A study of neutron room scattering at RPCF

Abstract

High energy physics facilities must monitor the radiation doses received by their personnel. This monitoring can only be effective if the radiation detection devices can be calibrated with a good degree of accuracy. Radiation fields are usually composed of several types of radiation, including gamma rays, beta radiation, neutrons, etc. The neutron detection instruments respond not only to the neutrons coming directly from the source but also those scattered from the floor, walls, and ceiling. The amount of neutron scattering varies from site to site depending on the construction materials and layout of the building. The purpose of this study was to determine the scattered neutron fraction in the central volume of the calibration mezzanine of the Radiation Physics Calibration Facility (RPCF) at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab). At Fermilab, radiation workers dosimeters use CR39 for neutron detection, which are sent to an outside vendor for reading. As part of the quality assurance program, Fermilab routinely sends the vendor ``spiked`` badges, i.e. badges exposed to a known amount of neutron dosage at RPCF. This study determines a correction factor due to scattered neutron to the spiked badges. The study was conducted in a room with floor dimensions of 12 m by 9.5 m. The walls and ceiling are thin steel and insulation supported by steel 1-beams. We determined the total amount of radiation at three heights above the floor, and at three distances from an AmBe neutron source at each height in the RPCF using the Bonner Sphere technique

    Similar works