoscono ed attuano maggiormente adeguate procedure preventive. Le terapie intensive, pur svolgendo attività ad elevata potenzialità di contaminazione, sono quelle che meglio conoscono idonee misure preventive. I reparti in cui l’applicazione delle procedure risulta più critica sono quelli dell’area dell’emergenza, presumibilmente a causa della tipologia di lavoro più frenetica e meno programmabile, e quella dei servizi, probabilmente per una diminuita percezione del rischio. Lo studio svolto ha permesso di elaborare un’indice numerico volto a stimare il rischio di subire una infezione oc- cupazionale da parte degli operatori sanitari. L’analisi dei risultati ottenuti ha evidenziato un livello di rischio biologico “minimo” comune a tutte le aree. Il ri- schio cresce in funzione di tipologia/quantità di manovre invasive eseguite, nonché della presenza di pazienti por- tatori di malattie trasmissibili, ma può essere abbattuto mediante la corretta applicazione di procedure preventive

Project of a scintillation liquid Xenon detector

In this paper we present a project of a liquid Xenon scintillation counter we are now realizing. The designs of a prototype detector and of a system aiming to obtain a further purification of the commercial Xenon are described in some detail. Such a kind of detector could be very suitable for intermediate energy nuclear physics experiments

The GLAST tracker design and construction

The Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST) is an international and multi-agency space mission that will study the cosmos in the energy range 20 MeV - 1 TeV. GLAST is an imaging gamma-ray telescope more much capable than instruments flown previously. The main instrument on board of the spacecraft is the Large Area Telescope (LAT), a high energy pair conversion telescope consisting of three major subsystems: a precision silicon tracker/converter, a CsI electromagnetic calorimeter and a segmented anti-coincidence system. In this article, we present the status of the construction and tests of the silicon tracker

The GLAST tracker design and construction

The Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST) is an international and multi-agency space mission that will study the cosmos in the energy range 20 MeV - 1 TeV. GLAST is an imaging gamma-ray telescope more much capable than instruments flown previously. The main instrument on board of the spacecraft is the Large Area Telescope (LAT), a high energy pair conversion telescope consisting of three major subsystems: a precision silicon tracker/converter, a CsI electromagnetic calorimeter and a segmented anti-coincidence system. In this article, we present the status of the construction and tests of the silicon tracker

The GLAST tracker design and construction

The Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST) is an international and multi-agency space mission that will study the cosmos in the energy range 20 MeV – 1 TeV. GLAST is an imaging gamma-ray telescope more much capable than instruments flown previously. The main instrument on board of the spacecraft is the Large Area Telescope (LAT), a high energy pair conversion telescope consisting of three major subsystems: a precision silicon tracker/converter, a CsI electromagnetic calorimeter and a segmented anti-coincidence system. In this article, we present the status of the construction and tests of the silicon tracker

The GLAST LAT tracker construction and test

GLAST is a next generation high-energy gamma-ray observatory designed for making observations of celestial gamma-ray sources in the energy band extending from 10 KeV to more than 300 GeV. Respect to the previous instrument EGRET, GLAST will have a higher effective area (six times more), higher field of view, energy range and resolution, providing an unprecedented advance in sensitivity (a factor 30 or more). The main scientific goals are the study of all gamma-ray sources such as blazars, gamma-ray bursts, supernova remnants, pulsars, diffuse radiation, and unidentified high-energy sources. The construction and test of the Large Area Telescope (LAT) tracker, has been a great effort during the past years, involving tens of people from many Italian INFN sections and industrial partners. Environmental and performance tests of the hardware, detectors and reading electronics, have been carried on during all the steps of the LAT construction. The resulting LAT performance are better than the ones required by the original science proposal, demonstrating the quality of the italian group effort. In this article we summarize the LAT construction and test workflow, presenting its main results